C.B. v. State
| Decision Date | 19 April 2023 |
| Docket Number | 22A-JV-2740 |
| Parties | C.B., Appellant-Defendant, v. State of Indiana, Appellee-Plaintiff. |
| Court | Indiana Appellate Court |
Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D), this Memorandum Decision is not binding precedent for any court and may be cited only for persuasive value or to establish res judicata, collateral estoppel, or law of the case.
Appeal from the Madison Circuit Court The Honorable Stephen J Koester, Judge Trial Court Cause No. 48C02-2207-JD-133
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT David W. Stone IV Anderson, Indiana.
ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE Theodore E. Rokita Attorney General of Indiana Robert Yoke Deputy Attorney General, Abigail C Dehmlow Certified Legal Intern Indianapolis, Indiana.
[¶1] C.B. appeals his adjudication as a juvenile delinquent for intimidation, as a Level 5 felony if committed by an adult;[1] pointing a firearm, as a Level 6 felony if committed by an adult;[2] and dangerous possession of a firearm, as a Class A misdemeanor if committed by an adult.[3] C.B. raises one issue for our review, namely, whether the State presented sufficient evidence to support his adjudication. We affirm.
[¶2] On July 8, 2022, Keaton Green was working his first day as a delivery driver for Domino's Pizza. Shortly before 6:00 p.m. that evening, Green responded to a request to deliver "a few" pizzas to C.B.'s parents' house. Tr. at 10. The total cost for the pizzas was $29.87. Green arrived at C.B.'s house shortly thereafter, and he began to walk up to the front door. Green observed that C.B. and another juvenile were sitting on the front porch. As Green approached, C.B. asked if the order had already been paid for. Green responded that it had not.
At that point, C.B. "pulled [a] gun out and pointed it at" Green's chest for "three to four seconds" before putting it back in his pocket. Id. at 14, 16.
[¶3] After he had returned the firearm to his pocket, C.B. called out to his father and asked if the order had been paid for online. C.B.'s father stated that he must not have paid online but that he would call Domino's to correct the situation. Green then returned to his car with the pizzas and left "as quick[ly] as [he] could." Id. at 15. Green returned to his store, informed his manager about what had happened, and reported the incident to the police.
[¶4] Officers with the Anderson Police Department responded to Green's report. Green informed officers that he believed the firearm C.B. had pointed at him was real because it did not have the "orange tip" that is typically associated with "a fake handgun or BB gun[.]" Id. at 20. A little later that evening, officers spoke with C.B. C.B. reported that he had "a BB gun" that was "in his lap" the whole time Green was there. Id. at 19. C.B. also reported to officers that, after Green had left, he had walked to a nearby park and "dropped it by the bathrooms[.]" Id. at 20. When officers searched the area, they were unable to locate any firearm or BB gun. In addition, officers questioned some individuals who had been in the park at the relevant time, and the individuals reported that they "hadn't seen any juveniles in that area[.]" Id. at 19.
[¶5] The State filed a petition and alleged that C.B. was a delinquent for having committed intimidation, as a Level 5 felony if committed by an adult; pointing a firearm, as a Level 6 felony if committed by an adult; and dangerous possession of a firearm, as a Class A misdemeanor if committed by an adult. At a fact-finding hearing, Green testified that he was "familiar with firearms" because he "gr[ew] up shooting[.]" Id. at 14. And Green testified that he believed the gun C.B. had pointed was "a black semi-automatic" gun and that there "was a clip in it." Id. He also testified that he felt that he was going "to be robbed" by C.B. Id. at 17. Following the hearing, the court found that C.B. had committed the offenses as alleged and adjudicated him a delinquent. The court then placed C.B. on supervised probation. This appeal ensued.
[¶6] C.B. contends that the State failed to present sufficient evidence to support his adjudication as a juvenile delinquent. Our standard of review is well settled:
We neither reweigh the evidence nor judge the credibility of witnesses. The State must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the juvenile committed the charged offense. We examine only the evidence most favorable to the judgment along with all reasonable inferences to be drawn therefrom. We will affirm if there exists substanti[al] evidence of probative value to establish every material element of the offense. Further, it is the function of the trier of fact to resolve conflicts in testimony and to determine the weight of the evidence and the credibility of the witnesses.
J.C. v. State, 131 N.E.3d 610, 612 (Ind.Ct.App. 2019) (citation omitted). We will affirm a juvenile delinquency adjudication unless no reasonable factfinder could have found the respondent guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. B.T.E. v. State, 108 N.E.3d 322, 326 (Ind. 2018).
[¶7] C.B. first contends that the State failed to present sufficient evidence to support the allegations that he had committed either of the firearm offenses. To show that C.B had committed pointing a firearm, as a Level 6 felony if committed by an adult, the State was required to show that C.B. had knowingly or intentionally pointed a firearm at Green. See I.C. § 35-47-4-3. And to show that C.B. had committed dangerous possession of a firearm, as a Class A misdemeanor if committed by an adult, the State was required to show that C.B. had knowingly, intentionally, or recklessly possessed a firearm. See I.C. § 35-47-10-5(a).
[¶8] On appeal, C.B. contends that the State failed to demonstrate that he had committed either offense because there are many BB guns that resemble real firearms, because Green only "saw the pistol [for] 3 or 4 seconds," and because he testified that the item he had possessed was a BB gun. Appellant's Br. at 9. In other words, C.B. contends that the State failed to prove that the item he had possessed was actually a firearm and not a BB gun.
[¶9] However, C.B.'s argument is merely a request for this Court to reweigh the evidence, which we cannot do. The evidence most favorable to the trial court's judgment demonstrates that C.B. pointed a firearm at Green as opposed to a BB gun. Indeed, Green testified that he was "familiar with firearms" because he "gr[ew] up shooting[.]" Tr. at 14. Green believed that the gun C.B. had pointed was "a black semi-automatic" gun and that there "was a clip in it." Id.
Further, Green reported to officers that the firearm did not have an "orange tip," which is typically associated with "a fake handgun or BB gun[.]" Id. at 20.
[¶10] In addition, the evidence shows that C.B. took efforts to conceal his crime. Specifically, C.B. told officers that he had thrown the firearm away in the park. But, after searching the park, officers were not able to locate the gun. And individuals who had been in the park reported that they had not seen any juveniles in the area. Based on Green's statements and C.B.'s actions, a reasonable fact-finder could infer that C.B. was in possession of a firearm as opposed to a BB gun. We therefore hold that the State presented sufficient evidence to demonstrate that C.B. had dangerously possessed a firearm and that he had pointed it at Green.
[¶11] C.B. next contends that the State failed to present sufficient evidence to show that he had committed intimidation. To prove that C.B. committed intimidation, as a Level 5 felony if committed by an adult, the State was required to prove that C.B. had...
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