C.H. v. State of Indiana

15 N.E.3d 1086, 2014 Ind. App. LEXIS 427, 2014 WL 4258375
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedAugust 29, 2014
Docket49A02-1310-JV-904
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 15 N.E.3d 1086 (C.H. v. State of Indiana) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
C.H. v. State of Indiana, 15 N.E.3d 1086, 2014 Ind. App. LEXIS 427, 2014 WL 4258375 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014).

Opinion

OPINION

PYLE, Judge.

STATEMENT OF THE CASE

C.H. appeals his two adjudications as a delinquent child for having committed acts that, if committed by an adult, would constitute criminal trespass as a Class A mis *1089 demeanor, 1 and unlawful entry of a motor vehicle as a Class B misdemeanor. 2 First, C.H. argues that the juvenile court should have excluded an officer’s identification testimony from evidence pursuant to the fruit, of the poisonous tree doctrine of the exclusionary rule. Additionally, C.H. argues that his two adjudications violated the actual evidence test of Indiana’s Double Jeopardy Clause. Lastly, C.H. appeals the juvenile court’s dispositional order requiring him to pay restitution.

First, because the officer had reasonable suspicion and his actions were reasonable under the totality of the circumstances, we conclude that C.H.’s federal and state constitutional rights were not "violated and that the identification testimony was properly admitted into evidence. In regard to C.H.’s double jeopardy claim, we conclude there is a reasonable possibility that the State used the same evidence to support both adjudications, and we remand to the juvenile court to vacate C.H.’s adjudication with the less severe penal consequence. Lastly, because C.H. did not object to any aspect of restitution and invited any error that may have occurred with the restitution order, we will not review his restitution challenge.

We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand.

ISSUES'

1. Whether the juvenile court abused its discretion by admitting an officer’s identification testimony into evidence.

2. Whether C.H.’s adjudications for criminal trespass and unlawful entry of a motor vehicle violate Indiana’s Double Jeopardy Clause.

3.Whether the juvenile court abused its discretion by ordering C.H. to pay restitution.

FACTS

On June 20, 2013, Felipa Xique-Juarez (“Felipa”) was working from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. That day, Felipa lost the keys to her white 1995 Honda Accord, and she did not give anyone else permission to drive her car. When Felipa finished work that evening, her car was gone, and she called the police to report that it had been stolen.

On June 21, 2013, Officer Havis Harris (“Officer Harris”) was on duty working the third shift and patrolling for the stolen white Honda. Around midnight, Officer Harris observed a white Honda that matched the description of the stolen vehicle. After Officer Harris began to follow the white Honda, the vehicle turned into a Marathon gas station located on 4200 North Franklin Road. When Officer Harris began approaching the rear of the white Honda, she observed “three (3) to four (4) subjects bail[ ] out of the vehicle.” (Tr. 9).- Additionally, Officer Harris observed the white. Honda’s driver walk to the rear of the building and saw the passengers run away from the gas station “initially north then east behind a yard.” (Tr. 9). Next, Officer Harris notified dispatch that she “had -three (3) to four (4) black males take off running[,]” and she informed dispatch of the suspects’ direction of travel. (Tr. 9). Following Officer Harris’ communication with dispatch, she examined the white Honda and “ran the YIN which came back as a stolen vehicle.” (Tr. 10).

Officer James Blythe (“Officer Blythe”), who was on patrol in a marked squad car “very close to the area[,]” heard Officer Harris’ call regarding “three (3) subjects *1090 run[ing] from a vehicle from the 42nd Street/Franklin [R]oad area[.]” (Tr. 38). Officer Blythe then “went to the first street east of that area which [was] Arbor Crest and tried to set up a perimeter.” (Tr. 38). “[W]ithin five (5) minutes” of Officer Harris’ radio call, (Tr. 45), Officer Blythe, who was parked in a driveway, “saw two (2) subjects walk behind [his] vehicle and[,] ... they was [sic] watching [him] watching them.” (Tr. 39). The two males matched the general description and direction of travel given by Officer Harris. Officer Blythe then “pulled out of the driveway and stopped them.” (Tr. 39). One of these individuals was fourteen-year-old C.H.

After Officer Blythe stopped C.H. and the other individual, Officer Blythe took their names and dates of birth and ran their information through the Juvenile Center “to see if they had anything outstanding[.]” (Tr. 43). Officer Blythe then “waited for Officer Harris to come to the scene so she could identify” the two individuals as the suspects who “had ran [sic] from her, from the vehicle.” (Tr. 44).

Officer Harris then “went to Sergeant Blythe’s location, which was “maybe a block over[.]” (Tr. 10). Officer Harris “[o]bserved the subjects ... asked ... why they were out so late, how old they were.” (Tr. 17.) Officer Harris then went back to the Marathon gas station to view its surveillance video.

When Officer Harris watched Marathon’s video footage, she saw four black males, three of whom ran from the vehicle and the driver who walked away. She also saw that “two (2) of the gentlemen that was [sic] in the video matched the description of the two (2) that Sergeant Blythe had stopped just a street over.” (Tr. 20). Specifically, she saw that one of the suspects was “wearing a black and white striped shirt with black shorts” and the “other was wearing a black zip up jacket[.]” (Tr. 20).

While driving back to Officer Blythe’s location, Officer Harris radioed ahead to tell him that “the video footage matched the description of the two (2) gentlemen there on the scene.” (Tr. 31). When Officer Harris arrived at the scene, she arrested C.H. and the other individual.

On June 28, 2013, the State filed a petition alleging that C.H. was a delinquent child for committing the following offenses that would be crimes if committed by an adult: Count 1, criminal trespass as a Class A misdemeanor; and Count 2, unlawful entry of motor vehicle as a Class B misdemeanor. At the time of these alleged offenses, C.H. had been on probation for one month for adjudications of Class A misdemeanor criminal trespass and Class C misdemeanor operating a vehicle without a license (“May 2013 Adjüdications”). 3

On September 11, 2013, the juvenile court held a denial hearing. During Officer Harris’ direct examination, C.H. objected to the officer’s identification testimony. Additionally, C.H. argued that Officer Blythe violated his rights under the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution and Article One, Section Eleven of the Indiana Constitution by stopping him and that, as a result, the juvenile court should have excluded Officer Harris’ identification testimony from evidence as fruit of the poisonous tree. Furthermore, during closing arguments, C.H. argued that the State’s charges against him violated the actual evidence test of Indiana’s Double Jeopar *1091 dy Clause. The juvenile court entered a true finding on both allegations without acknowledging C.H.’s double jeopardy claim.

On October 4, 2013, the juvenile court held a disposition hearing.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
15 N.E.3d 1086, 2014 Ind. App. LEXIS 427, 2014 WL 4258375, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ch-v-state-of-indiana-indctapp-2014.