State v. Brown

913 S.W.2d 919, 1996 Mo. App. LEXIS 90, 1996 WL 21242
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedJanuary 23, 1996
DocketNos. WD 48648, WD 50255
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 913 S.W.2d 919 (State v. Brown) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Brown, 913 S.W.2d 919, 1996 Mo. App. LEXIS 90, 1996 WL 21242 (Mo. Ct. App. 1996).

Opinion

LAURA DENVIR STITH, Judge.

Edward James Brown was found guilty of sodomy, § 566.060, RSMo Cum.Supp.1991, and sexual abuse in the first degree, § 566.100, RSMo Cum.Supp.1991, following a jury trial. He was sentenced to a 15-year term of imprisonment for sodomy and a concurrent 5-year term for sexual abuse in the first degree.

Mr. Brown appeals his conviction on the grounds: (1) that the verdict directing instruction for sodomy was plainly erroneous in that it failed to require the jury to find the criminality of his conduct, i.e., that he intentionally brought his genitals into contact with the victim’s hand, as required by MAI-CR 3d 320.08.2, and (2) that the trial court erred in failing to set aside the verdict and sentence on the ground that he was not competent to proceed to trial and sentencing. We find no merit in either contention and affirm.

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Mr. Brown was charged with sodomizing and sexually abusing A.S., his wife’s daughter from a prior relationship. A.S. testified that the first episode occurred at night when she was six or seven years old. At that time, she was awakened from sleep to find Mr. Brown placing her hand on his penis and then moving her hand up and down.

Similar occurrences followed this initial episode. A.S. testified that Mr. Brown would usually come into her room naked, get fully or partially under her sheets, put her hand around his penis and then hold her hand in place with his hand to keep it there. Later, after A.S. turned nine or ten, Mr. Brown started fondling her breasts and then touching her vagina. This contact occurred either daily or every other day and would sometimes occur as frequently as two or three times a night.

T.S., the sister of A.S. with whom she shared a room during much of this period, witnessed Mr. Brown touching A.S. on fifteen to twenty occasions over a two-year period. When T.S. asked Mr. Brown what he was doing, Mr. Brown told her that he was under the covers looking for the dog, who sometimes slept on A.S.’s bed. Both T.S. and the [921]*921girls’ mother, Zelda, also testified that they saw Mr. Brown masturbating as he watched A.S. undress.

At trial, Mr. Brown denied molesting A.S. He explained that he would go into A.S.’s room at night to check on her because she would have nightmares, kicking and banging the wall and rolling out of bed. In addition, Mr. Brown claimed that the girls would often let the family pets sleep with them. He preferred to put the dog and cat outside at night. Therefore, he would have to look underneath the blankets on the girls’ beds for the family’s pet dog or cat. Finally, Mr. Brown claimed that his readjustment of his hernia, which was necessary throughout the day, was what A.S. and her mother mistakenly referred to as masturbation. He stated that he would try to hide this activity from the girls because they would not understand what he was doing.

The jury convicted Mr. Brown and his post-trial motions were denied. This appeal followed.

II. THE VERDICT DIRECTING INSTRUCTION WAS NOT PLAINLY ERRONEOUS

Mr. Brown alleges that the verdict directing instruction for sodomy failed to require a finding of the “criminality” of his conduct in that it did not require the jury to find that he purposefully acted in a manner so as to bring his genitals into contact with the victim’s hand. The verdict director, in its entirety, stated:

As to Count I, if you find and believe from the evidence beyond a reasonable doubt:
First, that between January 1, 1986 and December 31, 1991, in the County of Macon, State of Missouri, the genitals of defendant came into contact with the hand of [AS.], and
Second, that such conduct constituted deviate sexual intercourse, and
Third, that [A.S.] was then less than fourteen years old, and
Fourth, defendant was not then married to [A.S.], then you will find the defendant guilty under Count I of sodomy.
However, unless you find and believe from the evidence beyond a reasonable doubt each and all of these propositions, you must find the defendant not guilty of that offense.
As used in this instruction, the term “deviate sexual intercourse” means any act involving the genitals of one person and the mouth, tongue, hand, or anus of another person done for the purpose of arousing or gratifying the sexual desire of another person.
If you do find the defendant guilty under Count I of sodomy, you will assess and declare the punishment at imprisonment for a term of years fixed by you, but not less than five years and not to exceed fifteen years.

(emphasis added).

Mr. Brown claims that the first paragraph of this instruction permitted the jury to find him guilty of sodomy without making a “specific factual finding that [he] committed any action which resulted in deviate sexual intercourse.”

As this case was tried prior to July 1, 1995, Mr. Brown could preserve instructional error for review by making specific objections prior to submission or by raising instructional error in his motion for new trial. State v. Reichert, 854 S.W.2d 584, 601 (Mo. App.1993); Rule 28.03; Rule 29.11(d). Mr. Brown’s trial counsel did not object to this instruction at either juncture, however, and thus has failed to preserve this error for review. He nonetheless asks us to consider this issue as a matter of plain error under Rule 30.20.

Instructional error rises to the level of plain error only if the instruction is so misdirected or so failed to adequately instruct the jury that it is apparent to the appellate court that the error affected the jury’s verdict and caused manifest injustice or a miscarriage of justice. State v. Nolan, 872 S.W.2d 99, 103 (Mo. banc 1994); State v. DeJournett, 868 S.W.2d 527, 531 (Mo.App. 1993). Mr. Brown bears the burden of establishing that this standard is met. State v. Cline, 808 S.W.2d 822, 824 (Mo. banc 1991). He has failed to do so here.

[922]*922The problem defendant identifies with Paragraph First is that it simply requires a passive finding that Mr. Brown’s genitals came into contact with A.S.’s hand and fails to require a finding that this contact was done for sexual gratification rather than by accident.

As the State notes, the instruction would have been better had it used the active voice and required a finding that Mr. Brown placed the hand of A.S. on his genitals, but we do not believe that the failure to do so resulted in plain error.

One instruction or part of an instruction will not be looked at in isolation to determine whether error occurred. To the contraiy, the instructions will be looked at as a whole to determine whether the jury was properly instructed as to the relevant law. State v. Jimmerson, 891 S.W.2d 470, 473 (Mo.App.1994).

That is what occurred here.

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Bluebook (online)
913 S.W.2d 919, 1996 Mo. App. LEXIS 90, 1996 WL 21242, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-brown-moctapp-1996.