Citations:
State v. Hartman, 476 S.E.2d 328 (N.C. 1996) (Direct Appeal)

Final Meal:
Greek salad, linguini with clam sauce, garlic bread, cheesecake with cherry topping and a Coke.

Final Words:
Hartman issued no final statement.

Internet Sources:

North Carolina Department of Correction (Edward E. Hartman)

HARTMAN, EDWARD E.

DOC Number: 0172549
DOB: 08/25/1964
RACE: WHITE
SEX: MALE

North Carolina Department of Correction (Chronology / Press Release)

9/4/03 - Correction Secretary Theodis Beck sets a second execution date for Oct. 3, 2003.

2/6/03 - Northampton County Superior Court Judge Cy Grant issues an execution stay for Edward Hartman while the State Supreme Court considers whether murder indictments must include the "aggravating circumstances" that elevate first-degree murder to a capital offense.

1/29/03 - Correction Secretary Theodis Beck sets Edward Hartman's execution date for Feb. 28, 2003.

1/13/03 - US Supreme Court denied Hartman's petition for a writ of certiorari

10/20/94 - Edward Hartman sentenced to death in Northampton Co. Superior Court for the murder of Herman Smith Jr.

Date: January 22, 2002 - Execution date set for Edward Hartman

RALEIGH - Correction Secretary Theodis Beck has set February 28, 2003 as the execution date for death row inmate Edward Ernest Hartman. The execution is scheduled for 2 a.m. at Central Prison in Raleigh.

Hartman, 38, was sentenced to death on October 20, 1994 in Northampton County Superior Court for the June 1993 murder of Herman Smith Jr. In addition, Hartman received a 40-year concurrent sentence for armed robbery.

A media tour is scheduled at Central Prison on Monday, Feb. 24. Interested media representatives should arrive at Central Prison’s visitor center promptly at 10 a.m. on the tour date. Warden R.C. Lee will explain the execution procedures. The session will last approximately one hour. This will be the only opportunity to photograph the execution chamber and death watch area before the execution. Journalists who plan to attend the tour should contact the Department of Correction Public Information Office at 919-716-3700.

Date: September 4, 2003 - Execution date set for Edward Hartman

RALEIGH - Correction Secretary Theodis Beck has set Friday, Oct. 3, 2003 as the execution date for death row inmate Edward Ernest Hartman. The execution is scheduled for 2 a.m. at Central Prison in Raleigh.

Hartman, 38, was sentenced to death on October 20, 1994 in Northampton County Superior Court for the June 1993 murder of Herman Smith Jr. In addition, Hartman received a 40-year sentence for armed robbery.

A media tour is scheduled at Central Prison on Monday, Sept. 29. Interested media representatives should arrive at Central Prison’s visitor center promptly at 10 a.m. on the tour date. Warden Marvin Polk will explain the execution procedures. The session will last approximately one hour. This will be the only opportunity to photograph the execution chamber and death watch area before the execution.

Journalists who plan to attend the tour should contact the Department of Correction Public Information Office.

ProDeathPenalty.Com

Edward Hartman told authorities he consumed 16 cans of beer before he fired a pistol at close range into Smith's head while the man sat in a recliner and watched television. Hartman was living at Smith's home at the time. Court records show Hartman told a friend Smith was wealthy and carried thousands of dollars in his pocket. He took the man's car and left the body in the chair. He returned five days later after taking several trips where he wrote checks on Smith's bank account. Bothered by the smell, he dragged the body to a horse stable and buried it. Horses in the stable trampled the ground so thoroughly that it would have been impossible to tell where the body was buried. After he was identified as the suspect, Hartman led officers to the spot.

UPDATE: Edward Hartman, who said he had guzzled 16 cans of beer before deciding to shoot the elderly man he was living with in the head, was executed by lethal injection Friday morning at the state prison. Hartman issued no final statement before his execution at Central Prison, staring at the ceiling after greeting one of his lawyers. Hartman, 38, had confessed to the 1993 murder of Herman Smith. Jr. Smith, 77, was Hartman's mother's former boyfriend. Hartman later told lawmen that after consuming the beer, he shot Smith in the head as the victim sat in a recliner watching television. The murder occurred in Northampton County. After killing Smith, court documents stated, Hartman left the victim's body in the reclining chair and took his car.

