Hedges v. Commonwealth

937 S.W.2d 703, 1996 Ky. LEXIS 122, 1996 WL 673619
CourtKentucky Supreme Court
DecidedNovember 21, 1996
Docket95-SC-999-DG
StatusPublished
Cited by18 cases

This text of 937 S.W.2d 703 (Hedges v. Commonwealth) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Kentucky Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hedges v. Commonwealth, 937 S.W.2d 703, 1996 Ky. LEXIS 122, 1996 WL 673619 (Ky. 1996).

Opinions

STEPHENS, Chief Justice.

Appellant, Dallas M. Hedges, appeals from a judgment of the Court of Appeals affirming the judgment of the Fayette Circuit Court which found him guilty of Burglary in the Second Degree. We granted discretionary review to determine whether it was proper for the trial judge to overrule appellant’s motion for a directed verdict on the burglary charge. After a careful review of the case, we reverse the decision of the Court of Appeals.

In 1994, Dana Hedges, appellant’s estranged wife, was living in an apartment in Lexington. Dana and appellant were separated, but remained legally married, and due to previous problems between them, appellant was under a Domestic Violence Emergency Protective Order (DVO). According to that order, appellant was forbidden from committing acts of violence against Dana or to dispose of or damage the couple’s property. The DVO did not contain a “no contact” provision. In fact, appellant frequently had contact with Dana regarding their child, and [705]*705with her permission had spent the night at Dana’s residence on several occasions.

On the night of February 20, 1994, appellant went to Dana’s apartment seeking entry in order to use her telephone. He apparently had been drinking when he arrived. Dana acknowledged at trial that she was hesitant about admitting him because a male friend of hers, Carl Jeter, was there. After instructing Jeter to wait in the bedroom with the door locked, Dana allowed appellant inside the apartment. Hearing noise coming from the bedroom, appellant went to investigate. As he forced the bedroom door open, he saw Jeter diving out the window. Incensed upon discovering another man in his wife’s bedroom, appellant proceeded to break a fish tank, a microwave oven, and a vase — all of which was property owned jointly by Dana and appellant. Meanwhile, Dana ran to a neighbor’s house to contact the police. When she returned to the apartment, appellant, still upset, grabbed her by the neck, but caused her no physical injury.

Following this incident, appellant was indicted for First Degree Burglary and for being a Persistent Felony Offender in the Second Degree (PFO II). During his trial in Fayette Circuit Court, appellant’s counsel moved for a directed verdict at the close of the Commonwealth’s case maintaining that no weapon was used by appellant and no physical injury was sustained by Dana. The motion was overruled. Ultimately, the jury returned a verdict of guilty of Burglary in the Second Degree. Because appellant was found to be a PFO II, his recommended five year sentence was enhanced to ten years.

The Court of Appeals’ majority affirmed the trial court’s overruling of the directed verdict motion concluding that the evidence was sufficient to establish the elements of second-degree burglary. The court reasoned that appellant, after entering the dwelling with Dana’s permission, remained there unlawfully and with the intent to commit a crime. The court asserted that it was irrelevant whether Dana initially allowed appellant to enter her apartment. It further maintained that according to McCarthy v. Commonwealth, Ky., 867 S.W.2d 469, 471 (1993), the only requirement that needed to be established was that appellant remained unlawfully. We disagree.

The elements of second degree burglary as set out in KRS 511.030(1) are as follows:

A person is guilty of burglary in the second degree when, with the intent to commit a crime, [he] knowingly enters or remains unlawfully in a dwelling.

Thus, according to KRS 511.030(1) we must first analyze whether appellant entered Dana’s apartment with the intent to commit a crime. The Court of Appeals concluded that the specific intent to commit a crime element of KRS 511.030(1) was satisfied. Its conclusion seems to be based on two theories: that appellant committed an assault against his wife or that violation of the DVO, in and of itself, constituted a crime.

First, the facts in the present case do not support a finding that an assault occurred. Both first and second degree assault require that a weapon or dangerous instrument be used and that serious injury result. KRS 508.010, 508.020. In this case, no weapon or dangerous instrument was used. Moreover, Dana’s own testimony and the police investigation of the incident support the conclusion that no injury resulted. If evidence of an assault existed, then appellant surely would have been so prosecuted. Thus, first and second degree assault are clearly not applicable in the instant case.

In addition, fourth degree assault results when another “intentionally or wantonly cause[s] physical injury to another person, or with recklessness he cause[s] physical harm to another person by means of a deadly weapon or a dangerous instrument.” KRS 508.030. The facts in the present case do not support this contention, either. Therefore, the “intent to commit a crime therein” element of KRS 511.030(1) cannot be satisfied in the present ease.

Second, the Court of Appeals cites McCarthy, supra., to support its assertion that a violation of the DVO may be properly used to show intent to commit a crime. We disagree. As 12A C.J.S. Burglary § 41 (1980) states:

[706]*706To constitute burglary the requisite specific intent must exist at the time of the breaking and entry, or entry, or remaining

The mere violation of the DVO without intent to commit an independent crime, is impermissible to support a finding of burglary. Justice Leibson appropriately affirmed this idea in his dissenting opinion in McCarthy:

For the “intent” element of the burglary statute to have been satisfied in this case, “with the intent to commit any crime” must be understood to refer to intent to commit a crime in addition to criminal trespass. Criminal trespass is committed by “knowingly entering and remaining unlawfully in a building,” the first element in the burglary statute. Since anytime someone “knowingly enters or remains unlawfully in a dwelling” that person would necessarily have the intent to commit the crime of coming onto the property, the Majority Opinion has effectively written the intent requirement out of the burglary statute....

Id. at 472.

Moreover, McCarthy, supra., is clearly distinguishable from the instant case. The facts in McCarthy involved a husband who assaulted his wife while subject to an emergency protective order which prohibited him from coming about his wife or onto her premises. Id. at 470. Despite the EPO, McCarthy went to his wife’s home. Id. When his wife denied him entry, he kicked the door down and entered the dwelling. Id. A fight eventually erupted between McCarthy and his wife and, as a result, his wife sustained injuries. Id.

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Bluebook (online)
937 S.W.2d 703, 1996 Ky. LEXIS 122, 1996 WL 673619, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hedges-v-commonwealth-ky-1996.