Kinkade v. State

787 S.W.2d 507, 1990 Tex. App. LEXIS 553, 1990 WL 27042
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMarch 15, 1990
Docket01-88-01084-CR
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 787 S.W.2d 507 (Kinkade v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Kinkade v. State, 787 S.W.2d 507, 1990 Tex. App. LEXIS 553, 1990 WL 27042 (Tex. Ct. App. 1990).

Opinion

O’CONNOR, Justice.

A jury convicted appellant, Angela Kin-kade, of criminal mischief. The trial court sentenced her to 10 days confinement and ordered her to make restitution of $177.65. We affirm.

Appellant was charged with damaging an automobile by hitting the window with an unknown object. The complainant, Mabel Roberts, owned the car that was damaged.

Appellant damaged Mrs. Roberts’s automobile by pulling the sideview mirror and beating on it. Appellant shattered the back window of the car by hitting it. At trial, Mrs. Roberts testified she paid $177.55 to replace the broken windshield. Appellant objected to Mrs. Roberts’s testimony about the cost of repairs, and argued that expert testimony was necessary.

I. Cost of repairs.

In her first point of error, appellant contends the trial court erred in admitting Mrs. Robert’s testimony about the cost of repairs. Appellant argues that the amount of damage to the vehicle cannot be proved with evidence of the cost of repairs without proof that the cost was reasonable.

The Texas Penal Code sets forth the procedure for proving the damage in a criminal mischief case.

(a) The amount of pecuniary loss under this chapter, if the property is destroyed, is:
(1) the fair market value of the property at the time and place of the destruction; or
(2) if the fair market value of the property cannot be ascertained, the cost of replacing the property within a reasonable time after the destruction.
(b) The amount of pecuniary loss under this chapter, if the property is damaged, is the cost of repairing or restoring the damaged property within a reasonable time after the damage occurred.

Tex. Penal Code Ann. § 28.06 (Vernon 1989) (emphasis added).

Appellant contends that Wise v. State, 494 S.W.2d 921, 924 (Tex.Civ.App.—Fort Worth 1973, no pet.) holds that proof of repairs must show that the cost of repairs was reasonable in the county where the damage occurred. In Wise, and in the other cases cited by appellant, the court ruled on the method of proving the market value of repairs, rather than the actual cost of repairs for damaged property. Wise, 494 S.W.2d at 924; Hernandez v. State, 468 S.W.2d 387, 391 (Tex.Crim.App.1971); Crawley v. State, 513 S.W.2d 62, 65 (Tex.Crim.App.1974). Further, those cases were based on interpretations of section 1350 of *509 the Texas Penal Code 1 , before its 1973 revision.

Currently, section 28.06(a) of the Texas Penal Code provides that market value is used only when property is destroyed. Tex. Penal Code Ann. § 28.06(a) (Vernon 1989); Deas v. State, 752 S.W.2d 573, 575 (Tex.Crim.App.1988). If the property is damaged (not destroyed), cost of repairs is the proper measure of pecuniary loss under § 28.06(b). Sepulveda v. State, 751 S.W.2d 667, 668-69 (Tex.App.—Corpus Christi 1988, pet. ref d). Appellant concedes in her brief that the cost of repairs is the proper method of proof in this case.

The only case that followed Wise after § 28.06 became effective is distinguishable. In Athey v. State, 697 S.W.2d 818, 821 (Tex.App.—Dallas 1985, no pet.), the Dallas court stated that “in view of this testimony [regarding pre-existing damage to house], the State had the burden to show that the repairs in question were reasonable and were a necessary result of defendant’s acts, rather than a result of previous damage.”

In Sepulveda, the Corpus Christi Court held that the cases concerning “reasonableness of amount” were inapplicable. 751 S.W.2d at 669. Justice Utter noted that Athey was distinguishable because it involved repairs that covered more than just the damage inflicted by defendant; the repairs enhanced the value of the property. Id. In Sebree v. State, 695 S.W.2d 303, 304-305 (Tex.App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 1985, no pet.), this Court did not mention “reasonableness of amount,” but instead followed the literal reading of § 28.06, and required proof of the cost of repairs,

Appellant argues an expert witness is necessary because “value” and “reasonableness of amount” are part of the State’s burden of proof. We have already decided that “cost of repair” is the proper method of proving pecuniary loss, and proof as to the “reasonableness” of the amount of repairs is not required. The owner of the car, who has direct knowledge of the actual cost of repairs, is certainly competent to testify as to how much she spent to repair the damage. See generally Sepulveda, 751 S.W.2d at 668-69. The competency of a witness is a question for the trial court. We will not disturb the trial court’s decision absent a showing of an abuse of discretion. Watson v. State, 596 S.W.2d 867, 871 (Tex.Crim.App. [Panel Op.] 1980). No such showing was made by appellant.

In the same point of error, appellant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence to prove pecuniary loss. When we review the sufficiency of the evidence, we view it in the light most favorable to the verdict. Flournoy v. State, 668 S.W.2d 380, 383 (Tex.Crim.App.1984). The relevant question is whether, after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Anderson v. State, 701 S.W.2d 868, 872 (Tex.Crim.App.1985), ce rt. denied, 479 U.S. 870, 107 S.Ct. 239, 93 L.Ed.2d 163 (1986).

In Sepulveda, the Corpus Christi Court of Appeals upheld a conviction for criminal mischief based upon almost identical testimony as that in this case. The owner testified she “paid $34.00 to fix the window.” 751 S.W.2d at 668. The court found the evidence sufficient to prove the pecuniary loss under the standard for damaged property.

In Sebree, this Court held that “an estimate of damage or an opinion

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Bluebook (online)
787 S.W.2d 507, 1990 Tex. App. LEXIS 553, 1990 WL 27042, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/kinkade-v-state-texapp-1990.