After about five days, Hartman took the body to a stable and buried it. Hartman was originally scheduled for execution in February, but his trip to the death house was delayed while the State Supreme Court decided whether murder indictments must include the "aggravating circumstances" that elevate first-degree murder to a capital offense. The court eventually ruled that prosecutors did not have to list those aggravating factors in the murder indictment. Hartman's defense lawyers claimed that Hartman was targeted for death because he was gay. During Hartman's trial, defense lawyers argued that Hartman had various psychological and alcohol related problems and that he had been the victim of sexual abuse. The prosecutor countered that the sexual abuse was not important because Hartman was gay. But the courts rejected those appeals and Gov. Mike Easley rejected pleas to reduce Hartman's sentence to life in prison.

Raleigh News & Observer

"State executes convicted killer; Governor denies clemency after U.S. Supreme Court declines to hear case of man who killed housemate," by Matthew Eisley. (October 3, 2003)

Convicted murderer Eddie Hartman was executed early today for killing his elderly housemate in 1993, after the U.S. Supreme Court and Gov. Mike Easley declined to intervene. Easley denied Hartman clemency about 8 p.m. Thursday, several hours after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to stop the execution and review Hartman's case. The state Supreme Court had denied Hartman's latest appeal on Wednesday.

Hartman's lawyers had asked Easley to convert Hartman's sentence to life in prison without parole. They argued to the governor and to the courts that Hartman was "singled out for the death penalty because he is gay." "Cases that result in the ultimate punishment -- death -- must be free of all forms of discrimination," said Hartman's lead lawyer, Heather Wells of Wilmington.

Easley's public statement denying Hartman clemency didn't address the gay-bias argument. "After a careful review of this case, I find no sufficient reason to overturn the sentence recommended by the jury and affirmed by the courts," the statement said. Hartman met Thursday night with his lawyers, said Pamela Walker , spokeswoman for the Department of Correction.

Hartman, 39 , died by lethal injection at Central Prison in Raleigh shortly after 2 a.m. today . His execution was the state's fourth in six weeks. Hartman's last meal was a Greek salad, linguini with clam sauce, garlic bread, cheesecake with cherry topping and a Coke, Walker said.

Hartman was sentenced to die for the 1993 murder of Herman Smith , 77, of Conway. After drinking 16 beers, Hartman shot Smith in the back of the head with a pistol one night as Smith sat in a recliner chair in his home, where Hartman lived. Hartman then stole Smith's money and car. A Northampton County jury convicted Hartman of first-degree murder and armed robbery.

Lawyers for the state opposed Hartman's request for a reprieve and denied that he had been the victim of unfair prejudice. There was no question of Hartman's guilt, and he confessed. After his conviction, he sought a life sentence based mostly on his traumatic upbringing, including suffering sexual abuse as an 8-year-old boy, when an uncle repeatedly made him perform oral sex.

Hartman's lawyers argued that he might have received life in prison instead of a death sentence if District Attorney David Beard had not improperly said several times in front of the trial jury that Hartman was gay, apparently trying to minimize his sexual abuse. Each time, the judge told the jurors to disregard the improper remarks. But not a single juror concluded that Hartman's repeated sexual abuse mitigated his sentence, although factors such as seeing his mother's abuse and suicide attempts did.

The state's lawyers maintain that the jury didn't consider Hartman's childhood abuse a mitigating factor because there wasn't credible evidence of it. The jury found that Hartman's robbery of Smith outweighed five mitigating factors, including Hartman's alcoholism.

Several gay organizations, gay officials and critics of the death penalty had urged Easley, a former district attorney, to grant Hartman clemency and publicly disapprove of Beard's tactics. The state Supreme Court ruled in an earlier appeal that the judge's instruction to the jury to disregard Beard's improper statements was enough to correct them.

CNN News

"Man Executed for Killing Mother's Ex-Boyfriend." (October 3, 2003)

RALEIGH, North Carolina (AP) -- A man who killed his mother's former boyfriend while living in the man's house in 1993 was executed early Friday by injection. Edward Hartman, 38, was pronounced dead at 2:14 a.m., said Department of Correction spokeswoman Pam Walker.

Harman lost appeals alleging prosecutors tried to inflame jurors by talking repeatedly about his homosexuality. Gov. Mike Easley denied a stay Thursday night that was requested by Hartman's lawyers. Earlier Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court denied the request for a stay and review of the case.

