State v. Smith

443 P.3d 360
CourtCourt of Appeals of Kansas
DecidedMay 24, 2019
Docket119356
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 443 P.3d 360 (State v. Smith) 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. Smith, 443 P.3d 360 (kanctapp 2019).

Opinion

Hill, J.:

Aaron Ryan Smith pled no contest to two counts of possession of stolen property. In his plea agreement, Smith agreed to pay "all verifiable restitution." He appeals the amount of restitution ordered by the district court.

The court found Smith guilty of possessing a motorcycle stolen from Andrew Rodvelt and a scooter stolen from John Miller in violation of K.S.A. 2015 Supp. 21-5801 (theft). We look first at the motorcycle and then the scooter.

Police located Rodvelt's motorcycle and returned it. The motorcycle had been damaged and Rodvelt had a repair shop estimate the cost of repairs. The estimate for repairs was $ 1,365.77. The repairs included replacing the back rest, replacing the ignition switch, and painting the fuel tank. Rodvelt testified that these repairs were not needed before his motorcycle was stolen. The district court credited Rodvelt's uncontroverted testimony regarding the amount that it would cost to return the motorcycle to the condition it was in before it was stolen. The court ordered restitution in the amount of $ 1,365.77.

The scooter was a different situation. Miller bought his scooter in April 2015 for $ 2,141.93 and it was stolen in November 2015. His scooter was never returned. After receiving notice that Smith had been charged with possession of his stolen property, Miller called the Highway Patrol. The patrol officer told him the scooter was towed by Kitch Towing. Miller then got in touch with Kitch and it told him the scooter had been sold. After demanding proof that Kitch had attempted to contact him before selling it, Kitch then told Miller that the scooter had been stolen. At sentencing, the district court commented that Smith, the Highway Patrol, and Kitch "ought to all maybe talk about how they're going to share the loss," but it found that the misconduct of other parties did not diminish the loss that Miller suffered and ordered $ 2,141.93 in restitution. In other words, the court ordered Smith to pay the actual cost of the scooter as restitution.

We repeat the law that guides us.

The law gives clear directions concerning restitution. Restitution "shall include, but not be limited to, damage or loss caused by the defendant's crime, unless the court finds compelling circumstances which would render a plan of restitution unworkable." K.S.A. 2018 Supp. 21-6604(b)(1).

For our purposes, appellate review of an order directing a criminal defendant to pay restitution can involve three standards of review. If the issue concerns the amount of restitution and the manner in which it is made to the aggrieved party it is reviewed under the abuse of discretion standard. The *363 trial court's factual findings of the causal link between the crime committed and the victim's loss will be affirmed if these findings are supported by substantial competent evidence. Finally, appellate court review of legal questions involving the interpretation of any underlying statutes is subject to our unlimited review. State v. Shank , 304 Kan. 89 , 93, 369 P.3d 322 (2016).

Sufficient evidence described the condition of the stolen motorcycle.

Smith argues the State produced insufficient evidence of the condition of Rodvelt's motorcycle before it was stolen.

Here, Rodvelt specifically testified the repairs listed on the estimate were not needed before the motorcycle was stolen. He was not sure what the " 'detachable chrome side plates' " listed on the estimate were. But he speculated they were part of the back rest. The district court found Rodvelt's testimony regarding the condition of his motorcycle before and after the accident credible, calling it "uncontroverted." The court did not expect Rodvelt to remember every particular item of the motorcycle that needed to be repaired. As an appellate court, we do not reweigh such credibility determinations. See State v. Chandler , 307 Kan. 657 , 668, 414 P.3d 713 (2018). The district court's findings were supported by substantial competent evidence. We will not alter those findings.

There is a direct causal link between Smith's crime and the loss of the scooter.

Smith argues on appeal, as he did before the district court, that there was an insufficient causal link between his crime and the loss suffered by Miller because of the actions of law enforcement and Kitch.

Our statute, K.S.A. 2018 Supp. 21-6604(b)(1) requires that any restitution ordered in a criminal case must be based on "damage or loss caused by" the crime. Thus, restitution depends upon the establishment of a causal link between the defendant's crime and the victim's damages. State v. Alcala , 301 Kan. 832 , 837, 348 P.3d 570 (2015). But the statute's reference to damage or loss caused by the crime is not modified by the adverb "directly." State v. Hand , 297 Kan. 734 , 739, 304 P.3d 1234 (2013).

The causal link between a defendant's crime and the restitution damages must satisfy the elements of proximate cause: cause-in-fact and legal cause. Causation-in-fact requires proof that it is more likely than not that, but for the defendant's conduct, the result would not have occurred. Legal causation limits the defendant's liability even when his or her conduct was the cause-in-fact of a result because it must be foreseeable that the defendant's conduct might have created a risk of harm, and the result of that conduct and any contributing causes were foreseeable. Causation may be based on a chain of events. But if so, an intervening cause may absolve the defendant of liability unless the intervening cause is foreseen or might reasonably have been foreseen by the defendant. State v. Arnett , 307 Kan. 648

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
443 P.3d 360, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-smith-kanctapp-2019.