Gossett v. State, CA CR 03-1419.

Decision Date15 September 2004
Docket NumberNo. CA CR 03-1419.,CA CR 03-1419.
Citation191 S.W.3d 548
PartiesJames Odis GOSSETT, Jr., Appellant v. STATE of Arkansas, Appellee.
CourtArkansas Court of Appeals

David L. Dunagin, Fort Smith, for appellant.

Mike Beebe, Att'y Gen., by: Misty Wilson Borkowski, Ass't Att'y Gen., Little Rock, for appellee.

JOHN MAUZY PITTMAN, Judge.

The appellant in this criminal case was charged with non-support, a Class-D felony. He pled guilty to that offense and received a six-year suspended imposition of sentence on September 18, 2002. As a condition of his suspension, appellant was ordered to pay arrearages in the amount of sixty dollars per week in addition to child support in the amount of fifty dollars per week as ordered by the court. He failed to make these payments as ordered, and a petition to revoke his suspension was filed. After a revocation hearing September 10, 2003, the trial court found that appellant violated the terms of his suspension by willfully failing to pay these amounts, and sentenced the appellant to six years' imprisonment, with an additional three years' suspended imposition of sentence. This appeal followed.

For reversal, appellant contends that the evidence adduced at trial was insufficient to support a finding that he violated the conditions of his suspended imposition of sentence. We affirm.

In revocation proceedings, the burden is on the State to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant has violated a condition of his suspension. Jones v. State, 52 Ark.App. 179, 916 S.W.2d 766 (1996). Where the sufficiency of the evidence is challenged on appeal from an order of revocation, we will not reverse the trial court's decision unless its findings are clearly against the preponderance of the evidence; in making our review, we defer to the superior position of the trial court to determine questions of credibility and the weight to be given to the evidence. Id.

In the present case, there was evidence that appellant was $20,000 in arrears, and that he had made only three fifty-dollar payments during the year following his conviction for non-support. There was also evidence that these payments were made only after appellant had been arrested and detained in Fort Smith, Arkansas, on charges of failure to pay child support. On February 10, 2003, appellant secured his release by posting a cash bond in the amount of $500. Appellant forfeited this bond by failing to appear in court as ordered. He was located through N.C.I.C. and arrested in the state of...

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  • Hanna v. State, CA CR 09–121.
    • United States
    • Arkansas Court of Appeals
    • December 2, 2009
    ...many ways. It can undermine the probationer's credibility, which is a matter for the circuit court to judge. Gossett v. State, 87 Ark.App. 317, 319–20, 191 S.W.3d 548, 549–50 (2004). The State can show a lack of effort. “[A] defendant's failure to make bona fide efforts to seek employment o......
  • Beebe v. State
    • United States
    • Arkansas Court of Appeals
    • February 25, 2009
    ...who is able to regularly obtain marijuana for his own use is likewise able to pay something toward his fines. See Gossett v. State, 87 Ark.App. 317, 191 S.W.3d 548 (2004). Furthermore, appellant's admission to using marijuana during the term of his probation, and the evidence that he tested......
  • James v. State
    • United States
    • Arkansas Court of Appeals
    • June 27, 2012
    ...§ 5-4-309(d) (Repl. 2006). 8.Bradley v. State, 347 Ark. 518, 65 S.W.3d 874 (2002). 9.Anglin v. State, 98 Ark. App. 34, 249 S.W. 3d 836 (2007). 10.Gossett v. State, 87 Ark. App. 317, 191 S.W.3d 548 (2004). 11.Richardson v. State, 85 Ark. App. 347, 157 S.W.3d 536 ...
  • Tyson v. State, CACR09-624 (Ark. App. 12/16/2009)
    • United States
    • Arkansas Court of Appeals
    • December 16, 2009
    ...position of the trial court to determine questions of credibility and the weight to be given to the evidence. Gossett v. State, 87 Ark. App. 317, 191 S.W.3d 548 (2004). Appellant first argues that the State failed to prove that his failure to pay was in fact willful, citing Jordan v. State,......
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