Hartman admitted to the slaying of 77-year-old Herman Smith Jr. while Hartman was living at the man's house. Prosecutors said after drinking heavily, Hartman shot Smith in the head from close range while the man sat in a recliner and watched television. Court records show Hartman told a friend Smith was wealthy and carried thousands of dollars in his pocket. He took the man's car and left the body in the chair. He eventually buried the body in a horse stable and led authorities there after learning he was a suspect.

Defense lawyer Heather Wells said Hartman was unfairly treated during his trial because a prosecutor repeatedly referred to Hartman's homosexuality, which had nothing to do with the killing. "From jury selection through the cross-examination of several penalty phase witnesses, the prosecution repeatedly made references to Eddie's homosexuality," Wells said. "Eddie's homosexuality has no relevance to the crime or the circumstances surrounding the crime and no relevance to whether he should live or die."

Wilmington Star

"N.C. Man Executed for 1993 Slaying," by William L. Holmes. (AP October 03, 2003)

A man convicted in a 1993 shooting death in Northampton County said just one word in the final minutes of his life, turning to greet one of his lawyers and then turning back to stare at the ceiling of the death chamber. Edward Hartman, 38, was executed by injection at Central Prison in Raleigh. He was pronounced dead at 2:14 a.m., Department of Correction spokeswoman Pam Walker said.

Hartman was sentenced to die for the slaying of 77-year-old Herman Smith Jr. in the Pinetops community. Smith was a former boyfriend of Hartman's mother and Hartman was living at his house.

Hartman issued no final statement. He appeared to say "hi" or "hey" to attorney Heather Wells through a window shortly after he was brought into the death chamber and then smiled before turning away. He didn't acknowledge any of the other 11 people who watched his execution, choosing to alternately close his eyes and stare at the ceiling until prison medical workers began to administer the lethal drugs at 2 a.m.

Wells cried as Hartman's stomach heaved. Edwin West III, another of Hartman's lawyers, put his arm around her shoulder to comfort her. They hugged just before Hartman was declared dead. None of Hartman's family witnessed the execution. Larry Smith, Herman Smith's son, watched stoically. He and the other witnesses declined to comment after Hartman's death.

Wells argued that Hartman was sentenced to death because of anti-gay bias by prosecutors during his trial. The U.S. Supreme Court turned down an appeal Thursday alleging discrimination based on Hartman's homosexuality. Gov. Mike Easley denied clemency for Hartman on Thursday, declining to reduce Hartman's sentence to life in prison. A prosecutor repeatedly referred to Hartman's sexual preference during his original trial, even though it had nothing to do with Smith's death, Wells said. "From jury selection through the cross-examination of several penalty phase witnesses, the prosecution repeatedly made references to Eddie's homosexuality," Wells said. "Eddie's homosexuality has no relevance to the crime or the circumstances surrounding the crime and no relevance to whether he should live or die." Gay rights groups protested the sentence and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights asked the U.S. government to intervene so the commission could investigate.

"This is a case where the victim was 77 years old and killed in his home," Northampton County prosecutor Valerie Mitchell Asbell said. "This killing was premeditated. It was a horrible killing."

Hartman told authorities he drank 16 cans of beer before he shot Smith in the head from close range while the man sat in a recliner watching television. Hartman told a friend Smith carried thousands of dollars in his pocket, court records show. He took the man's car and left the body in the chair. He eventually buried the body in a horse stable and led authorities there after learning he was a suspect.

About 100 people opposed to the death penalty gathered outside the prison late Thursday, many holding candles and singing. Eight or nine protesters sat in a driveway blocking traffic into the prison. No arrests were reported. North Carolina has executed four people this year and 27 since the death penalty was reinstated in 1977.

NBC Channel 17 News

"Hartman Executed For 1993 Slaying; 38-Year-Old Issued No Final Statement.

RALEIGH, N.C. -- A man convicted in a 1993 shooting death in Northampton County said just one word in the final minutes of his life, turning to greet one of his lawyers and then turning back to stare at the ceiling of the death chamber. Edward Hartman, 38, was executed by injection at Central Prison in Raleigh. He was pronounced dead at 2:14 a.m., Department of Correction spokeswoman Pam Walker said.

Hartman was sentenced to die for the slaying of 77-year-old Herman Smith Jr. in the Pinetops community. Smith was a former boyfriend of Hartman's mother and Hartman was living at his house.

