Hancock v. State, 1269S284
| Decision Date | 03 August 1971 |
| Docket Number | No. 1269S284,1269S284 |
| Citation | 271 N.E.2d 731,256 Ind. 697 |
| Court | Indiana Supreme Court |
| Parties | Darrell Robert HANCOCK, Appellant, v. STATE of Indiana, Appellee. |
William C. Erbecker, Herbert W. Johnson, Jr., Indianapolis, for appellant.
Theodore L. Sendak, Atty. Gen., R. Michael Bruney, Deputy Atty. Gen., for appellee.
Appellant was charged by indictment with first degree arson. He was convicted in a trial without jury in the Marion County Criminal Court, No. 2, and was sentenced to two to fourteen years in prison.
Appellant's first allegation of error is that there was insufficient evidence to sustain the trial court finding. In reviewing the allegation of insufficient evidence this Court will not weigh the evidence nor resolve questions of credibility of witnesses, but will look to that evidence and the reasonable inferences therefrom which support the finding of the trial court. Asher v. State (1969), Ind. 244 N.E.2d 89. The conviction will be affirmed if from that viewpoint there is evidence of probative value from which the trier of fact could reasonably infer that the appellant was guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Smith v. State (1970), Ind., 260 N.E.2d 558.
Appellant was charged with first degree arson in violation of I.C.1971, 35--16--1--1, being Burns' § 10--301. Under this indictment the elements required to be proved by the appellee were: (1) The appellant (2) wilfully set fire (3) to a dwelling house. Appellant does not argue that the evidence was insufficient to show the wilful burning of a dwelling house, but only that the evidence was insufficient to show that he did it.
Charles Hill, Chief Investigator for the Indiana State Fire Marshal's Office testified that he investigated two fires at the home of Robert Harlan Graves at 151 S. Girls School Road in late May of 1967. The first fire occurred on May 29, and destroyed the interior furnishings of the house, which consisted solely in a piano, a dinette set and living room furniture. On May 31, a second fire occurred which destroyed the house. Both fires were definitely wilfully set by the use of gasoline. Hill also testified that he talked to appellant at the State Farm after the fire and appellant told him he had a receipt for a bedroom suite that he had bought from Robert Harland Graves for $100.00, paying $10.00 down.
Robert Harland Graves testified that he and his wife and family lived at 151 S. Girls School Road in May of 1967, and were buying the house on contract from a third party. Graves testified that approximately four weeks before the fire he had talked to one Jimmy Williams about burning down Graves' house to get the insurance money. Williams told Graves he would get the appellant, Darrell Hancock, to do the job. Two weeks before the fire appellant went to Graves' house and the two of them looked over the house and discussed the best method of setting fire to it. The appellant asked about the type of furnace in the house. As to the method Hancock was to use Graves testified as follows:
According to Graves appellant's payment for the job was to be the bedroom suite in Graves' house, consisting in mattress, box springs, dresser, mirror and headboard. Graves admitted appellant had a receipt which showed that appellant had paid $100.00 for the suite but Graves said appellant never paid anything for the suite, that appellant just wanted a receipt for it. Graves said appellant asked for and obtained the receipt before the fire and while, the bedroom furniture was still at Graves' house. When the fire occurred the Graves were in West Virginia on a holiday over Memorial Day. Graves testified that the bedroom suite was in the house when they left for West Virginia.
Sandra Graves, wife of Robert Harlan, testified that they left for West Virginia on a Memorial Day holiday on Friday evening,...
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Fox v. State
...the elements of arson. The elements of arson are: (1) The appellant (2) wilfully set fire (3) to a dwelling house. Hancock v. State, (1971) 256 Ind. 697, 271 N.E.2d 731. The statute, I.C. 35-16-1-1, uses the terms "wilfully and maliciously." A "willful" setting fire to or burning would be s......
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Pawloski v. State
...has been defined as the willful and malicious setting of a fire to any dwelling house. IC § 35-16-1-1 (Burns 1975); Hancock v. State (1971), 256 Ind. 697, 271 N.E.2d 731. The State introduced testimony of the State's arson investigator that the fire was incendiary in nature and not caused b......
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...did not stand upon it but introduced evidence in his defense. Pinkston v. State, (1975) Ind.App., 325 N.E.2d 497; Hancock v. State, (1971) 256 Ind. 697, 271 N.E.2d 731; Warren v. State, (1963) 243 Ind. 508, 188 N.E.2d The substance of the defendant's insanity plea was that he was a drug add......
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Taylor v. State, 2--1073
...in her own defense after the overruling of the Motion for Discharge, Taylor waived the error, if any, in that ruling. Hancock v. State (1971), 256 Ind. 697, 271 N.E.2d 731. We therefore must consider Taylor's sufficiency of evidence contention with respect to the permit issue in view of all......