Broom v. State

695 P.2d 640, 1985 Wyo. LEXIS 459
Wyoming Supreme Court·Decided February 22, 1985·No. 84-33·Published·Cited by 75 cases

Opinions

ROONEY, Justice.

Appellant appeals from the judgment and sentence of the court rendered on a jury verdict which found appellant guilty of obtaining possession of a controlled substance by fraud in violation of § 35-7-1033(a)(iii), W.S.1977.1 On appeal, appellant contends that there was insufficient evidence to support the jury verdict, and that the trial court erred in not permitting testimony relative to an opinion of a handwriting expert.

We affirm.

I

In determining whether or not there was sufficient evidence to support a jury verdict, we are not to reweigh the evidence. The following standard under which we examine the evidence for sufficiency to support a verdict was set forth in Harvey v. State, Wyo., 596 P.2d 1386, 1387 (1979):

“The oft-repeated rule by which we test the sufficiency of evidence on appeal of a criminal matter is that we examine and accept as true the evidence of the prosecution, leaving out of consideration entirely the evidence of the defendant in [642] conflict therewith, and we give to the evidence of the prosecution every favorable inference which may reasonably and fairly be drawn therefrom. Stated another way — it is not whether the evidence establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt for us, but rather whether it is sufficient to form the basis for a reasonable inference of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt to be drawn by the jury when the evidence is viewed in the light most favorable to the State. Evanson v. State, Wyo., 546 P.2d 412 (1976); Brown v. State, Wyo., 581 P.2d 189 (1978); Nisonger v. State, Wyo., 581 P.2d 1094 (1978).”

Applying the standard, we find the evidence sufficient “to form the basis for a reasonable inference of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt” (emphasis added), Harvey v. State, supra, 596 P.2d at 1387. See also Mirich v. State, Wyo., 593 P.2d 590, 591 (1979).

The standard requires us to “leave out of consideration entirely the evidence of the defendant in conflict” with the evidence of the prosecution, which evidence of the prosecution we must “accept as true” and give “every favorable inference which may reasonably and fairly be drawn therefrom.” Harvey v. State, supra, 596 P.2d at 1387.

It is not our function to weigh the evidence for a determination as to whether or not it is sufficient to establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. We have consistently held that even though it is possible to draw other inferences from the evidence presented, it is the responsibility of the jury to resolve conflicts in the evidence. Russell v. State, Wyo., 583 P.2d 690, 694 (1978); Janski v. State, Wyo., 538 P.2d 271, 277 (1975); Reeder v. State, Wyo., 515 P.2d 969, 971 (1973). The factfinder — in this case, a jury — did that. The jury is entitled to weigh and disregard the evidence intended to discredit the witnesses for the State. Russell v. State, supra, 583 P.2d at 694, citing Curley v. United States, 81 U.S.App.D.C. 389, 392, 160 F.2d 229, 232-233, cert. denied 331 U.S. 837, 67 S.Ct. 1511, 91 L.Ed. 1850, reh. denied 331 U.S. 869, 67 S.Ct. 1729, 91 L.Ed. 1872 (1947). Certainly the jury is not obligated to believe the defendant’s witnesses. Russell v. State, supra, 583 P.2d at 699, citing Newell v. State, Wyo., 548 P.2d 8 (1976).

There is an extra and very important requirement in the standard by which we determine if the conviction should be sustained. We are to determine whether the record evidence could reasonably support the finding of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Not whether or not the evidence was sufficient to establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, but whether or not the evidence could reasonably support such a finding by the factfinder.

This distinction was nicely noted in Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 318, 319, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 2788, 2789, 61 L.Ed.2d 560, reh. denied 444 U.S. 890, 100 S.Ct. 195, 62 L.Ed.2d 126 (1979):

“ * * * [T]his inquiry does not require a court to ‘ask itself whether it believes that the evidence at the trial established guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.’ Woodby v. INS, 385 U.S. [276], at 282, 87 S.Ct. [483], at 486 [17 L.Ed.2d 362] (emphasis added). Instead, the relevant question is whether, after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. See Johnson v. Louisiana, 406 U.S. [356], at 362, 92 S.Ct. [1620], at 1624-1625 [32 L.Ed.2d 152], This familiar standard gives full play to the responsibility of the trier of fact fairly to resolve conflicts in the testimony, to weigh the evidence, and to draw reasonable inferences from basic facts to ultimate facts. Once a defendant has been found guilty of the crime charged, the factfinder’s role as weigher of the evidence is preserved through a legal conclusion that upon judicial review all of the evidence is to be considered in the light most favorable to the prosecution. The criterion thus impinges upon ‘jury’ discretion only to the extent neces[643] sary to guarantee the fundamental protection of due process of law.” (Footnotes omitted and emphasis added.)

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Broom v. State, 695 P.2d 640, 1985 Wyo. LEXIS 459 (Wyo. 1985).

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