Hartman issued no final statement. He appeared to say "hi" or "hey" to attorney Heather Wells through a window shortly after he was brought into the death chamber and then smiled before turning away. He didn't acknowledge any of the other 11 people who watched his execution, choosing to alternately close his eyes and stare at the ceiling until prison medical workers began to administer the lethal drugs at 2 a.m.

Wells cried as Hartman's stomach heaved. Edwin West III, another of Hartman's lawyers, put his arm around her shoulder to comfort her. They hugged just before Hartman was declared dead. None of Hartman's family witnessed the execution. Larry Smith, Herman Smith's son, watched stoically. He and the other witnesses declined to comment after Hartman's death.

Wells argued that Hartman was sentenced to death because of anti-gay bias by prosecutors during his trial. The U.S. Supreme Court turned down an appeal Thursday alleging discrimination based on Hartman's homosexuality. Gov. Mike Easley denied clemency for Hartman on Thursday, declining to commute Hartman's sentence to life in prison. A prosecutor repeatedly referred to Hartman's sexual preference during his original trial, even though it had nothing to do with Smith's death, Wells said. "From jury selection through the cross-examination of several penalty phase witnesses, the prosecution repeatedly made references to Eddie's homosexuality," Wells said. "Eddie's homosexuality has no relevance to the crime or the circumstances surrounding the crime and no relevance to whether he should live or die." Gay rights groups protested the sentence and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights asked the U.S. government to intervene so the commission could investigate.

"This is a case where the victim was 77 years old and killed in his home," Northampton County prosecutor Valerie Mitchell Asbell said. "This killing was premeditated. It was a horrible killing." Hartman told authorities he drank 16 cans of beer before he shot Smith in the head from close range while the man sat in a recliner watching television. Hartman told a friend Smith carried thousands of dollars in his pocket, court records show. He took the man's car and left the body in the chair. He eventually buried the body in a horse stable and led authorities there after learning he was a suspect.

About 100 people opposed to the death penalty gathered outside the prison late Thursday, many holding candles and singing. Eight or nine protesters sat in a driveway blocking traffic into the prison. No arrests were reported. North Carolina has executed four people this year and 27 since the death penalty was reinstated in 1977.

Charlotte Observer

"U.S. High Court Denies Hartman's Appeal." (October 3, 2003)

RALEIGH - A death row prisoner moved closer to his execution Thursday as the U.S. Supreme Court denied his request for a stay because of alleged anti-gay bias by prosecutors. Edward Hartman, 38, was convicted of the 1993 slaying of 77-year-old Herman Smith Jr. in the Pinetops community of Northampton County. His execution was set to have taken place at 2 a.m. today. Gov. Mike Easley still had to decide whether to commute the sentence to life in prison.

Defense lawyer Heather Wells of Wilmington said a prosecutor unfairly referred to Hartman's homosexuality repeatedly during the trial. When defense attorneys pointed out that adult relatives sexually abused Hartman while he was a child, former District Attorney David Beard attempted to argue that the abuse wasn't meaningful because Hartman is homosexual, Wells said.

Charlotte Observer

"N.C. Governor Hears Pleas to Spare Condemned Murderer's Life," by Scott Mooneyham. (AP Sep. 30, 2003)

RALEIGH, N.C. - Attorneys for convicted murderer Edward Hartman urged Gov. Mike Easley to spare his life Tuesday, saying no one should be executed when prosecutors try to inflame jurors with a defendant's homosexuality. "This case is an important case in North Carolina. It is never acceptable and never OK when a prosecutor in a case tries to inject prejudice and discriminates," said Hartman attorney Edwin L. West III. Hartman, 38, is scheduled to be executed at 2 a.m. Friday. He was moved Monday afternoon to the death watch area of Central Prison.

Hartman admitted killing 77-year-old Herman Smith Jr. in the Pinetops community of Northampton County in 1993. Smith was shot and killed in his home after taking in Hartman. Current Northampton County prosecutor Valerie Mitchell Asbell said after meeting with the governor that appellate courts have already examined the issues regarding Beard's use of Hartman's sexuality in his question. They found no reason to reverse the case on those grounds, she said. "This is a case where the victim was 77 years old and killed in his home," Asbell said. "This killing was premeditated. It was a horrible killing." Easley typically rules on clemency requests the day before the scheduled execution, and rarely comments on the cases before then.

