State v. McPherson

882 S.W.2d 365, 1994 Tenn. Crim. App. LEXIS 109
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Tennessee
DecidedFebruary 24, 1994
StatusPublished
Cited by184 cases

This text of 882 S.W.2d 365 (State v. McPherson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Criminal Appeals of Tennessee primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. McPherson, 882 S.W.2d 365, 1994 Tenn. Crim. App. LEXIS 109 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1994).

Opinion

OPINION

JONES, Judge.

The appellant, Kevin Blair McPherson, was convicted of aggravated rape, a Class A felony, by a jury of his peers. The trial court found that the appellant was a standard offender and imposed a Range I sentence of fifteen (15) years in the Department of Correction. On appeal the appellant presents eleven issues for review.

The judgment of the trial court is affirmed.

The victim, a native of Waverly, Tennessee, graduated from high school in May of 1991. She moved to Franklin, Tennessee after graduation to live with her cousin in an *368 apartment complex known as The Landings. The victim was seeking employment and planned to attend school in the fall.

The appellant resided in Brentwood, Tennessee with a companion. He became friends with people who resided at The Landings; and his friends permitted him to use The Landings facilities. The appellant met the victim while using The Landings facilities.

On the afternoon of July 1,1991, the appellant, the victim, and several others were poolside when they agreed to eat the evening meal together at a local restaurant. When it appeared that the victim would be paired with the appellant, she expressed apprehension to a mutual Mend. The friend advised her not to worry, that at least one other person would be going with them to the restaurant.

When the appellant arrived at the victim’s apartment, he was alone. The victim, laboring under the impression that another person would be riding with them, left with the appellant. However, after they left the apartment, the appellant told her that it would just be the two of them.

The appellant and the victim went to the restaurant as planned and had dinner with the mutual friends. They were the last to leave. It appears that the appellant was trying to get the victim intoxicated. However, the bartender did not make the drinks she consumed with an intoxicating beverage. After they left the restaurant, the appellant took the victim to a bar. He wanted to obtain a credit card that he had previously left to pay for his bar tab. The appellant attempted to hold the victims hand as they approached the bar, but she rebuffed him.

As the appellant approached The Landings, he turned into a gravel road leading to a water tower. When the victim asked why he had turned on the gravel road, the appellant told the victim that he had to relieve himself. The area was secluded due to the trees and weeds surrounding the hillside. The appellant left the vehicle for a few minutes.

When the appellant returned, he ordered the victim to exit the truck. She refused. The appellant grabbed her hair, pulled her out of the truck, and began kissing her. The appellant subsequently pinned the victim against the truck’ so that she could not use her hands. When the appellant began screaming, the appellant grabbed her neck and choked her until she quit. The appellant told her to “shut up or [he] would choke [her] to death.” The appellant made the victim reenter the truck and said: “You better do what I say because I will hurt you.” Once she was in the truck, she obtained mace from her purse and sprayed the appellant. He wiped the mace off and placed his hands over the victim’s face. The mace on the appellant’s hands affected the victim.

The appellant removed the victim’s pants and undergarments and pulled her blouse above her breasts. He made her pose while he took a photograph of her lying on the front seat of the truck. He apparently took a second photograph while she was leaning over the seat of the truck. The appellant subsequently digitally penetrated the victim’s vagina and rectum. When the victim screamed from the pain that she was experiencing, the appellant poured suntan lotion into her vagina and on his reproductive organ. The appellant ejaculated twice upon the victim’s body. The victim subsequently escaped from the appellant. The Franklin Police Department was notified of the crime.

The encounter with the appellant left scratches on the victim’s neck, a bruise on her leg, and a “busted lip.” In addition, a scab on her knee was broken when the appellant pressed against her. The scab, a carpet burn, began to bleed.

The Franklin Police Department notified the law enforcement agencies in Williamson County that the appellant was wanted for questioning. A description of the appellant and his truck were contained in the communication. A Brentwood police officer, who had heard the broadcast, noticed a truck that matched the description of the truck contained in the broadcast. The officer stopped the truck. It was discovered that the appellant, the driver of the truck, wás the person wanted for questioning by the Franklin Police Department. A photograph depicting the nude body of the victim was found on the *369 front floorboard. A subsequent inventory-revealed a polaroid camera. The truck reeked with the odor of coconut oil, which is used in suntan lotions. The shirt the appellant was wearing had a blood stain, which was imprinted on the shirt when the appellant pressed against the victim’s knee.

The appellant testified that the victim had consented to park with him. They began to kiss and engaged in “heavy petting.” He denied that he penetrated the victim’s vagina or rectum. He also denied having ejaculated and maintained that he had been unable to have an erection that evening.

I.

When an accused challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence, this Court must review the record to determine if the evidence adduced during the trial was sufficient “to support the findings by the trier of fact of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.” Tenn. R.App.P. 13(e). This rule is applicable to findings of guilt predicated upon direct evidence, circumstantial evidence, or a combination of direct and circumstantial evidence. State v. Matthews, 805 S.W.2d 776, 779 (Tenn.Crim.App.1990).

In determining the sufficiency of the evidence, this Court does not reweigh or reevaluate the evidence. State v. Cabbage, 571 S.W.2d 832, 835 (Tenn.1978). Nor may this Court substitute its inferences for those drawn by the trier of fact from circumstantial evidence. Liakas v. State, 199 Tenn. 298, 305, 286 S.W.2d 856, 859 (1956). To the contrary, this Court is required to afford the State of Tennessee the strongest legitimate view of the evidence contained in the record as well as all reasonable and legitimate inferences which may be drawn from the evidence. State v. Herrod, 754 S.W.2d 627, 632 (Tenn.Crim.App.1988).

Questions concerning the credibility of the witnesses, the weight and value to be given the evidence as well as all factual issues raised by the evidence are resolved by the trier of fact, not this Court. State v. Pappas, 754 S.W.2d 620, 623 (Tenn.Crim.App.1987). In State v. Grace,

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Bluebook (online)
882 S.W.2d 365, 1994 Tenn. Crim. App. LEXIS 109, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-mcpherson-tenncrimapp-1994.