State v. Sanders
| Citation | 223 Kan. 550,575 P.2d 533 |
| Decision Date | 25 February 1978 |
| Docket Number | No. 48962,48962 |
| Parties | STATE of Kansas, Appellee, v. Hiram SANDERS, Appellant. |
| Court | United States State Supreme Court of Kansas |
This is a direct appeal by Hiram Sanders from his convictions of aggravated battery of Harry Crossland, a civilian employee of the Kansas City, Kansas, police department, in violation of K.S.A. 21-3414, aggravated battery of a law enforcement officer, Sergeant Anthony Kovac, in violation of K.S.A. 21-3415, and three counts of battery against law enforcement officers, Officers Ronald Hogue, Melvin Cheek and Steve Barber, in violation of K.S.A. 21-3413. A number of points are raised; we will discuss each after stating the facts.
On August 15, 1976, Officers Hogue and Cheek were on duty in Kansas City, Kansas. They responded to a call by going to the 2500 block on Hiawatha, where they found the defendant slumped over on the front seat of a car, which had come to rest on a private lawn. Defendant's eyes were rolling around, and he appeared to be semiconscious. The officers discerned no strong odor of alcohol, and concluded that Sanders was high on drugs. They helped him walk to the police car and put him in the back seat, and planned to take him to headquarters for observation for four hours, under police department policy. Sanders was not placed under arrest, and he was not searched or handcuffed. Shortly after he was placed in the patrol car, Sanders began kicking, beating on the windows and the shield separating him from the front seat, shouting, cursing, and threatening the officers.
Sanders refused to come out of the patrol car when it arrived at headquarters. Officer Barber joined the other two officers, and Barber and Cheek reached into the back seat and attempted to pull Sanders out. Suddenly, when Sanders got his feet on the ground, he jumped out and landed on Officer Cheek. He proceeded to strike and kick the three officers repeatedly; he was finally subdued and was carried into the booking area, where he lay on the floor and pretended to be unconscious. Sergeant Kovac and Mr. Crossland were on duty; they started to search Sanders, and the other officers started to leave. The telephone rang, and Sergeant Kovac turned to answer it. Suddenly, Sanders kicked Crossland in the chest, then jumped high in the air and came down with his elbow at the back of Kovac's neck, knocking him unconscious. He began jumping on Kovac and kicking him in the back. Crossland attempted to restrain Sanders, and Officers Hogue, Cheek and Barber, hearing the commotion, returned and subdued him. The officers testified in substance that Sanders had done a lot of boxing; that on the date in question he called the officers by name, he knew where he was and what he was doing, and he handled himself well; his blows and kicks were not wild, but were aimed and effective.
Harry Crossland, a civilian employee of the police department, sustained an injured hand in the melee; he also suffered a heart attack, with some permanent heart damage. His physician testified that the incident was a precipitating factor in causing the heart attack. Crossland was in intensive care for a week, remained in the hospital for another week, and his physician would not let him return to work at the time of trial.
Sergeant Kovac suffered a neck and shoulder injury from the blow to the back of his neck. He received therapy every day for seven weeks. This included neck traction, back traction, hot packs, diathermy treatments, and exercises. Kovac missed seven weeks of work, and he was still experiencing pain from the injury at the time of trial, more than five months after the occurrence.
Officer Barber received various cuts and bruises, and one of his hands was placed in a cast because of torn cartilage, ligament and tendon. It was six weeks before he could return to work.
Officers Hogue and Cheek sustained minor sprains; neither was hospitalized, and neither missed work because of injury.
Sanders contends that the evidence failed to prove that the aggravated battery victims, Crossland and Kovac, suffered great bodily harm as a result of the incident. This issue was not raised during trial, nor was it included in the motion for a new trial. An issue presented for the first time on appeal will not be considered by this court. State v. Hornbeak, 221 Kan. 397, 404, 559 P.2d 385. Even if this issue had been presented to the trial court, the issue for review on appeal is whether the evidence is sufficient to form a reasonable inference of guilt when viewed in the light most favorable to the state. State v. Hornbeak, supra. Viewed in that light, the evidence was ample.
Next, defendant contends that K.S.A. 21-3414 is unconstitutionally vague and...
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State v. Ultreras
...which is likely to be sustained by simple battery. State v. Dubish, 234 Kan. 708, 715, 675 P.2d 877 (1984); State v. Sanders, 223 Kan. 550, 552, 575 P.2d 533 (1978). The same is true with regard to ‘disfigurement.’ ‘Disfigurement’ has no single technical meaning or single definition and sho......
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United Union of Roofers, Waterproofers and Allied Workers, Union No. 33 v. Meese
..."injury calculated to interfere with health or comfort" and "need not be ... injury of a permanent character") with State v. Sanders, 223 Kan. 550, 575 P.2d 533, 535 (1978) (great bodily harm "does not include mere bruises, which are likely to be sustained in simple battery") and State v. M......
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State v. Brice, 87,788.
...the court said: "Whether bodily harm is great is generally a question of fact for the jury, not the trial judge. See State v. Sanders, 223 Kan. 550, 552, 575 P.2d 533 (1978); State v. Ochoa, 20 Kan. App. 2d 1014, 1020, 895 P.2d 198 (1995). Here, however, where the determination of great bod......
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State v. Bowers
...great bodily harm could be inflicted. This was a fact question which the trial court properly submitted to the jury. State v. Sanders, 223 Kan. 550, 552, 575 P.2d 533 (1978). The defendant admitted one of the dogs had previously bitten a person. The defendant's father testified the dogs hav......