According to court documents, former Northampton County prosecutor David Beard raised the issue of Hartman's homosexuality during the sentencing phase of his trial. Beard has refused to comment on the case. During testimony by an aunt that Hartman was sexually abused as a child, Beard stated: "Well, you knew that Mr. Hartman is a homosexual. You've heard that?" After Hartman's lawyer objected and the judge ruled the question out of order, Beard again raised the issue of Hartman's sexual orientation. "The death penalty may be appropriate in some cases, but it is never appropriate in a case like this," West said.

But Smith's relatives say the murder was especially heinous and deserving of the death penalty. "He was helping someone out. He took him into his home, and he was paid back with a shot in the back of the head," said Smith's daughter-in-law, Vicky Smith. "Edward Hartman ripped our heart and soul out, and he started a nightmare."

A number of gay and lesbian rights groups have issued statements condemning Hartman's scheduled execution. They also plan to put advertisements in four North Carolina newspapers, urging people to contact Easley and ask him to commute the sentence. "Through our work, we regularly see how prejudice and homophobia unfairly affect the outcome of cases. For these reasons, Lambda Legal strongly opposes the death penalty and joins the call for clemency in the case of Eddie Hartman," said Hector Vargas, regional director of Lambda Legal Defense & Education Fund.

Hartman's lawyers have also filed a request with the state Supreme Court asking to stay his execution, vacate the death sentence and send the case back to Northampton County Superior Court for a life sentence.

DeathHouse.Com

"Gay Killer Executed in N.C. for Murder of Elderly Man." (October 3, 2003)

Edward Hartman, who said he had guzzled 16 cans of beer before deciding to shoot the elderly man he was living with in the head, was executed by lethal injection Friday morning at the state prison. Hartman issued no final statement before his execution at Central Prison, staring at the ceiling after greeting one of his lawyers. Hartman was the fourth condemned killer executed in the state in 2003. Another man, Joseph Keel, is scheduled for death Nov. 7 for the murder of his father-in-law.

Shot In Recliner

Hartman, 38, had confessed to the 1993 murder of Herman Smith. Jr. Smith, 77, was Hartman's mother's former boyfriend. Hartman later told lawmen that after consuming the beer, he shot Smith in the head as the victim sat in a recliner watching television. The murder occurred in Northampton County. After killing Smith, court documents stated, Hartman left the victim's body in the reclining chair and took his car. After about five days, Hartman took the body to a stable and buried it. Hartman was originally scheduled for execution in February, but his trip to the death house was delayed while the State Supreme Court decided whether murder indictments must include the "aggravating circumstances" that elevate first-degree murder to a capital offense.

Lawyers: Victim Of Gay Bias

The court eventually ruled that prosecutors did not have to list those aggravating factors in the murder indictment. Hartman's defense lawyers claimed that Hartman was targeted for death because he was gay. During Hartman's trial, defense lawyers argued that Hartman had various psychological and alcohol related problems and that he had been the victim of sexual abuse. The prosecutor countered that the sexual abuse was not important because Hartman was gay. But the courts rejected those appeals and Gov. Mike Easley rejected pleas to reduce Hartman's sentence to life in prison.

People of Faith Against the Death Penalty

Eddie Hartman, scheduled for execution on October 3, 2003 at 2 am

Eddie Hartman, a 35-year-old gay man, received a death sentence for shooting Herman Smith in Northampton County. At trial the prosecutor repeatedly made anti-gay remarks that prejudiced the jury, at several points implying that Eddie’s history of childhood sexual abuse at the hands of relatives was somehow consensual because of his homosexuality. Despite a warning from the judge, the prosecutor persisted; he later acknowledged he’d emphasized Eddie’s sexual orientation to ensure a death sentence. The discrimination Eddie faced brings to mind the case of Robert Bacon, who won a reprieve because his case was tainted by racism. Furthermore, Eddie’s court-appointed trial lawyers were grossly ineffective, and one of them recently had his license suspended by the State Bar. For more information visit:

Essential questions of fairness remain unresolved in these and other capital cases. Governor Easley should commute these death sentences to life without parole or delay the executions until the state can take a thorough look at the flaws in the system. Pushing forward with executions before then serves no public purpose, and only diminishes public confidence in the administration of justice.

