Field v. State

843 N.E.2d 1008, 2006 Ind. App. LEXIS 473, 2006 WL 696308
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedMarch 21, 2006
Docket28A04-0511-CR-639
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 843 N.E.2d 1008 (Field 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
Field v. State, 843 N.E.2d 1008, 2006 Ind. App. LEXIS 473, 2006 WL 696308 (Ind. Ct. App. 2006).

Opinion

OPINION

BAKER, Judge.

Appellant-defendant Joshua H. Field appeals from the sentence imposed by the trial court following his guilty plea to one count of Conspiracy to Commit Dealing in a Schedule II Controlled Substance, 1 a class B felony. In particular, Field argues that the trial court considered improper aggravating circumstances, erred in weighing the aggravating and mitigating factors, and imposed a sentence that is inappropriate in light of the nature of the offense and his character. Finding that the sentence imposed by the trial court was not inappropriate in light of the offense and Field's character, and finding no other error, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

FACTS

On October 31, 2001, Field delivered a tank of anhydrous ammonia to Brandon *1010 Chesterfield, who was making methamphetamine in his trailer in rural Greene County. In exchange for the anhydrous ammonia, Field was to receive methamphetamine and cash. Field knew that Chesterfield made methamphetamine and that anhydrous ammonia was a key ingredient in the drug's production. On that same day, police raided Chesterfield's trailer and arrested Chesterfield, Field, and another person who was present at the time.

On November 1, 2001, the State charged Field with class B felony dealing in a schedule II controlled substance, class B felony conspiracy to commit dealing in a schedule II controlled substance, class D felony possession of chemical reagents or precursors with intent to manufacture, and class A misdemeanor resisting law enforcement. A habitual offender enhancement was later added to the charge, which the State subsequently dismissed when it became clear that Field was not eligible. Eventually, Field pleaded guilty to class B felony conspiracy to commit dealing in a schedule II controlled substance in exchange for the State's agreement to dismiss the remaining charges 2 and two pending unrelated cases against Field. The plea agreement left the sentence to the discretion of the trial court.

The trial court accepted Field's guilty plea and held a sentencing hearing on August 9, 2002. In its sentencing order, the trial court found the following aggravating cireumstances: Field's criminal history; the fact that Field was on bond in another criminal case when arrested for the instant offense; the fact that Field is in need of long-term correctional or rehabilitative treatment that can best be provided by commitment to a penal facility; and the fact that Field "has not been a model prisoner ...." Appellant's App. p. 215. The court also found two mitigating circumstances: Field's remorse and guilty plea, and the fact that he has "admitted to a severe substance abuse history that has affected his well being." Id. The trial court found that the aggravators outweighed the mitigators, and imposed a sentence of sixteen years, which is four years less than the maximum sentence for a class B felony but enhances the presumptive sentence by six years. 3 Field now appeals.

DISCUSSION AND DECISION

As we consider Field's argument that the trial court erred in its consideration and weighing of aggravating and mitigating circumstances, we observe that sentencing determinations are within the sound discretion of the trial court, and we will only reverse for an abuse of discretion. Krumm v. State, 793 N.E.2d 1170, 1186 (Ind.Ct.App.2003). An abuse of discretion occurs if the trial court's decision is clearly against the logic and effect of the facts and cireumstances before the court. Id.

In a sentencing statement, a trial court must identify all significant aggravating and mitigating factors, explain why such factors were found, and balance the factors in arriving at the sentence. Bryant v. State, 841 N.E2d 1154, 1156 (Ind.2006). A trial court is not obligated to weigh a mitigating factor as heavily as the defendant requests. Smallwood v. State, 773 N.E.2d 259, 263 (Ind.2002). A *1011 single aggravating factor may support the imposition of both an enhanced and consecutive sentence. Payton v. State, 818 N.E.2d 493, 496 (Ind.Ct.App.2004), trans. denied.

The first aggravating factor found by the trial court was Field's criminal history, consisting of the following offenses: in 1994, Field was adjudicated a delinquent for theft and minor consumption of alcohol; in 1998, Field was convicted of class D felony theft and was found to have violated probation in that case later that same year; in 1999, Field was convicted of class C felony battery with a deadly weapon; also in 1999, Field was convicted of class C misdemeanor operating a vehicle with controlled substance in body; and in 2002, Field was convicted of class D felony possession of a controlled substance. Field does not contest that this is an appropriate aggravating factor, but he argues that the trial court weighed it too heavily.

We are mindful of our Supreme Court's recent opinion advising that merely because a defendant's eriminal history alone may support an enhanced sentence does not mean that "sentencing judges or appellate judges can stop thinking about the appropriate weight to give a history of prior convictions." Bryant, 841 N.E.2d at 1156. The significance of a defendant's criminal history varies based on the gravity, nature, and number of prior offenses as they relate to the current offense. Wooley v. State, 716 N.E.2d 919, 929 n. 4 (Ind.1999).

Here, at the time Field was convicted, he was twenty-three years old and had already accumulated two prior felony convictions, two prior misdemeanor convictions, and one juvenile adjudication. Moreover, one of Field's prior convie-tions-the most recent one-was for possession of a controlled substance; in that case, the substance was marijuana. Appellant's App. p. 203. Thus, Field's criminal history is recent, substantial, and at least partially related to the instant offense. Under these cireumstances, we believe that the trial court properly gave substantial weight to this aggravating factor. _.

The second aggravating factor considered by the trial court was the fact that Field was on bond in the case involving possession of marijuana at the time he was arrested for the instant offense. This is a proper aggravating cireumstance because the fact that a defendant was on bond in another matter when he committed the instant offense is not derivative of his criminal history, inasmuch as it neither springs from a prior conviction nor qualifies as a Judicial statement. Cf. Williams v. State, 838 N.E.2d 1019, 1021 (Ind.2005) (holding that "likelihood to reoffend" and "need for rehabilitation" spring from a single source). A defendant's violation of the conditions of his bond does not spring from a prior conviction because it is a direct violation of a trial court's order. Accordingly, just as a probation violation is not derivative of criminal history, neither is conduct that violates the conditions of the bond. See Ryle v.

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Bluebook (online)
843 N.E.2d 1008, 2006 Ind. App. LEXIS 473, 2006 WL 696308, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/field-v-state-indctapp-2006.