Baier v. State, 94-40
| Decision Date | 07 March 1995 |
| Docket Number | No. 94-40,94-40 |
| Citation | 891 P.2d 754 |
| Parties | William BAIER, Appellant (Defendant), v. The STATE of Wyoming, Appellee (Plaintiff). |
| Court | Wyoming Supreme Court |
Leonard D. Munker, State Public Defender and Deborah Cornia, Appellate Counsel, for appellant.
Joseph B. Meyer, Atty. Gen., Sylvia Lee Hackl, Deputy Atty. Gen., D. Michael Pauling, and Mary Beth Wolff, Sr. Asst. Attys. Gen., for appellee.
Before GOLDEN, C.J., and THOMAS, MACY, TAYLOR and LEHMAN, JJ.
The primary question presented by this appeal is the proper form of an instruction with respect to self-defense when it is given to a jury in an aggravated assault and battery trial. Appellant was charged with aggravated assault and battery in violation of W.S. 6-2-502(a)(ii) (1988). After a jury trial, appellant was found guilty; and the district court sentenced him to a term of not less than two and one-half years nor more than four years in the Wyoming State Penitentiary. Appellant appeals from that conviction, stating the issues as follows:
I. Did the trial court err when it improperly charged the jury on the law of self-defense?
II. Did the prosecution violate Wyoming Rules of Evidence 401 and 403 by eliciting improper victim impact testimony at trial?
III. Was the evidence produced at trial insufficient to negate appellant's claim of self-defense?
The State rephrases the issues as:
I. Did the trial court properly instruct the jury?
II. Was the evidence produced at trial relevant and probative on the elements of the crime of aggravated assault and battery?
We affirm.
At about 10:30 p.m. on August 9, 1993, Evelyn Morelli and her husband Joseph arrived at the Cheyenne Village Inn to eat. Shortly after they were seated in a booth, two off-duty morning cooks entered the restaurant.
One of these off-duty cooks was the defendant and appellant in this case, William Baier, and the other one was Kevin Harris (hereinafter Harris). Both the appellant and Harris were extremely intoxicated.
Once the appellant and Harris entered the Village Inn, they were met by the host. An argument arose wherein the host stated to appellant and Harris that it was the restaurant's policy not to allow employees at the restaurant when they were off-duty, and he asked them to leave. The host eventually told them they could stay in the lobby and he would get them an order. While the host went to give the cooks their order, appellant and Harris sat down in a booth directly behind the Morellis.
As the Morellis were enjoying their meal, appellant and Harris started conversing in a very loud manner, engaging in vulgar language. Appellant directed some language at Mrs. Morelli. Mr. Morelli got out of his seat and approached appellant and Harris. He stood at the entry to their booth and asked them if they would mind lowering their voices and discontinuing the vulgar language. Harris apologized to Mr. Morelli and told him that they would quiet down.
However, appellant did not take so kindly to Mr. Morelli's request. Appellant stated to Mr. Morelli that "Nobody tells me what I can say or anything." Appellant then attempted to exit the booth, grabbing Mr. Morelli's shoulder. In response, Mr. Morelli grabbed appellant around the neck in order to restrain him. Mr. Morelli held appellant in this position for approximately one minute. Mr. Morelli then shoved appellant back in the booth and told him to sit down and keep his mouth shut.
Mr. Morelli then leaned over appellant's and Harris' table, both of his hands empty and resting on the table, and asked Harris to calm appellant down so that there would be no more trouble. Harris told Mr. Morelli that he would try. As Mr. Morelli was conversing and focusing on Harris, appellant came up out of the booth and struck Mr. Morelli in the face. Mr. Morelli felt blood gushing from his face, and he grabbed appellant's right arm. Mr. Morelli only then realized that appellant had a fork in his right hand and that appellant had stabbed him in his eye with the fork. Mr. Morelli again grabbed appellant and shoved him down on the table, restraining appellant while he waited for someone to help control the situation.
The host and a waiter eventually pulled Mr. Morelli off appellant. When appellant was released from Mr. Morelli's grasp, he got up from the table and ran to the east end of the restaurant. The host and the waiter followed appellant and attempted to control him. Appellant swung his fists at the host and the waiter several times, and then he ran out of the restaurant.
Appellant was apprehended by the Cheyenne City Police Department approximately one and one-half blocks from the Village Inn. Mr. Morelli was taken by ambulance to the United Medical Center-West and subsequently underwent surgery for his eye injury.