Do These Actions to Stop These Executions; Help Speed the Day When the Death Penalty Will Be No More

URGE YOUR CONGREGATION AND YOUR MINISTER TO GET INVOLVED

CONTACT NC GOV. MIKE EASLEY

WRITE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

WRITE YOUR STATE REPRESENTATIVE

GET OTHERS INVOLVED

ORGANIZE A RALLY, PRAYER VIGIL OR SERVICE

PRAY

The Advocate

"Gay inmate executed in North Carolina."

A gay man convicted in a 1993 shooting death in Northampton County, N.C., said just one word in the final minutes of his life, turning to greet one of his lawyers and then turning back to stare at the ceiling of the death chamber. Edward Hartman, 38, was executed by injection at Central Prison in Raleigh. He was pronounced dead at 2:14 a.m., Department of Correction spokeswoman Pam Walker said. Hartman was sentenced to die for the slaying of 77-year-old Herman Smith Jr. in the community of Pinetops. Smith had been a former boyfriend of Hartman's mother, and Hartman was living at his house.

Hartman's attorney, Heather Wells, had tried to stop the execution by arguing that Hartman had received the death penalty because of antigay bias by prosecutors during his trial. The U.S. Supreme Court turned down an appeal Thursday that alleged discrimination based on Hartman's homosexuality. Gov. Mike Easley denied clemency for Hartman on Thursday, declining to reduce Hartman's sentence to life in prison. During the original trial a prosecutor repeatedly referred to Hartman's sexual orientation, even though it had nothing to do with Smith's death, Wells said. "From jury selection through the cross-examination of several penalty-phase witnesses, the prosecution repeatedly made references to Eddie's homosexuality," Wells said. "Eddie's homosexuality has no relevance to the crime or the circumstances surrounding the crime and no relevance to whether he should live or die." Gay rights groups protested the sentence, and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights asked the U.S. government to intervene so the commission could investigate.

"This is a case where the victim was 77 years old and killed in his home," Northampton County prosecutor Valerie Mitchell Asbell said. "This killing was premeditated. It was a horrible killing."

Hartman told authorities he drank 16 cans of beer before he shot Smith in the head at close range while the man sat in a recliner watching television. Hartman told a friend that Smith carried thousands of dollars in his pocket, court records show. He took the man's car and left the body in the chair. He eventually buried the body in a horse stable and led authorities there after learning he was a suspect.

Hartman issued no final statement before his execution. He appeared to say "Hi" or "Hey" to attorney Wells through a window shortly after he was brought into the death chamber and then smiled before turning away. None of Hartman's family witnessed the execution. Larry Smith, Herman Smith's son, watched stoically. He and the other witnesses declined to comment after Hartman's death. About 100 people opposed to the death penalty gathered outside the prison late Thursday, many holding candles and singing. Eight or nine protesters sat in a driveway blocking traffic into the prison. No arrests were reported. North Carolina has executed four people this year and 27 since the death penalty was reinstated in 1977.

State v. Hartman, 476 S.E.2d 328 (N.C. 1996) (Direct Appeal)

Defendant was convicted in the Criminal Session of Superior Court, Northampton County, Frank R. Brown, J., of first-degree murder and robbery with firearm and was sentenced to death. Appeal as of right was taken on death sentence and appeal on robbery conviction bypassed Court of Appeals. The Supreme Court, Orr, J., held that: (1) judge's ex parte conversation with prospective juror was harmless error; (2) denial of challenge for cause was not abuse of discretion; (3) judge did not improperly express his opinion to jury; (4) statutory mitigating instructions that were combined in the conjunctive were proper; (5) defendant's proposed nonstatutory mitigating circumstances were subsumed in given instructions or not supported by evidence; (6) defendant was not entitled to instruction on lesser included offense of larceny; (7) mitigating instruction on mental disturbance that included conjunctive was proper; (8) victim's age was aggravating factor; and (9) death sentence was not disproportionate. No error.

ORR, Justice.
On 3 June 1993, twenty-eight-year-old defendant, Edward Ernest Hartman, shot Herman Smith, Sr., at close range in the back of the head while Mr. Smith was sitting in his recliner watching television. Mr. Smith was between seventy- two and seventy-seven years old, was in poor health, weighed only ninety-three pounds, and was suffering from emphysema at the time he was killed.

