Christopher Justice v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)

• Court: Indiana Court of Appeals
• Decided: May 25, 2018
• Docket: 49A02-1709-CR-2104
• Status: Published

Opinion

MEMORANDUM DECISION Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D), this Memorandum Decision shall not be FILED regarded as precedent or cited before any May 25 2018, 11:07 am court except for the purpose of establishing CLERK the defense of res judicata, collateral Indiana Supreme Court Court of Appeals estoppel, or the law of the case. and Tax Court

ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE Ellen M. O’Connor Curtis T. Hill, Jr. Marion County Public Defender Agency Attorney General of Indiana Indianapolis, Indiana Henry A. Flores, Jr. Deputy Attorney General Indianapolis, Indiana

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA

Christopher Justice, May 25, 2018 Appellant-Defendant, Court of Appeals Case No. 49A02-1709-CR-2104 v. Appeal from the Marion Superior Court State of Indiana, The Honorable Grant W. Appellee-Plaintiff Hawkins, Judge Trial Court Cause No. 49G05-1402-FA-8268

Baker, Judge.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1709-CR-2104 | May 25, 2018 Page 1 of 4 [1] Christopher Justice appeals his conviction for Class A Felony Attempted

Murder,1 arguing that the evidence is insufficient to support the conviction.

Finding the evidence sufficient, we affirm.

[2] Justice and Shirley Justice (Shirley) are divorced and have a minor child, A.J.

In the years leading up to February 2014, Justice and Shirley were engaged in a

protracted and heated custody dispute.

[3] On February 18, 2014, Shirley dropped off A.J. at daycare. After Shirley exited

the daycare building, she walked to her car, opened her car door, and heard

glass shatter. As she ran to the back of the car to take cover, she saw Justice

coming towards her with two guns, one in each hand. She begged Justice to

stop but he continued to fire his weapons. Shirley felt a bullet go through her

left hand and continued to hear shots as she fell to the ground in an attempt to

feign death. After Shirley fell to the ground, Justice grabbed her hair and shot

her in the right side of the head. Justice then stepped over her body and left the

scene. He shot Shirley a total of fourteen times, causing significant and life-

threatening injuries to her liver, colon, and heart, and resulting in over thirty

surgical procedures.

[4] Law enforcement found two types of bullets at the scene, one of which was 9-

millimeter rounds that had been fired from a Hi-Point firearm. A search of

Justice’s apartment revealed an empty box for a Hi-Point 9-millimeter pistol

1 Ind. Code § 35-41-5-1; Ind. Code § 35-42-1-1.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1709-CR-2104 | May 25, 2018 Page 2 of 4 with Justice’s fingerprints on it and a receipt for the purchase of the firearm

from a gun shop in Lexington, Kentucky. Two days after the shooting, Justice

was located and arrested in Lexington, Kentucky.

[5] On February 19, 2014, the State charged Justice with Class A felony attempted

murder. Justice’s bench trial took place on July 31, 2017. Shirley testified at

the trial, stating explicitly that Justice was the person who had shot her. The

trial court found Justice guilty as charged. On August 17, 2017, the trial court

sentenced Justice to twenty-four years imprisonment. Justice now appeals.2

[6] Justice’s sole argument on appeal is that the evidence does not support a

conclusion that he was the person who shot Shirley. When reviewing the

sufficiency of the evidence to support a conviction, we must consider only the

probative evidence and reasonable inferences supporting the conviction and will

neither assess witness credibility nor reweigh the evidence. Drane v. State, 867

N.E.2d 144, 146 (Ind. 2007). We will affirm unless no reasonable factfinder

could find the elements of the crime proved beyond a reasonable doubt. Id.

[7] Shirley testified at Justice’s trial that he was the shooter. Tr. Vol. II p. 168-72.

Indeed, she explicitly identified him in court as the person who had shot her.

Id. at 137-74. Her testimony, alone, is sufficient to support the conviction. See,

2 Shirley died in March 2018.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1709-CR-2104 | May 25, 2018 Page 3 of 4 e.g., Hubbard v. State, 719 N.E.2d 1219, 1220 (Ind. 1999) (testimony of victim,

who was sole eyewitness, was sufficient to support defendant’s convictions).

[8] Additionally, the other evidence presented at trial corroborated Shirley’s

testimony. Justice had a clear motive to harm Shirley—the heated custody

battle—and he had opportunity to commit the crime because he knew Shirley’s

morning routine and knew exactly where she would be at that time of day.

Bullets found at the scene corroborated Shirley’s testimony that Justice shot her

with two different guns. The 9-millimeter bullets found at the scene match the

type of firearm Justice had purchased in Lexington, Kentucky. Justice was

found two days later in Lexington, Kentucky.

[9] In sum, we find that the evidence readily supports Justice’s conviction.

[10] The judgment of the trial court is affirmed.

Kirsch, J., and Bradford, J., concur.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 49A02-1709-CR-2104 | May 25, 2018 Page 4 of 4