The duty of the trial court is to present in the instructions to the jury the law applicable to the issues actually raised by the evidence. Hatheway v. State, 623 P.2d 741, 743 (Wyo.1981). It is well settled that a trial court is given wide latitude in instructing the jury; and as long as the instructions correctly state the law and the entire charge to the jury adequately covers the issues, reversible error will not be found. Scadden v. State, 732 P.2d 1036, 1053 (Wyo.1987). The instructions are to be viewed in their entirety and read together to determine if this obligation is met. Ostrowski v. State, 665 P.2d 471, 487 (Wyo.1983). A defendant has the right to have instructions on his theory of the case or his defense presented to the jury if the instructions sufficiently inform the jury of the theory or defense and if competent evidence exists which supports the law expressed in the instructions. Amin v. State, 811 P.2d 255, 261 (Wyo.1991) (citing Thom v. State, 792 P.2d 192, 195 (Wyo.1990)). The trial court, however, may properly refuse a requested instruction, even if correct, where the principles of the instruction have been covered properly and sufficiently by other
instructions. Thom, at 195 (quoting Miller v. State, 755 P.2d 855, 864 (Wyo.1988)). "It is within the court's discretion to present its own instruction or instructions covering the defendant's theory of the case." Sanchez v. State, 694 P.2d 726, 729 (Wyo.1985). Applying these standards to the instructions given in this case, we find no error requiring reversal.
Appellant's first contention challenges the district court's refusal to give appellant's requested self-defense instructions. Appellant contends that the instructions given by the district court erroneously charged the jurors on the law to apply to self-defense in an aggravated assault and battery case. The district court gave the following instructions to the jury regarding appellant's theory of the case:
It is incumbent upon the prosecution to establish all the material allegations of the Information beyond a reasonable doubt. The material allegations of the Information as here used are as follows:
"[T]hat WILLIAM BAIER * * * On or about the 9th day of August, 1993, at the County of Laramie, State of Wyoming, * * * did unlawfully and feloniously, intentionally and knowingly cause bodily injury to Joe Morelli with a fork, deadly weapon, contrary to W.S. § 6-2-502(a)(ii), 1977 Republished Edition."
Also, the issue of self-defense has been presented.
If the allegations of the Information are established in your minds beyond a reasonable doubt and if you are convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant was not acting in self-defense, then the prosecution has established beyond a reasonable doubt all of the guilt of the defendant.
It is not meant that it is incumbent upon the prosecution to prove every fact surrounding such testimony beyond a reasonable doubt. All that is incumbent on the prosecution is that all the facts and circumstances taken together should establish the defendant's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. If you are satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt from all the evidence in the case of the defendant's guilt, you should find such defendant guilty.
The necessary elements of the crime of aggravated assault and battery, are:
1. The crime occurred within the county of Laramie on or about the date of August 9, 1993; and
2. The defendant intentionally or knowingly caused;
3. Bodily injury to another;
4. With a deadly weapon;
5. Not in self-defense.
If you find from your consideration of all of the evidence that any of these elements has not been proved beyond a reasonable doubt, then you should find the defendant not guilty.
If, on the other hand, you find from your consideration of all of the evidence that each of these elements has been proved beyond a reasonable doubt, then you should find the defendant guilty.
(i) "Bodily injury" means physical pain, illness or any impairment of physical condition;
(iv) "Deadly weapon" means but is not limited to a firearm, * * * or other device, instrument, material or substance, which in the manner it is used or is intended to be used is reasonably capable of producing death or serious bodily injury[.]
One is justified to act in self-defense if he believed that he was in immediate danger of harm as made it reasonable and necessary to use the degree of force actually involved; that the circumstances were such to warrant reasonable grounds for such belief in the mind of a reasonable man; and that there was no other reasonable method of escaping or resolving the conflict.
The burden of proving a defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt rests upon the State. This burden never shifts throughout the trial. The law does not require a defendant to prove his innocence or to produce any evidence whatsoever. He may rely upon evidence brought out on cross-examination of witnesses for the State. If the State fails to prove a defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, the...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Duke v. State
...the instructions are reviewed in their entirety and read together. Rigler v. State, 941 P.2d 734, 740 (Wyo.1997) (citing Baier v. State, 891 P.2d 754, 756 (Wyo.1995)). [¶ 96] If the jury was confused by the misstatement in Instruction Nos. 17 and 18, Instruction Nos. 7, 8 and 9 clearly desc......
-
Olsen v. State
...error as long as the instructions given to the jury correctly state the law and adequately cover the relevant issues. Baier v. State, 891 P.2d 754, 756 (Wyo.1995). When determining whether the charge to the jury properly expressed the issues actually raised by the evidence, we look at the c......
-
Butcher v. State, 04-208.
...is admissible as circumstantial evidence of guilt. See Cureton v. State, 2003 WY 44, ¶ 11, 65 P.3d 1250, 1253 (Wyo.2003); Baier v. State, 891 P.2d 754, 760 (Wyo.1995); Miller v. State, 830 P.2d 419, 427 (Wyo.1992); Gentry v. State, 806 P.2d 1269, 1275 (Wyo.1991); Smizer v. State, 752 P.2d 4......
-
Giles v. State
...prove necessary. Duckett v. State, 966 P.2d 941, 943-44 (Wyo.1998); Brett v. State, 961 P.2d 385, 389 (Wyo.1998); Baier v. State, 891 P.2d 754, 756 (Wyo.1995); Hatheway v. State, 623 P.2d 741, 743 Sufficiency of the Evidence [¶ 47] Giles argues that the evidence is insufficient to sustain h......