Defendant was indicted for first-degree murder and armed robbery and was tried capitally. Defendant was found guilty of first-degree murder based upon premeditation and deliberation and under the felony murder rule with robbery as the underlying felony. Defendant was also found guilty of robbery with a firearm.

Following a capital sentencing proceeding pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 15A-2000, the jury recommended a sentence of death for the first-degree murder conviction, and the trial court sentenced defendant accordingly. The trial court also entered a prayer for judgment continued with respect to the robbery conviction. On 13 January 1995, judgment was entered on the robbery conviction, and the trial court imposed a sentence of forty years' imprisonment to run consecutive to the sentence of death for the first-degree murder conviction.

Defendant appeals to this Court, asserting sixteen assignments of error. For the reasons stated herein, we conclude that defendant's trial and capital sentencing proceeding were free from prejudicial error and that defendant's sentence of death is not disproportionate.

During the guilt-innocence phase of defendant's trial, the State presented evidence tending to show the following: Defendant and Smith became acquainted through defendant's mother, Dot Simpson, who had lived with and cared for Smith some years earlier in Virginia and then later in Northampton County, North Carolina. One year prior to the murder, after Ms. Simpson moved back to Virginia, defendant, who apparently had no place else to live, moved in with Smith. In February or March 1993, defendant told a friend, Emory K. Phipps, that Smith was a millionaire and always carried between four and five thousand dollars with him. Defendant also told Phipps that he wanted to kill Smith in order to get some of his money.

Defendant was arrested for Smith's murder on 24 June 1993. Defendant gave two statements to the police after his arrest. In his first statement, defendant indicated to the police that Smith's death was the result of an accidental shooting. Defendant later recanted that statement and confessed in a second statement to murdering Smith.

In this second statement, defendant stated that on Thursday, 3 June 1993, he had been working in the yard and drinking beer all afternoon. Around 7:00 p.m., having consumed a twelve-pack of beer, he bought another twelve-pack and ate dinner with Smith. Smith showed defendant his .38-caliber revolver, and they discussed repairing the gun. At approximately 11:00 p.m., Smith was sitting in a recliner watching the news, and defendant was at a table with the loaded revolver about five to six feet behind him. By this time, defendant had consumed four beers from the second twelve-pack. Defendant stated: Herman was sitting in a recliner in the den. I picked the gun up off the table, walked up behind Herman, pointed the gun at the back of Herman's head. The sight of blood makes me sick so I turned my head and at very close range, pulled the trigger and shot Herman Smith in the back of the head.

Thereafter, defendant stated that he considered and decided against calling his mother or the police. Instead, he gathered the gun, the remaining beer, a change of clothes, his dog, and Smith's car keys, and leaving Smith's body in the recliner, drove in Smith's car to his (defendant's) mother's house in Norfolk, Virginia, for one day. Defendant's mother later testified that on 4 June 1993, the day after the murder, defendant asked her, "If Herman was to die, do you think you'd get anything?" On Saturday, 5 June 1993, defendant returned home. Smith's body was still in the recliner. Defendant then headed to Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, to play bingo. On three separate occasions between Saturday, 5 June 1993, and Tuesday, 8 June 1993, defendant used Smith's personal checks to write checks to himself. He cashed three of Smith's checks in the amount of $50.00 each at the bingo site and attempted to cash one for $2,500 at a bank, but the teller refused after the signature did not match the signature on file at the bank.

On Tuesday, 8 June 1993, defendant awoke at 3:00 a.m. to the smell of Smith's body, which was still in the recliner. After digging a hole in the stables in the backyard, defendant covered Smith's body in a blanket, dragged it out to the hole, and buried him. Before he buried the body, defendant removed a diamond ring from Smith's hand because defendant "did not have any money." He then drove Smith's car back to Norfolk, Virginia.

On 9 June 1993, defendant drove to Augusta, Georgia, to visit some friends. Defendant's friends testified that defendant drove Smith's car to Georgia. Defendant tried to sell to his friends several items belonging to Smith including the diamond ring, the car, a shotgun, and the .38-caliber pistol with which defendant had shot Smith. Defendant's friends in Augusta, Carlos Petersen and James Yanak, testified that they also saw defendant with Smith's television, VCR, leather jacket, and "a large ... lump of money."

