Bean v. State, 1282S485

Decision Date28 August 1984
Docket NumberNo. 1282S485,1282S485
PartiesKenneth W. BEAN, Appellant, v. STATE of Indiana, Appellee.
CourtIndiana Supreme Court

Ali A. Talib, Indianapolis, for appellant.

Linley E. Pearson, Atty. Gen., Lisa M. Paunicka, Deputy Atty. Gen., Indianapolis, for appellees.

DeBRULER, Justice.

Petitioner-appellant, Kenneth W. Bean, was originally charged in Hancock Circuit Court on May 31, 1974 in a four count information with felony murder, armed robbery, kidnapping and first-degree murder. A change of venue was granted and a trial by jury in the Rush Circuit Court resulted in guilty verdicts on all four counts. The trial judge entered judgment on each count but withheld sentence on the felony murder conviction while imposing sentences of ten years for armed robbery, life imprisonment for kidnapping, and life imprisonment for first-degree murder. On direct appeal to this Court, we ordered the trial court to vacate its entry of judgment on the felony murder count but affirmed the judgment in all other respects. Bean v. State, (1978) 267 Ind. 528, 371 N.E.2d 713.

On April 2, 1982, Bean filed a petition for post-conviction relief alleging he had been denied a fair and impartial trial by jury guaranteed him by the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution and by Art. I, Sec. 13 of the Indiana Constitution because of the systematic exclusion of minorities from jury service in Rush County. His petition was denied following a hearing. He now appeals that denial claiming that the post-conviction court erred by finding that the evidence presented did not establish the systematic exclusion of minorities and by failing to make specific findings of fact and conclusions of law following the hearing.

At the hearing on his petition, Bean presented the testimony of two long-time residents of Rush County. Leland Bundrant testified that he was a sixty-five year resident of Rush County and that he estimated that three to four hundred black persons were among the seven thousand residents of the county. He further surmised that two hundred and fifty of those were of voting age. Bundrant was unaware of any black persons who had served on Rush County juries for at least the past thirty years. He conceded that he had not been to any jury trials in the county but had heard this information from other residents. Herman English, a fifty-five year resident of Rush County, testified for Bean that he estimated the black population of the county was three hundred, with two hundred and fifty black persons of voting age. He testified that while there were black persons on the jury panel in Bean's case and that of a black defendant tried thirty years previously, no black persons were seated on the juries for those trials. He further stated that he was unaware of any black persons who had served on Rush County juries as long as he had been a resident.

Petitioner Bean testified that there were no black persons serving on the jury at his trial. He testified that one black person had been on the jury panel in his case, but he did not serve on the jury as the State chose to strike him. On cross-examination, Bean acknowledged that there might have been other black persons on the jury panel of whom he was unaware. He also testified that he had no personal knowledge about the jury selection process in Rush County.

The post-conviction judge's order denying Bean's petition stated in pertinent part:

"Evidence is presented by Petitioner intending to show that there was a systematic, intentional, deliberate and invariable practice in Rush County, Indiana excluding minorities from jury service, thus resulting in Petitioner not receiving a fair and impartial trial as constitutionally guaranteed. Without relying on the State's contention that Petitioner has waived this argument, the evidence...

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5 cases
  • Howey v. State
    • United States
    • Indiana Supreme Court
    • August 14, 1990
    ...if the evidence leads unerringly and unmistakably to an opposite decision, may the trial court's ruling be disturbed. See Bean v. State (1984), Ind., 467 N.E.2d 671; Williams v. State (1984), Ind., 464 N.E.2d 893. It cannot be said that the evidence was not sufficient to support the Appella......
  • Shackelford v. State
    • United States
    • Indiana Supreme Court
    • January 2, 1986
    ...State (1984), Ind., 470 N.E.2d 70. These findings must communicate the basis upon which the petition is granted or denied. Bean v. State (1984), Ind., 467 N.E.2d 671. The post-conviction judge adequately indicated the basis for denial of petitioner's issue number one. The findings regarding......
  • Schiro v. State
    • United States
    • Indiana Supreme Court
    • June 28, 1985
    ...1277. The petitioner must satisfy this Court that the evidence as a whole leads unmistakably to a decision in his favor. Bean v. State (1984), Ind., 467 N.E.2d 671. Appellant's first issue is divided into four subissues. In the first three subissues, which address the trial court's consider......
  • Lahrman v. State, 44A03-8607-PC-200
    • United States
    • Indiana Appellate Court
    • December 18, 1986
    ...such findings must communicate the basis upon which the petition is granted or denied sufficiently for review on appeal. Bean v. State (1984), Ind., 467 N.E.2d 671, 673. The PCR court indicated in its findings that much of the evidence was cumulative because the issue of preservation of the......
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