Hunt v. State

• Decision Date: 07 August 2015
• Docket Number: No. 20A03–1408–CR–00300.,20A03–1408–CR–00300.
• Citation: 43 N.E.3d 588
• Parties: Jeffery J. HUNT, Appellant–Defendant, v. STATE of Indiana, Appellee–Plaintiff.
• Court: Indiana Appellate Court

43 N.E.3d 588

Jeffery J. HUNT, Appellant–Defendant

v.STATE of Indiana, Appellee–Plaintiff.

No. 20A03–1408–CR–00300.

Court of Appeals of Indiana.

Aug. 7, 2015.

Alexander L. Hoover, Law Office of Christopher D. Walter, Nappanee, IN, Attorney for Appellant.

Gregory F. Zoeller, Attorney General of Indiana, Richard C. Webster, Christina D. Pace, Deputy Attorney General, Indianapolis, IN, Attorneys for Appellee.

Opinion on Rehearing

MATHIAS, Judge.

[1] Jeffery Hunt (“Hunt”) pleaded guilty in Elkhart Circuit Court to Count I, Class A felony robbery while armed with a deadly weapon causing seriously bodily injury; Count II, Class A felony burglary; Count III, Class B felony conspiracy to commit burglary; and Count IV, Class B felony criminal confinement. Hunt was sentenced to an aggregate term of 120 years executed in the Department of Correction. Hunt appeals and argues that the 120–year sentence imposed by the trial court is inappropriate in light of the nature of the offense and the character of the offender.

[2] We reverse and remand.

Facts and Procedural History

[3] On November 4, 2013, around 9 p.m., Hunt and his father, Jeffrey Hill (“Hill”), knocked on the door of the New Paris residence of Don and Joan Neer. Eighty-two year old Don Neer came to the door but refused to open it. Hunt and Hill forced their way into the home, and Hunt struck Mr. Neer on the head with a tire iron, then struck him several more times with the tire iron and his fists as Mrs. Neer watched helplessly.¹ As a result of the attack, Mr. Neer suffered lacerations on his head, three fractured vertebrae in his neck, and a bruised wrist. Hunt and Hill then forced Mr. Neer into the living room, restrained him in a chair, and went through the house, taking guns, a television, and cash.

[4] The State charged Hunt with Count I, Class A felony robbery while armed with a deadly weapon causing seriously bodily injury; Count II, Class A felony burglary; Count III, Class B felony conspiracy to commit burglary; and Count IV, Class B felony criminal confinement. Hunt initially pleaded not guilty, but on June 19, 2014, he withdrew his plea of not guilty and pleaded guilty to all four charges.

[5] The trial court held a sentencing hearing on July 31, 2014. At the hearing, the trial court considered the fact that Hunt accepted responsibility by pleading guilty without the benefit of a plea agreement and Hunt's age, twenty-six years, as mitigating circumstances. The trial court then found the following aggravating factors: Hunt's criminal history and especially his two prior burglary convictions, the fact that he had multiple victims, the age of the victims, the extensive injuries suffered by Mr. Neer, the fact that Hunt failed to seek medical attention for Mr. Neer after beating him, the fact that Hunt would not allow Mr. Neer to take his heart medication when he needed it, and the fact that Hunt was determined to be at a high risk to reoffend. After finding that the aggravating factors outweighed the mitigating factors, the trial court sentenced Hunt to fifty years for Count I, fifty years for Count II, twenty years for Count III, and twenty years for Count IV. The sentences for Counts I, II, and IV were to be served consecutively, and the sentence for Count III was to be served concurrently with the sentence for Count IV, for an aggregate sentence of 120 years.

[6] Hunt now appeals.

Discussion and Decision

[7] Hunt argues that his sentence is inappropriate in light of the nature of the offense and the character of the offender. Pursuant to Indiana Appellate Rule 7(B), we may revise a sentence otherwise authorized by statute if, “after due consideration of the trial court's decision, the Court finds that the sentence is inappropriate in light of the nature of the offense and the character of the offender.” Although we have the power to review and revise sentences, the principal role of our review should be to attempt to level the outliers, and identify some guiding principles for trial courts and those charged with improvement of the sentencing statutes, but not to achieve what we perceive to be a “correct” result in each case. Fernbach v. State, 954 N.E.2d 1080, 1089 (Ind.Ct.App.2011), trans. denied (citing Cardwell v. State, 895 N.E.2d 1219, 1225 (Ind.2008) ).

[8] Also, “we must and should exercise deference to a trial court's sentencing decision, both because Rule 7(B) requires us to give ‘due consideration’ to that decision and because we understand and recognize the unique perspective a trial court brings to its sentencing decisions.” Stewart v. State, 866 N.E.2d 858, 866 (Ind.Ct.App.2007). The question under Appellate Rule 7(B) is not whether another sentence is more appropriate; rather, the question is whether the sentence imposed is inappropriate. Fonner v. State, 876 N.E.2d 340, 344 (Ind.Ct.App.2007). It is the defendant's burden on appeal to persuade us that the sentence imposed by the trial court is inappropriate. Childress v. State, 848 N.E.2d 1073, 1080 (Ind.2006).

[9] In exercising our review power, we are not required to compare a defendant's sentence with sentences received by other defendants in similar cases. Knight v. State, 930 N.E.2d 20, 22 (Ind.2010). However, comparison of sentences among those convicted of the same or similar offenses can be a proper consideration when deciding whether a particular sentence is inappropriate. Id. Our supreme court has stated, “Of course, a respectable legal system attempts to impose similar sentences on perpetrators committing the same acts who have the same backgrounds.” Serino v. State, 798 N.E.2d 852, 854 (Ind.2003).

[10] Hunt pleaded guilty to Count I, Class A felony robbery while armed with a deadly weapon resulting in serious bodily injury; Count II, Class A felony burglary; Count III, Class B felony conspiracy to commit burglary, and Count IV, Class B felony criminal confinement. On the date of Hunt's offense,² the sentencing range for a Class A felony was twenty to fifty years, with thirty years being the advisory sentence. See Ind.Code § 35–50–2–4. The sentencing range for a Class B felony was six to twenty years, with ten years being the advisory sentence. See Ind.Code § 35–50–2–5. The trial court imposed a sentence of fifty years for Count I, fifty years for Count II, twenty years for Count III, and twenty years for Count IV. The trial court ordered that the sentences for Counts I, II, and IV be served consecutively and that the sentence for Count III be served concurrently with the sentence for Count IV, for an...