Greider v. State

• Decision Date: 02 February 1979
• Docket Number: No. 778S143,778S143
• Citation: 270 Ind. 281,385 N.E.2d 424
• Parties: James GREIDER, Appellant (Defendant below), v. STATE of Indiana, Appellee (Plaintiff below).
• Court: Indiana Supreme Court

Page 424

385 N.E.2d 424

270 Ind. 281

James GREIDER, Appellant (Defendant below), v. STATE of Indiana, Appellee (Plaintiff below).

No. 778S143.

Supreme Court of Indiana.

Feb. 2, 1979.

Rehearing Denied April 3, 1979.

James A. Greco, Greco, Gouveia, Miller & Pera, Gary, for appellant.

Theodore L. Sendak, Atty. Gen., Elmer Lloyd Whitmer, Deputy Atty. Gen., Indianapolis, for appellee.

HUNTER, Justice.

The defendant, James Greider, was charged on two counts of first-degree murder. He was tried by jury, convicted, and sentenced to life imprisonment. The defendant now appeals and urges this Court to find that the jury verdict was not supported by the evidence. Specifically, he alleges that there was no evidence to prove the defendant's sanity at the time of the shootings.

Testimony elicited from three physicians (including two psychiatrists) was to the effect that the defendant was not legally sane at the time of the offense because he was suffering from a toxic psychosis due to self-administered substances, drugs. Other witnesses testified that the defendant acted intoxicated, high on something, or not normal.

However, the evidence was conflicting. The defendant himself admittedly remembered the episode of the shooting enough to recognize that he had been armed with a loaded pistol when he went to the victims' apartment. He remembered procuring a sawed-off shotgun (which one victim, Richard, was to use in a drug deal) and carrying it to the apartment. He remembered that there were two loud explosions and that Richard was on the floor; he remembered another loud explosion and that the other victim, Paula, was on the floor. He testified that he "went over to see if Richard was still alive. I felt for a pulse. I didn't get any kind of vital sign." He had not checked to see if Paula was alive because she had been shot between the eyes. He wrapped the shotgun in a field jacket and took it and the pistol to his home where he placed them under the mattress of the bed. Then he slashed his own arm with a knife; he went next door to his neighbor's house and asked the neighbor to take him to the emergency room. The neighbor testified that the defendant's speech was not unusual and that the defendant insisted upon reading the hospital release forms before he would sign them. The defendant himself called police officials two days after the shootings and reported that he thought he had shot two people.

It is true that when a defendant enters a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity, the burden of proving sanity beyond a reasonable doubt is on the state. Coonan v. State, (1978) Ind., 382 N.E.2d 157. But, the question of one's sanity is an issue to be resolved by the trier of fact. Montague v. State, (1977) Ind., 360 N.E.2d 181; Stacker v. State, (1976) 264 Ind. 692, 348 N.E.2d 648. All the facts and circumstances surrounding the events, as well as lay testimony regarding appellant's appearance and conduct, may be considered, and the jury may accept or reject the statements of any or all witnesses, including psychiatrists. Morris v. State, (1979) Ind., 384 N.E.2d 1022; Stamper v. State, (1973) 260 Ind 211, 294 N.E.2d 609; Moore v. State, (1973) 260 Ind. 154, 293 N.E.2d 28.

Here, the facts and circumstances surrounding the shootings, as related by the defendant himself, provide sufficient evidence to sustain the jury's conclusion that the defendant was sane at the time he fired the gun. Despite his allegations that he does not actually remember aiming at the two victims, the victims were both shot directly in the head. The defendant admitted checking to see if Richard were alive; he admitted hiding the guns. Where there is substantial evidence of probative value to support the conclusion of the trier of fact, that conclusion will not be overturned. Coonan v. State, supra.

Although the defendant has not separately isolated his raised defense of voluntary intoxication, his arguments regarding the absence of proof of premeditation or mens rea necessitate some discussion. The jury received two instructions upon voluntary intoxication. Those instructions, unobjected to by the defendant, correctly informed the jurors that voluntary intoxication is not normally a defense in a criminal proceeding. In order for intoxication to relieve a defendant from responsibility, the crime charged must have involved specific...