State v. Peneaux

• Decision Date: 15 March 2023
• Docket Number: 29878-PJD
• Citation: 2023 S.D. 15
• Parties: STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA, Plaintiff and Appellee, v. JAY JOSEPH PENEAUX, Defendant and Appellant
• Court: South Dakota Supreme Court

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2023 S.D. 15

STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA, Plaintiff and Appellee, v. JAY JOSEPH PENEAUX, Defendant and Appellant

No. 29878-PJD

Supreme Court of South Dakota

March 15, 2023

CONSIDERED ON BRIEFS OCTOBER 3, 2022

APPEAL FROM THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE SEVENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT PENNINGTON COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA, THE HONORABLE CRAIG A PFEIFLE Judge.

TODD A. LOVE Rapid City, South Dakota, Attorney for defendant and appellant.

MARTY J. JACKLEY Attorney General.

JONATHAN K. VAN PATTEN Assistant Attorney General Pierre South Dakota, Attorneys for plaintiff and appellee.

DEVANEY, JUSTICE.

[¶1.] Jay Peneaux was charged with multiple offenses relating to the assault of his ex-wife, Brittany, and his later efforts to get the pending charges dismissed. After the close of the State's evidence during a jury trial, Peneaux moved for a judgment of acquittal on all charges. The circuit court denied the motion, and the jury found Peneaux guilty on all counts. Peneaux appeals, arguing that there was insufficient evidence for the jury to find him guilty of aggravated assault and threatening and harassing conduct. We affirm in part, reverse in part, and vacate the conviction on the threatening and harassing conduct charge.

Factual and Procedural Background

[¶2.] Peneaux and Brittany began their relationship in 2006. At the time, Peneaux was 22 years old, and Brittany was 14 years old. Brittany became pregnant and gave birth to the couple's first child in 2007. They were married in 2014 and Brittany gave birth to two additional children, one in 2015 and one in 2018. Throughout their marriage, Brittany was subjected to emotional abuse from Peneaux. According to Brittany, this abuse was especially prevalent when Peneaux was drinking or getting high. In addition to emotional abuse, Brittany claimed Peneaux physically abused her multiple times throughout their marriage.

[¶3.] Evidence of prior acts of abuse was admitted at trial. One such act occurred during the summer of 2018 when, after a night of drinking at a bar, Peneaux pulled Brittany's hair, threw her on the ground, and jumped on top of her during an argument outside their home. She did not call the police, explaining that Peneaux provided the family's only source of income. In another incident in December 2018, after an argument during which Brittany was attempting to get her car keys back from Peneaux, he started choking her and then threw her off the porch. This time Brittany did call the police.

[¶4.] Trial testimony was also presented regarding an incident occurring in November 2019. During this incident, Peneaux grabbed a knife from the kitchen after arguing with Brittany and threatened to kill her and her family. Upon seeing their daughter, who was recording the incident, Peneaux turned the knife on himself and threatened suicide. He left the home when Brittany's mother arrived. Her mother called the police to report what had happened, and charges were filed relating to this incident. But after receiving numerous threatening text messages from Peneaux, Brittany complied with his instructions and wrote a letter to the judge handling the case asking that the charges be dismissed. Brittany testified that during each of the above altercations, she believed Peneaux to be intoxicated from either drugs or alcohol.

[¶5.] In late 2019, Brittany decided to initiate divorce proceedings, and the divorce was finalized approximately one year later. After the divorce, Peneaux was living with his parents, but in April 2021, Brittany allowed him to stay at her home. Peneaux had informed Brittany that he had a job lined up and that he was trying to work on his sobriety. He explained that it was difficult for him to stay sober at his parents' home. According to Brittany, although they no longer had a romantic relationship, she allowed Peneaux to stay at her home in the hope that he would stay sober and reconnect with their children. Peneaux slept in the children's room while staying in her home. She was aware that Peneaux had a girlfriend named Janelle Fisher who was in jail at the time.

[¶6.] On April 27, 2021, Peneaux informed Brittany that he would be leaving indefinitely to work at a construction site out of town. He also mentioned that Janelle had gotten out of jail, and he was going to go see her before leaving town. Peneaux left Brittany's home, and when he returned, Brittany thought he appeared to be high because he was acting aggressive and talking about things that did not make sense. This behavior upset Brittany, and they then had an argument about Peneaux's role as a father. The argument ended when Peneaux asked for Brittany's keys, so he could collect his things from her vehicle. Once he collected his belongings, he left Brittany's keys on the driver's seat of her vehicle and got into his own vehicle and sped off.

