State v. Bolden

129 P.3d 120, 35 Kan. App. 2d 195, 2006 Kan. App. LEXIS 180
CourtCourt of Appeals of Kansas
DecidedMarch 3, 2006
DocketNo. 93,823
StatusPublished

This text of 129 P.3d 120 (State v. Bolden) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Kansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Bolden, 129 P.3d 120, 35 Kan. App. 2d 195, 2006 Kan. App. LEXIS 180 (kanctapp 2006).

Opinion

Hill, J.:

In this case we must decide whether Tiffany Bolden could be convicted of both intentional aggravated battery and aggravated assault when she rammed her car into the car in which [196]*196her husband was riding with his mistress. Because Bolden’s convictions arose from a single act of violence — ramming her car into the other car — we hold that her aggravated assault convictions are multiplicitous with the aggravated battery convictions, and we reverse and remand.

Furthermore, we disagree with Bolden’s argument that the trial court should have given jury instructions for reckless aggravated battery or misdemeanor battery based on reckless conduct. We hold that because those crimes require the State to prove some type of bodily harm and the facts of this case reveal no bodily harm, the court did not err by not giving such instructions.

Background Facts

There is no dispute about the facts of this case. After dining with her estranged husband, Derrick, Bolden dropped him off at his brother’s residence. Later that evening Derrick was riding in a car driven by his mistress, Glenda Plunk. They were the only people in the car. Bolden followed them for awhile. Bolden flashed her lights at them, pulled her car alongside Plunk’s car, and eventually rammed her car into Plunk’s, forcing it to the side of the road.

After Derrick got out of the car to inspect it for damage, Bolden got out of her vehicle and tried to coax him into returning with her. Derrick refused and got back into the car with Plunk. This time, while Plunk was driving toward the police station, Bolden rammed her car into Plunk’s car a second time. Without stopping, Plunk finally reached safety at the police station. She had previously obtained a protection order against Bolden.

Tiffany Bolden was convicted of two counts of intentional aggravated battery, two counts of aggravated assault, one count of criminal damage to property, one count of violation of a protection order, and one count of reckless driving.

Aggravated Battery and Aggravated Assault Convictions

Bolden argues that her convictions, two counts of aggravated battery and two counts of aggravated assault, are multiplicitous. The frequently cited definition of multiplicity warns against charging a single offense in several counts:

[197]*197“Multiplicity is the charging of a single offense in several counts of a complaint or information. The reason multiplicity must be considered is that it creates the potential for multiple punishments for a single offense in violation of the Double Jeopardy Clause of tire Fifth Amendment of the United States Constitution and section 10 of the Kansas Constitution Bill of Rights.” State v. Robbins, 272 Kan. 158, 171, 32 P.3d 171 (2001).

Even though Bolden did not raise this issue at trial, multiplicity is one of the arguments that can be raised for the first time on appeal. See State v. Groves, 278 Kan. 302, 303-04, 95 P.3d 95 (2004).

Recently, our Supreme Court has addressed the issue of multiplicity in State v. Patten, 280 Kan. 385, 122 P.3d 350 (2005).The court adopted a strict elements test in order to determine multiplicity:

“The test to determine whether the charges in a complaint or information are multiplicitous is whether each offense requires proof of an element not necessary to prove tire other offense. If so, the charges stemming from a single act are not multiplicitous.” Patten, 280 Kan. 385, Syl. ¶ 3.

If a strict elements test is used in this case, it is clear that Bolden’s convictions are not multiplicitous. A review of the instructions revealed that the State was required to prove, in part: “That the defendant intentionally caused physical contact with Glenda Plunk in a rude, insulting or angry manner with a deadly weapon whereby great bodily harm, disfigurement, or death can be inflicted.” The same language was used in the aggravated battery instruction relating to Derrick. In contrast, the jury instruction on aggravated assault required the State to prove, in part: “That the Defendant intentionally placed Glenda Plunk in reasonable apprehension of immediate bodily harm.” Once again, the same language was used in the aggravated assault instruction relating to Derrick.

Thus, it is apparent that the crimes of aggravated battery and aggravated assault each have different elements. For aggravated battery, the State must prove that the defendant made physical contact with the victim. No such showing is required for aggravated assault. For aggravated assault, the State must prove that the victim was placed in “reasonable apprehension of immediate bodily harm.” No such showing is required to support an aggravated bat[198]*198tery conviction. Accordingly, the elements of aggravated batteiy and aggravated assault are different. Thus, aggravated battery and aggravated assault are not multiplicitous under the strict elements test used in Patten.

But the Patten court did not discuss how its new test affects the “single act of violence” aspect of multiplicity. We distinguish this case from Patten for that reason. The most recent case dealing with this, Groves, describes how the defendant grabbed the victim’s purse from her in a parking lot. During the struggle, the victim was thrown to the ground and consequently suffered a fractured sacrum. The jury convicted Groves of aggravated robbery and aggravated battery. Groves appealed, arguing his convictions were multiplicitous because they arose out of the same act of violence. The court stated that Kansas has recognized some form of the “single act of violence” paradigm for years. Therefore, under the specific facts of the case, the single act of violence test applied and controlled, “especially since the pushing down and purse robbing did not just occur at ‘approximately the same time and place,’ but apparently they were both virtually contained in one physical motion.” 278 Kan. at 307.

Under the authority of State v. Warren, 252 Kan. 169, 843 P.2d 224 (1992), and State v. Vontress, 266 Kan. 248, 970 P.2d 42 (1998), the court determined the conviction for aggravated battery must be set aside. Groves, 278 Kan. at 307-08.

In Warren, the court reversed an aiding and abetting aggravated batteiy conviction because it found the convictions for aggravated robbery and aggravated battery multiplicitous when the same act of violence provided the basis for each conviction. Warren was the driver of the car taking two women from the scene of the crime after they forcibly took the victim’s purse, knocking her to the ground and causing injuries.

In Vontress, the court determined convictions for aggravated robbeiy and aggravated battery were multiplicitous because the same act of violence- — -the shooting of the victim — was used to prove both crimes. Even though the victim sustained two gunshot wounds, because there was no distinction made in the charging instrument or the jury instructions between which shot supported [199]

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Related

State v. Cathey
741 P.2d 738 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1987)
State v. Garnes
624 P.2d 448 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1981)
State v. Lassley
545 P.2d 383 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1976)
State v. Vontress
970 P.2d 42 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1998)
State v. Patten
122 P.3d 350 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 2005)
State v. Fulton
23 P.3d 167 (Court of Appeals of Kansas, 2001)
State v. Robbins
32 P.3d 171 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 2001)
State v. Groves
95 P.3d 95 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 2004)
State v. Warren
843 P.2d 224 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1992)
State v. Shirley
89 P.3d 649 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 2004)

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Bluebook (online)
129 P.3d 120, 35 Kan. App. 2d 195, 2006 Kan. App. LEXIS 180, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-bolden-kanctapp-2006.