Davis v. State

635 N.E.2d 1117, 1994 Ind. App. LEXIS 743, 1994 WL 259466
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedJune 15, 1994
Docket49A02-9211-CR-552
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 635 N.E.2d 1117 (Davis v. State) 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
Davis v. State, 635 N.E.2d 1117, 1994 Ind. App. LEXIS 743, 1994 WL 259466 (Ind. Ct. App. 1994).

Opinion

KIRSCH, Judge.

Richard Lee Davis appeals his conviction by jury of murder. 1 We affirm.

ISSUES

We restate the issues for our review as:

1. Whefher there was sufficient evidence to sustain Davis' conviction.

2. Whether the trial court's refusal to admit hearsay evidence of a third-party confession to the murder was error.

3. Whether the trial court erred by admitting a videotape of the crime seene into evidence.

4, Whether the trial court properly instructed the jury regarding the elements of murder.

FACTS

The facts most favorable to the jury's verdict show that, beginning in January 1990, Davis rented a house at 412 North Berwick in Indianapolis, Indiana. Early in March of that year Robert Buck moved in with Davis. Both Davis and Buck were correctional officers working for the Indiana Department of Correction.

On March 29, 1990, Buck was driven to work by Davis and driven home by William Leftridge, another correctional officer. Lef-tridge is the last person who admits seeing Buck alive. After March 29, 1990, Davis told a number of individuals, including their landlord and co-workers, that Buck had flown to Texas.

In late April, Davis told a friend, Robert Wood, that he had killed his roommate with a knife. He said that he had left the body in their residence and had thrown clothes over it. He said that he was concerned that someone would find the body.

On May 2, 1990, Davis reported Buck's death to the Indianapolis Police Homicide Office. He told the police that when he returned home on March 30, 1990, he found Buck, already dead, laying on the floor. He stated that he washed the blood off a kitchen knife that was next to Buck's body and put the knife in a drawer; he then put Buck's body in the basement, covered it with cloth *1120 ing and cleaned the area where he found Buck's body.

The police went to the house on north Berwick and found a badly decomposed man's body in the basement. The body was subsequently identified as Robert Buck. An autopsy disclosed that he had died of multiple stab wounds to his chest and abdomen.

We will state additional facts as necessary.

DISCUSSION AND DECISION

ISSUE ONE: SUFFICIENCY OF THE EVIDENCE

Davis contends there is no proof that he killed Buck or that he intended to kill Buck, treating the alleged lack of proof as a single issue. So shall we.

In a criminal case, determination of an accused's guilt or innocence is a matter for the trier of fact; in this case, a jury. See Davis v. State (1968), 251 Ind. 133, 138, 239 N.E.2d 601, 604. When we review the sufficiency of the evidence supporting a conviction, we may not reweigh the evidence or judge the credibility of the witnesses. Webb v. State (1991), Ind.App., 575 N.E.2d 1066, 1071, trans. denied. Where the evidence is in conflict, we are bound to consider only that evidence which is most favorable to the Jury's verdict. Id. If there is substantial evidence of probative value supporting the conviction, we must affirm. Adams v. State (1989), Ind.App., 542 N.E.2d 1362, 1366.

To convict Davis of Buck's murder, the jury was required to determine, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Davis knowingly or intentionally killed Buck. See IC 35-42-1-1 (1992 Supp.). Davis has not disputed that Buck was killed, leaving only two elements of the crime to be considered: did Davis kill Buck, and if so, did Davis intend to kill Buck?

Sufficient evidence was introduced from which the jury could determine that Davis killed Buck: Davis confessed, to his friend Robert Wood, that he killed his roommate. Davis and Buck had quarreled over the rent each owed for the house they shared. Shortly after Buck was murdered, Davis hid Buck's body and cleaned up the crime scene. Davis remained in the house with Buck's body for more than a month before he reported the death to the police, and that report was made only after he believed the body had been discovered by an unknown visitor to his house.

After he concealed Buek's body, Davis explained Buck's absence by telling people that he had gone to Texas. An accused's attempt to conceal his participation in a crime may be considered by the jury as evidence of guilt. Harris v. State (1972), 258 Ind. 341, 344, 281 N.E.2d 85, 87. Here, Davis' attempt to conceal Buck's murder and his lies about Buck's whereabouts could be considered by the jury as evidence of Davis' guilt and assigned whatever weight and value the jury thought appropriate. See Reno v. State (1967), 248 Ind. 334, 337-38, 228 N.E.2d 14, 15-16 (jury may consider false statements to police as evidence of guilt).

Sufficient evidence was also introduced from which the jury could determine that Davis intended to kill Buck. Inasmuch as intent, as an element of murder, involves the mental state of the murderer, the trier of fact must usually resort to cireumstantial evidence or reasonable inferences drawn from examination of the cireumstances surrounding the crime to determine intent. See Stanley v. State (1988), Ind., 531 N.E.2d 484, 485. Dr. Michael Clark, the forensic pathologist and Deputy Coroner, testified that Buck was stabbed at least seven times and his death was caused by multiple stab wounds to his chest and abdomen. It may be inferred from his use of a deadly weapon in a manner that was likely to cause death or great bodily harm that Davis intended to kill Buck. See Light v. State (1989), Ind., 547 N.E.2d 1073, 1082. From the totality of the evidence, the jury could determine beyond a reasonable doubt that Davis committed murder.

ISSUE TWO: EXCLUSION OF HEARSAY

At trial, Davis sought to introduce evidence of a purported confession by others to Buck's murder. The trial court sustained the State's objection that the confession was inadmissible hearsay.

*1121 Davis' trial counsel made an offer to prove in which he explained that Michael Frazier, an inmate at the Indiana Youth Center at Plainfield, would have testified that Gary Jennings, a fellow prisoner, told Frazier that two men, identified only as Ziggy and Hollywood, had confessed to Jennings that they had murdered a correctional officer. At the time of Davis' trial, Jennings was a fugitive who could not be located and was unavailable to testify. Ziggy and Hollywood also could not be located.

Davis contends that the alleged confession by Ziggy and Hollywood, although hearsay, is admissible under "Fed.R.Evid. 804(b)(B)(A)(B)(C)." Appellant's Brief at 11.

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635 N.E.2d 1117, 1994 Ind. App. LEXIS 743, 1994 WL 259466, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/davis-v-state-indctapp-1994.