State v. Tichenor

2002 MT 311, 60 P.3d 454, 313 Mont. 95, 2002 Mont. LEXIS 606
CourtMontana Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 16, 2002
Docket00-835
StatusPublished
Cited by18 cases

This text of 2002 MT 311 (State v. Tichenor) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Montana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Tichenor, 2002 MT 311, 60 P.3d 454, 313 Mont. 95, 2002 Mont. LEXIS 606 (Mo. 2002).

Opinions

JUSTICE NELSON

delivered the Opinion of the Court.

¶1 Kent Allen Tichenor appeals his conviction in the District Court for the First Judicial District, Lewis and Clark County, of three counts of criminal trespass to property, two counts of stalking and one count of partner or family member assault. We affirm.

¶2 We address the following issues on appeal:

¶3 1. Did the District Court properly deny as premature Tichenor’s pretrial motion to dismiss the burglary and stalking charges?

¶4 2. Did the District Court properly deny Tichenor’s motion to dismiss the felony stalking count?

¶5 3. Did the District Court properly exercise its discretion in giving Jury Instructions 23 and 24 regarding stalking?

Factual and Procedural Background

¶6 Tichenor and Bobbi Jo Nall began dating in the summer or fall of 1998. In late November or early December 1998, Nall moved into a new apartment. Shortly thereafter, Tichenor moved in with her and Nall gave Tichenor his own key to the apartment. Tichenor provided [97]*97some of the furniture for the apartment and, on at least one occasion, Tichenor contributed to the rent. Nall had a daughter from a previous marriage who occasionally stayed at the apartment with her mother.

¶7 Eventually, Tichenor moved into his own place, but he and Nall continued their relationship. Tichenor provided Nall with a key to his place and he kept the key to Nall’s apartment. The relationship between the parties began to sour in September 1999, when they had a physical altercation, but they continued dating, continued to call each other several times each day, and continued to spend the night at each other’s residences. Nall testified that following the September incident, she and Tichenor returned each other’s keys, but Tichenor testified that Nall was aware that he still had a key to her apartment. Also, Tichenor’s roommate testified that Nall retained a key to Tichenor’s apartment because she used her key to enter the apartment while Tichenor was in jail.

¶8 On November 2, 1999, during one of their daily phone conversations, Nall informed Tichenor that, rather than going out with him that evening, she had a date with one of her male co-workers. Tichenor later testified that he was surprised by this as he was not aware that his relationship with Nall was over. He went to her work place, followed her to a gas station and followed her home, all the while trying to discourage her from dating another man. At Nall’s apartment, finding the safety chain on the door fastened, Tichenor climbed through a window he knew Nall left open to allow her cat to come in and out. Once inside, Tichenor confronted Nall and pushed her into her bedroom. (This entry into Nall’s apartment gave rise to the first count of burglary against Tichenor.)

¶9 At the time Tichenor entered her apartment, Nall was on the phone with the male friend she planned to see that evening. When Tichenor pushed her, she called out her friend’s name knowing that he was still on the phone. Tichenor grabbed the phone and hung it up. He ordered Nall into the living room and proceeded to yell at her. She twice tried to leave, but Tichenor stopped her. At one point, Tichenor threw the telephone on the floor and crushed it with his foot. Nall later testified that Tichenor threatened to kill her. (These facts gave rise to the charge of partner or family member assault against Tichenor.)

¶10 After a heated discussion regarding their relationship, Tichenor left Nall’s apartment and returned to his home. Meanwhile, Nall’s friend, hearing Nall call out his name when Tichenor confronted her, called the police. Nall eventually spoke with the police, but she initially declined to press charges against Tichenor.

¶11 The following day, Tichenor returned to Nall’s apartment when [98]*98she was not at home, let himself in with his key, and left a new telephone to replace the one he had broken and a card of apology for Nall. (This entry into Nall’s apartment gave rise to the second count of burglary against Tichenor.) The day after that, Tichenor returned to the apartment, installed the telephone, left another note for Nall and fed Nall’s cat. (This entry into Nall’s apartment gave rise to the third count of burglary against Tichenor.)

¶12 Tichenor was arrested on November 4, 1999, on the charges of burglary and partner or family member assault. At Tichenor’s arraignment., Justice of the Peace Wallace Jewell instructed Tichenor that as a condition of his bond, he was not to have any contact with Nall. However, Nall subsequently complained to the county attorney’s office that she had been receiving numerous hang-up calls. The county attorney’s office subpoenaed Tichenor’s cell phone records and discovered that he had called Nall’s apartment 46 times and her place of employment 23 times between November 11 and November 16, 1999. (These phone calls gave rise to one of the stalking counts against Tichenor.)

¶13 On November 22, 1999, both Tichenor and Nall were present at a party at the home of mutual friends. Tichenor and Nall ended up spending the night together. Tichenor testified that he and Nall made plans to get together again the next night, but he was arrested and incarcerated in the Lewis and Clark County Jail for violating the court’s no-contact order. Following his arrest, Tichenor placed over 50 calls to Nall’s apartment from the Lewis and Clark County Jail between November 24 and November 28,1999. Nall recorded many of the calls on her answering machine and played them for a police investigator. (These phone calls gave rise to the other count of stalking against Tichenor.)

¶14 On December 17,1999, the State charged Tichenor by Information with three counts of felony burglary in violation of § 45-6-204, MCA, one count of partner or family member assault in violation of § 45-5-206(l)(c), MCA, and two counts of stalking in violation of § 45-5-220(l)(b), MCA. Following his arraignment, Tichenor moved to dismiss the burglary and stalking charges for lack of sufficient evidence. Tichenor claimed that he lacked the necessary intent required for the stalking charges and that he had license to enter Nall’s apartment so the burglary charges were unfounded. After a hearing, the District Court denied the motion.

¶15 Thereafter, the State requested leave to amend the Information to add a third count of stalking based on Tichenor’s repeated attempts to contact Nall by phone and by mail while Tichenor was incarcerated [99]*99in the Lewis and Clark County Jail. Rather than grant the request to add a third count of stalking, the court merged the new charges into one of the other two counts.

¶16 Trial was conducted from May 1 through May 4, 2000. The jury found Tichenor guilty of three counts of misdemeanor trespass as a lesser included offense of burglary, one count of partner or family member assault, and two counts of stalking. On June 2,2000, Tichenor moved for a new trial claiming that the State failed to produce evidence of intent; that he was improperly charged for more than one count of stalking; that the jury was given improper jury instructions; and that his communications and attempted communications with Nall were constitutionally protected. The District Court denied Tichenor’s motion.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2002 MT 311, 60 P.3d 454, 313 Mont. 95, 2002 Mont. LEXIS 606, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-tichenor-mont-2002.