State of Arizona v. Gregory Charles Rhome

333 P.3d 786, 235 Ariz. 459, 693 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 6, 2014 WL 4087200, 2014 Ariz. App. LEXIS 161
CourtCourt of Appeals of Arizona
DecidedAugust 19, 2014
Docket2 CA-CR 2013-0346
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 333 P.3d 786 (State of Arizona v. Gregory Charles Rhome) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Arizona primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State of Arizona v. Gregory Charles Rhome, 333 P.3d 786, 235 Ariz. 459, 693 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 6, 2014 WL 4087200, 2014 Ariz. App. LEXIS 161 (Ark. Ct. App. 2014).

Opinion

OPINION

HOWARD, Judge.

¶ 1 Gregory Rhome was convicted by a jury of first-degree failure to appear in connection with a felony. On appeal, he argues the trial court made various erroneous rulings and that insufficient evidence supported the jury’s verdict. Because we agree the evidence was insufficient, we vacate Rhome’s conviction and sentence.

Factual and Procedural Background

¶ 2 Rhome failed to appear for a scheduled hearing in connection with a criminal charge in October 2012. He was charged and convicted as noted above, and sentenced to an enhanced prison term of eight years. We have jurisdiction over his appeal pursuant to AR.S. §§ 12-120.21(A)(1) and 13-4033(A)(1).

Sufficiency of the Evidence

¶3 Rhome first argues that insufficient evidence supported the jury’s verdict because the state did not present any evidence that the hearing at which he failed to appear was in connection with a felony. When considering claims of insufficient evidence, we view the facts in the light most favorable to sustaining the jury’s verdict and resolve all reasonable inferences against Rhome. See State v. Kasic, 228 Ariz. 228, ¶ 29, 265 P.3d 410, 416 (App.2011).

¶ 4 Rhome failed to raise this specific argument at trial, and we therefore review only for fundamental, prejudicial error. See State v. Zinsmeyer, 222 Ariz. 612, ¶ 27, 218 P.3d 1069, 1080 (App.2009) (sufficiency of evidence claim not raised below reviewed for fundamental error), overruled, on other grounds by State v. Bonfiglio, 231 Ariz. 371, 295 P.3d 948 (2013). But both the Arizona and United States Constitutions guarantee every criminal defendant the right to have “ ‘a jury find him guilty of all the elements of the crime with which he is charged.’ ” State v. Martinez, 210 Ariz. 578, ¶ 7, 115 P.3d 618, 620 (2005), quoting United States v. Booker, 543 U.S. 220, 230, 125 S.Ct. 738, 160 L.Ed.2d 621 (2005); U.S. Const, amend. VI; Ariz. Const, art. II, § 24. And the state has the “burden to prove all elements of the offense, beyond a reasonable doubt.” State v. Sucharew, 205 Ariz. 16, ¶ 32, 66 P.3d 59, 69 (App. 2003). Thus, “ ‘convictions [must] rest upon a jury determination that the defendant is guilty of every element of the crime with which he is charged, beyond a reasonable doubt.’ ” State v. Carreon, 210 Ariz. 54, ¶ 46, 107 P.3d 900, 910 (2005), quoting United States v. Gaudin, 515 U.S. 506, 510, 115 S.Ct. 2310, 132 L.Ed.2d 444 (1995) (alteration in Carreon). Fundamental error therefore occurs when a person is convicted of “ ‘a crime when the evidence does not support a conviction.’” State v. Stroud, 209 Ariz. 410, n. 2, 103 P.3d 912, 914 n. 2 (2005), quoting State v. Roberts, 138 Ariz. 230, 232, 673 P.2d 974, 976 (App.1983).

¶ 5 Section 13-2507(A), A.R.S., pursuant to which Rhome was convicted, states that “[a] person commits failure to appear in the first degree if, having been required by law to appear in connection with any felony, such person knowingly fails to appear as required, regardless of the disposition of the charge requiring the appearance.” Rhome argues *461 that the state did not meet its burden of proof because it did not present any evidence that he had been facing a felony charge in the underlying criminal case.

¶ 6 At trial, the jury heard testimony from the judge and Rhome’s attorney in the underlying criminal case; evidence also included several transcripts and minute entries indicating that Rhome was present when the hearing date was set, but failed to appear at the hearing. None of these witnesses, transcripts, or minute entries indicated, however, what the underlying criminal charges were or that they were felonies. Based on the record before us, ‘“there is a complete absence of probative facts to support [the jury’s] conclusion.’” Kasic, 228 Ariz. 228, ¶ 29, 265 P.3d at 416, quoting State v. Car-lisle, 198 Ariz. 203, ¶ 11, 8 P.3d 391, 394 (App.2000) (alteration in Kasic).

¶ 7 The state contends that the issue of whether an offense is a felony is a question of law and not an element of the offense, citing State v. Smith, 126 Ariz. 534, 617 P.2d 42 (App.1980). But Smith concerns whether an ou1>of-state crime is a felony or misdemeanor for impeachment purposes in Arizona, an issue “to be decided by the trial court and not the jury.” Id. at 536, 617 P.2d at 44. Section 13-2507(A), on the other hand, criminalizes the failure to appear in connection with a felony, making the classification of the charge an element of the offense that must be proven to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt. See Carreon, 210 Ariz. 54, ¶ 46, 107 P.3d at 910. Therefore, the state has failed to show that the charge’s classification in this case is an issue of law for the court.

¶ 8 The state further asks that we take judicial notice that the underlying criminal charges were felonies. Rule 201(b), Ariz. R. Evid., provides that a court may take judicial notice of any fact that “is generally known within the trial court’s territorial jurisdiction; or ... can be accurately and readily determined from sources whose aecu-racy cannot reasonably be questioned.” And a court may properly take judicial notice of its own records. See id.; see also In re Sabino R., 198 Ariz. 424, ¶ 4, 10 P.3d 1211, 1212 (App.2000). But if a trial court does take judicial notice of a fact in a criminal case, “the court must instruct the jury that it may or may not accept the noticed fact as conclusive.” Ariz. R. Evid. 201(f).

¶ 9 Accordingly, a fact may not be removed from the jury’s consideration simply because the trial court took judicial notice of that fact. See id.; see also United States v. Chapel, 41 F.3d 1338, 1342 (9th Cir.1994) (trial court does not “usurp the jury’s fact-finding role by taking judicial notice” if court instructs jury that it is not required to accept fact as conclusive); United States v. Mentz, 840 F.2d 315

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Bluebook (online)
333 P.3d 786, 235 Ariz. 459, 693 Ariz. Adv. Rep. 6, 2014 WL 4087200, 2014 Ariz. App. LEXIS 161, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-of-arizona-v-gregory-charles-rhome-arizctapp-2014.