[¶7.] Shortly after Peneaux left, Brittany went to retrieve her keys from her vehicle. While doing so, she noticed that the glove compartment and center console were left open. She then discovered that Peneaux had taken money from the center console and her handgun from the glove compartment. Brittany kept the magazine for the handgun at the bottom of the center console, and it was still there.

[¶8.] Later that same evening, Brittany drove to the trailer home owned by Peneaux's parents to retrieve the gun from him. When Brittany confronted Peneaux, they argued about the gun and about how his behavior affected their children. Peneaux refused to give the gun back. According to Brittany, he was yelling loudly, he shoved her, and she shoved him back. He also threw a beer in her face. Peneaux told her to leave the property immediately and mentioned that his brother Heath who was at his parents' home, was "wanted." Brittany then left and went home to put her kids to bed.

[¶9.] Brittany explained that later that night, she could not go to sleep because she was upset about Peneaux's actions and with herself for letting him back into their children's lives. She also felt unsafe and wanted her gun back. She was afraid, given her perception of Peneaux being high, that he might pawn her gun like he had done with other possessions when their marriage ended. Accordingly, in the early morning hours of April 28, 2021 (around 2:00 a.m.), Brittany returned to the trailer home to retrieve her gun.

[¶10.] The events that occurred in front of Peneaux's parents' home during this second visit were captured on a neighbor's security camera. The silent video footage shows Brittany getting out of her car and walking toward the front of the trailer home. Unbeknownst to Brittany, Peneaux was sitting in his pickup truck, which was parked on the backside of the home in an area that cannot be seen on the video. According to Brittany, once Peneaux noticed her, he got out of his truck and confronted her. He was very angry and began yelling at her because she had come back despite him previously telling her to leave the property. While he was yelling at her, Brittany could see someone who looked like his girlfriend, Janelle, in the driver's seat of Peneaux's truck.

[¶11.] Thereafter, things escalated. Brittany claimed that Peneaux grabbed her gun from his truck and asked her if this was the gun she wanted. She stated that he then threatened to "take [her] out and [her] family" so she "just ran." The video footage shows Brittany running back to the front of the home and getting inside her vehicle. It also shows Peneaux running around the opposite side of the garage to the front of the home and approaching Brittany's vehicle. The video shows him punching the passenger-side windows. Brittany then gets out of the vehicle and walks toward the front of her car where Peneaux confronts her and physically takes her to the ground.

[¶12.] It is very difficult to discern on the video what is occurring while they are on the ground. According to Brittany, while Peneaux had her pinned to the ground, he grabbed the gun from his waistband and asked her if she wanted to end up like her brother who had passed away just a month prior. In an effort to get away, Brittany bit Peneaux, grabbed the gun, and tried to pull it away from him. She claims that he then punched her on the side of her head and called for his brother, Heath, who can be seen on the video walking over to Peneaux and Brittany while they are on the ground wrestling. The video shows Heath lean down toward Brittany and Peneaux and remove the gun as they continue to wrestle. It is not clear from the video whether the gun was handed to Heath or whether he pulled it away from them. However, the video shows Heath walking away, after which Peneaux draws his arm back and punches Brittany two more times. Brittany testified that she blacked out at this point.

[¶13.] Directly after striking Brittany, Peneaux can be seen getting up and walking away. A few seconds later, the video shows Brittany get up and walk toward Peneaux and other members of his family who were standing nearby watching the altercation occur. At trial, Brittany explained that Peneaux's family members told her to leave because they did not want the police to come. Brittany could not find her keys and the video shows her looking for them in the area surrounding her vehicle and in the driveway. Brittany later discovered her keys in the pocket of the sweatshirt she was wearing under her coat.

[¶14.] A neighbor witnessed the altercation and called 911. Shortly thereafter, law enforcement arrived at the scene and found Brittany sitting outside on the curb crying. Officers observed swelling, redness, and blood on Brittany's face. They also noticed that her nose appeared to be deformed. After the officers spoke with Brittany about what had happened, a paramedic with the fire department evaluated Brittany...