State v. Harmon & Golden
| Decision Date | 14 May 2002 |
| Docket Number | E2001-01506-CCA-R3-CD |
| Parties | STATE OF TENNESSEE v. DONALD RICHARD HARMON, JR., and CHARLES LEONARD GOLDENo. E2001-01324-IN THE COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS OF TENNESSEE AT KNOXVILLE Assigned on Briefs |
| Court | Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals |
Appeal from the Criminal Court for Greene County No. 00CR106 James E. Beckner, Judge
The defendants, Donald Richard Harmon, Jr., and Charles Leonard Golden were convicted of theft over $1,000.00 but less than $10,000.00. See Tenn. Code Ann. 39-14-103, 105(3).The trial court imposed Range I, two-year sentences for each defendant. Each has appealed, challenging the sufficiency of the evidence and alleging as error the limitation of cross-examination of a state witness. The defendant Harmon argues that he should have been granted an alternative sentence. The cause is remanded as to the sentencing of the defendant Harmon; otherwise, the judgments of the trial court are affirmed.
William Louis Ricker, Greeneville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Donald Richard Harmon, Jr.
David L. Leonard, Greeneville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Charles Leonard Golden.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General & Reporter; Elizabeth B. Marney, Assistant Attorney General; and Cecil Mills, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Tenn. R. App. P. 3; Judgments of the Trial Court Affirmed; Remanded for Consideration of Alternative Sentencing
GARY R. WADE, P.J., delivered the opinion of the court, in which DAVID H. WELLES and ROBERT W. WEDEMEYER, JJ., joined.
On July 31, 2000, at about 1:00 or 2:00 P.M., the victims, David and Susan Turner, discovered that their Harley-Davidson motorcycle had been stolen from the carport of their residence in Chuckey. The motorcycle, a 1980 Super Glide, had a fair market value of approximately $9,800.00. David Turner noticed tire tracks across the lawn leading to the property next door which had been occupied by Laleh Liszewski, her daughter Robin, and Clarence "Willie" Williams.
Turner contacted authorities and he and Deputy Danny Greene of the Greene County Sheriff's Department found one of the motorcycle's foot pegs and a pager on the neighboring property. In the days immediately prior to the theft, Ms. Liszewski had been in the process of moving from the residence to a different neighborhood. Turner located the trailer park to which Ms. Liszewski had moved and notified the sheriff's department of her whereabouts.
Another neighbor, Mary Shelton, had noticed that Ms. Liszewski was moving from her residence in the days immediately prior to the theft. On the morning of the theft, she observed through her window a white truck in the Liszewski driveway and noticed two men attempting to load a motorcycle into the truck. When Ms. Shelton looked out her window a second time some 15 minutes later, the truck and the motorcycle were gone. Ms. Shelton identified one of the two men as Williams, the man who had lived with Ms. Liszewski. She described the other man as having long, straight, sandy brown hair which had been pulled back and gathered at the neck in a ponytail.
By the time of trial, Clarence "Willie" Williams, age 19, had entered a guilty plea to a reduced charge of Class E felony theft and received a sentence of one year. Williams, a state witness, testified that on the day prior to the theft, he had moved into a trailer park where the defendant, Richard Harmon, lived. He recalled that he and Harmon had noticed the motorcycle while they were moving out of his prior residence and, because both men were broke and needed money, they decided to steal the motorcycle. According to Williams, the two men drove around in Harmon's father's white truck all night. Williams, who described himself as drinking but "not really" drunk at the time, stated that the defendant Harmon was not drinking. He testified that they returned to the Turner residence about daybreak, discovered that the Turners were still home, and then returned after the Turners left. Williams claimed that the defendant Harmon hot-wired the motorcycle but that it wouldn't start because of a dead battery. He stated that he and Harmon pushed the motorcycle to the Liszewski residence, loaded it into the back of the truck, and left.