The following Monday, 14 June 1993, defendant returned to Norfolk, where he pawned Smith's ring. Defendant was later arrested in Norfolk on 24 June 1993. Beginning on Saturday, 8 June 1993, Smith's relatives could not get in touch with him and soon became concerned. On 10 June 1993, SBI Agent Malcolm McLeod found in a trash can located in defendant's home a ripped-up personal check of Smith's and a piece of paper on which Smith's name was written several times where defendant had apparently practiced Smith's signature in order to forge Smith's name on his personal checks. Agent Dennis Honeycutt, SBI crime technician, processed Smith's residence, and a luminal test revealed an uninterrupted blood line running from the recliner in the den out a side door towards the backyard. Smith's body was recovered from the grave in the stables in the backyard. Additionally, SBI

Agent Jennifer Elwell, a forensic serologist, testified that she examined the gun recovered from under Smith's car seat after defendant was arrested. When she wiped the inside of the gun barrel, she found a positive reaction for blood. Dr. Marcella F. Fierro, who at the time was a professor of pathology at East Carolina University, performed an autopsy on Smith's body and concluded that the contact gunshot wound to the back of Smith's head was the cause of Smith's death. Defendant did not present any evidence at the guilt-innocence phase.

During the capital sentencing proceeding, defendant's evidence tended to show from previous psychiatric evaluations that defendant has an adjustment disorder with depressed mood, conversion disorder, a closed head injury, and a history of alcohol abuse. Dr. Billy W. Royal, a medical doctor specializing in psychiatry and forensic psychiatry, testified that his psychological evaluation of defendant revealed that defendant also has a personality disorder with immaturity, impulsivity, and identity problems. Defendant also suffers from chronic depression and an anxiety disorder. Defendant's mother testified that defendant had been sexually abused in the past by his sixteen-year-old uncle and one of his mother's stepsons and had been physically assaulted by one of his six stepfathers. In addition, defendant witnessed his mother attempt suicide and suffer numerous beatings at the hand of her husbands.

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By this assignment of error, defendant contends that he is entitled to a new sentencing hearing because the prosecutor sought to inflame the jurors by bringing before them defendant's purported homosexuality in an effort to undercut the evidence of defendant's sexual abuse.

During jury selection, the prosecutor asked the first twelve veniremembers whether "the sexual persuasion of someone[ ] would ... have any bearing upon [their] decision in this case." Defendant immediately objected, and the trial court sustained defendant's objection. Subsequently, during cross-examination of defendant's aunt, the prosecutor had her clarify an earlier response on direct examination concerning her knowledge that defendant had been sexually abused as a child. She testified that she had heard about the abuse but that she herself had no direct knowledge of it. The prosecutor then asked, "Well, you knew that Mr. Hartman is a homosexual. You've heard that." Defendant objected, and after sustaining defendant's objection, the trial court instructed the jury to disregard the improper statement of the prosecutor. Then the prosecutor asked, "Did you know what sexual persuasion the defendant was?" Again, defense counsel objected, and the trial court sustained the objection. In response to defendant's contention, the State contends that defendant's engagement in homosexual activity with State's witness Richard Prince shortly after he murdered Smith was not consistent with defendant's evidence of remorsefulness. Thus, according to the State, the real purpose for asking about defendant's sexual persuasion was to rebut defendant's evidence of remorsefulness.

The assignment of error here parallels an issue raised in State v. Moore, 276 N.C. 142, 171 S.E.2d 453 (1970), for which this Court held no error because curative instructions were given. In Moore, one of the State's witnesses stated four times and his wife one time that the defendant had admitted to them that he had previously killed one person. On each of these five occasions, the trial court struck the witnesses' unresponsive answer from the record. This Court stated, "We do not, therefore, deem this evidence so inherently prejudicial that its initial impact--whatever it was--could not have been erased by the judge's prompt and emphatic instructions that the jury should not consider the testimony for any purpose whatsoever." Here, the prosecutor's questions regarding defendant's sexual persuasion were never answered. Moreover, this Court has stated that where the trial court properly instructed the jury not to consider certain evidence, our system of justice is based upon the assumption that trial jurors are women and men " 'of character and of sufficient intelligence to fully understand and comply with the instructions of the court, and are presumed to have done so.' " Id. (quoting State v. Ray, 212 N.C. 725, 729, 194 S.E. 482, 484 (1938). Thus, any error was corrected by the trial court's prompt curative instructions. This assignment of error is overruled.

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