Williams v. State

677 N.E.2d 1077, 1997 Ind. App. LEXIS 176, 1997 WL 118405
Indiana Court of Appeals·Decided March 18, 1997·No. 87A04-9606-CR-215·Published·Cited by 13 cases

Opinions

OPINION

RILEY, Judge.

STATEMENT OF THE CASE

Defendant-Appellant Daniel Williams appeals his conviction on two counts of Intimidation, as a Class A misdemeanor1 and as a Class D felony.2

We reverse and remand for a new trial.

ISSUES

Williams raises four issues for our review, which we consolidate and restate as follows:

1. Whether the charging information was sufficient to inform Williams of the [1079] particular offenses alleged and specific enough to allow him to prepare a defense in a subsequent prosecution.
2. Whether the trial court erred in admitting exhibits which listed other crimes, wrongs, and acts.
3. Whether the evidence was sufficient to establish the elements of the offense of Intimidation.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On December 27, 1994, Williams was charged with four separate offenses relating to an incident that occurred on December 11, 1994. Williams was on probation at the time the alleged offenses occurred, and a petition to revoke his probation was filed on July 12, 1995.

Erie Miley witnessed the alleged offenses. Miley spoke to the police, gave a written statement, and was listed as a State’s witness. In his statement, he alleged that Williams drew a handgun during an argument with a fellow pool hall patron. In April of 1995, Williams twice approached Miley about his future testimony against Williams. The first time, Williams told Miley outside the pool hall that “[you] better not testify against [me].” The second time, Williams called Miley over to his car as Miley was walking by. He told Miley that “[you] better not testify against [me] or [I will] personally put [you] in [your] grave.”

Williams was charged with two separate counts of Intimidation. The charging information, in pertinent part, stated:

Count 1

The undersigned, being duly sworn upon his oath, says that on or about April 1, 1995 through April 7, 1995, in the parking lot of Fisher Brothers Lumber Company, Inc-Daniel K. Williams did communicate a threat to commit a forcible felony to Eric Miley, a witness in a criminal proceeding, to wit: State of Indiana v. Daniel K. Williams pending in the Warrick Superior Court No. 1 in Warrick County, State of Indiana, under Cause No. 87D01-9412-CF-150 and/or a Petition for Revocation in State of Indiana v. Daniel K. Williams pending in the Warrick Circuit Court in Warrick County, State of Indiana, under Cause No. 87C01-9104-CF-44, with the intent that Eric Miley engage in conduct against his will, to wit: refrain from testifying in said pending criminal proceedings, contrary to the form of the statutes in such cases made and provided by I.C. 35-45-2-1 and against the peace and dignity of the State of Indiana.
Count 2
The undersigned, being duly sworn upon his oath, says that on or about April 17, 1995 through April 21,1995, in front of the Chandler pool hall located in the Town of Chandler, in Warrick County, State of Indiana, Daniel K. Williams did communicate a threat to commit a forcible felony to Eric Miley, a witness in [the actions recited in Count 1], with the intent that Eric Miley engage in conduct against his will, to wit: refrain from testifying in said pending criminal proceedings, contrary to the form of the statutes in such cases made and provided by I.C. 35-45-2-1 and against the peace and dignity of the State of Indiana.

(R. 85 — 86).3

A jury trial was held on the charges. The jury found Williams guilty as charged and the trial court entered judgment thereon. Williams now appeals.

DISCUSSION AND DECISION

I. ADEQUACY OF THE INFORMATION

Williams filed a pre-trial motion to dismiss both counts of the information, asserting that the information was insufficient under Article 1, § 13 of the Indiana Constitution, Ind.Code 35-34-l-2(a), and the 6th and 14th amendments to the United States Constitution. Williams renewed the motion at trial. Both motions were denied. Williams now raises the issue of the sufficiency of the information for our review. He notes that [1080] the information did not specify the content of the alleged threats or the nature of the threatened forcible felonies. He contends that this lack of specificity resulted in a failure to inform him of the particular offense charged or to allow him to plead acquittal or conviction in a subsequent prosecution for the same offense. He further contends that this lack of specificity made it impossible for him to anticipate the evidence against him and to prepare a defense. The constitutions of Indiana and the United States both require that an accused be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against him. Miller v. State, 634 N.E.2d 67, 60 (Ind.Ct.App.1994). Furthermore, Ind.Code 35-34-l-2(a)(4) requires that the information be in writing and allege the commission of an offense by “[s]etting forth the nature and elements of the offense charged in plain and concise language without unnecessary repetition.” The information should state the offense in either the language of the statute or in words that convey a similar meaning. Miller, 634 N.E.2d at 60. The purpose of an information is to advise the accused of the particular offense charged so that he can prepare a defense. Cash v. State, 557 N.E.2d 1023, 1025 (Ind.1990). Absence of detail in an information is fatal only if the accused is misled or deprived of notice of the charges. Kerlin v. State, 573 N.E.2d 445, 448 (Ind.Ct.App.1991), reh’g. denied, trans. denied.

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Williams v. State, 677 N.E.2d 1077, 1997 Ind. App. LEXIS 176, 1997 WL 118405 (Ind. Ct. App. 1997).

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Williams v. State
677 N.E.2d 1077 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1997)