According to Williams, he and the defendant Harmon drove back to the trailer park and were able to start the motorcycle's engine. The defendant Harmon then led Williams, who followed in a separate car, to the residence of the defendant Golden. Williams, who parked in Golden's driveway, testified that Harmon "said [Golden] would take care of the bike for us. . . ." Williams testified that in the next two days, he waited for Golden to sell the motorcycle, returning to the Golden residence on at least five different occasions in order to determine whether it had been sold. He claimed the motorcycle was stored in the basement of a house behind the Golden residence. Williams, who first met and talked to Golden on the date of the theft, was able to describe the carport and a portion of the interior of the Golden residence. He also identified a photograph of an area near Golden's residence where the motorcycle was stored. By the time of trial, the defendant Harmon had married Ms. Liszewski. Williams was dating Harmon's former girlfriend, Nancy Riddles.
It was established by the defense that Williams had prior criminal convictions for criminal impersonation and felony evading arrest and at the time of trial, had just been released from jail after having had his probation revoked for driving under the influence, thereby violating the terms of his probation for this offense. Williams admitted being on drugs at the time of the theft.
Detective Jim Ellison interviewed the defendant Harmon about one week after the theft. Later, Detective Ellison questioned Williams and then the defendant Golden. The defendant Golden denied knowing either Harmon or Williams and claimed that he knew nothing about a motorcycle. He also stated that if anybody had brought the motorcycle to his residence, he would have known about it. The detective described Harmon at the time of the interview as having "blondish" hair, "tied behind his head with one rubber band that was sort of a bushy ponytail." Detective Ellison did not recover the motorcycle.
Josephine Ricker, who was Golden's neighbor and had known him for 30 years, testified that she had been interviewed by Detective Ellison in late August of 2000 and had informed him that she had seen a motorcycle at Golden's residence three weeks earlier. She recalled that her attention was drawn to the motorcycle when she heard a loud noise and saw two people with helmets. Ms. Ricker testified that she saw the motorcycle taken in and out of the basement of a house owned by the defendant Golden's mother. According to Ms. Ricker, Golden had lived there, but had recently moved into "the other house up there." Ms. Ricker acknowledged that she never actually saw the defendant Golden with the motorcycle.
Clarence Cogdill, who also lived near the defendant Golden, testified that he had informed Detective Ellison that he had heard a loud motorcycle, which he believed to be a Harley-Davidson, at the Golden residence near the time of the theft. Cogdill described the motorcycle driver as "a fairly young man with . . . long blond hair." Cogdill, who also testified that the house with the basement was owned by Golden's mother, saw a motorcycle parked at that house.
Michael Brown, called as a defense witness, testified that in late July or early August, he and Fred Blake drove a blue and white Harley-Davidson motorcycle, which he believed to be a Heritage, to the Golden residence. Brown claimed that Blake owned the motorcycle. Brown described his recollection of the time he visited Golden's residence as his "best guess." Blake was not called as a witness.
Sarah Druliner Burrell, Ms. Liszewski's former sister-in-law, testified that Williams had asked her brother to help him "get rid of" a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. She claimed that Williams wanted Ms. Liszewski back, to "[g]et her away from Richard," suggesting that he had a motive to lie.
Ms. Liszewski, who had married the defendant Harmon by the time of trial, also testified for the defense and acknowledged that the defendant Harmon had helped Williams move her from the residence next door to the Turners. She testified that Williams and Harmon did not "run around together . . . as far as hanging out."
Each defendant claims that the evidence is insufficient. The defendant Harmon argues that the verdict is based upon mere speculation. The defendant Golden argues that there was no evidence that he participated in the theft and nothing other than the testimony of Williams, who had a prior record, which placed the motorcycle in his presence.
On appeal, the state is entitled to the strongest legitimate view of the evidence and all inferences which might be drawn therefrom. State v. Cabbage, 571 S.W.2d 832, 835 (Tenn. 1978). The credibility of the witnesses, the weight to be given their testimony, and the reconciliation of conflicts in the evidence are matters entrusted exclusively to the jury as the trier of fact. Byrge v. State, 575 S.W.2d 292, 295 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1978). The relevant question is whether, after reviewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the state, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Tenn. R. App. P. 13(e); State v. Williams, 657 S.W.2d 405, 410 (Tenn. 1983). This court may neither reweigh nor reevaluate the evidence; nor may this court substitute its inferences for those drawn by the trier of fact. Liakas v. State, 199 Tenn. 298, 286 S.W.2d 856, 859 (1956). The evidence is sufficient when a rational trier of fact could conclude that the defendant is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319 (1979). The defendant has the burden of demonstrating that the...
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