State v. Teart
| Decision Date | 09 March 1976 |
| Citation | 365 A.2d 1200,170 Conn. 332 |
| Court | Connecticut Supreme Court |
| Parties | STATE of Connecticut v. Dennis J. TEART. |
William M. Shaughnessy, Public Defender, with whom, on the brief was James D. Cosgrove, Chief Public Defender, for appellant (defendant).
C. Robert Satti, Acting State's Atty., for appellee (state).
Before HOUSE, C.J., and LOISELLE, BOGDANSKI, BARBER and MacDONALD, JJ.
On a trial to a jury, the defendant, on December 14, 1973, was found guilty of the crime of robbery in the first degree in violation of § 53a-134(a)(2) of the General Statutes. He took the present appeal from the judgment, assigning as error the court's charge to the jury with respect to the guilt of an accessory to the commission of a crime.
The trial arose out of an incident which happened in Middletown on November 18, 1972. Three young men, Gerald R. Behm, Jr., Edward F. Alwell, Jr., and Steven Green, after spending some time drinking and playing pool at a place known as the 'Three Coins,' about 2 a.m. drove two friends to another tavern where it was hoped they might obtain a ride to their homes. The three waited in their parked car while the two friends left to see if they could find someone to take them home. Within two or three minutes three men came to the car. What happened next is far from clear. The testimony of the participants varied widely. What does appear for certain is that knives were exhibited and than both Behm and Alwell were assaulted and robbed. The extent of the involvement of the defendant Teart in these proceedings was disputed. The state offered evidence that Behm was pulled from the front seat and robbed by Martin McArthur, assisted by the defendant Teart, and, while this was happening, Willie Vereen was robbing Alwell. On the other hand, it was the claim of Teart that he had not participated in the robbery, that he and Green had known each other for seven or eight years, that as he was passing by he happened upon the scene, noticed his friend Green in the front seat of the car, took out his knife, had Green get out of the car and both went to a tree about twenty feet away. It was his claim that his only purpose in taking out his knife and taking Green from the car was to protect himself and Green if that became necessary in case someone attempted to harm them, and not to aid the persons who might have been robbing Behm or Alwell at the back of Behm's car. Green testified that Teart had told him to get out of the car and stand by the tree, that Teart was pointing a knife at him and held it about one foot away from him. He further testified that he was at the tree for two to three minutes and saw nothing happen but knew there was a disturbance going on behind the car because he heard noise.
In essence, it was Teart's defense that he did not aid in the commission of any crime but instead acted to protect a friend. On the evidence before them, the jury could have found that Teart actually participated in the crime of robbery, that although he did not actually commit a robbery he aided and abetted in the commission of that crime, or that he was innocent of any offense and although he was present he acted only to protect a friend. The jury found him guilty of the crime of robbery and from the judgment on that verdict he took the present appeal.
The defendant's sole assignment of error is that the court erred in charging the jury as to his possible guilt as an accessory to the crime of robbery. It is unnecessary to repeat in full the court's charge with respect to criminal liability as an accessory. The court properly read to the jury the provisions of § 53a-8 of the...
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State v. Estrada
...of intent and community of unlawful purpose. State v. McCalpine, 190 Conn. 822, 832, 463 A.2d 545 (1983); State v. Teart, 170 Conn. 332, 336, 365 A.2d 1200 (1976). The mental state of an aider and abettor incorporated in General Statutes § 53a-8 does not require that the accused know of or ......
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State v. Wilchinski
...It is not enough that the accused committed acts which may in fact have aided the committing of the criminal act." State v. Teart, 170 Conn. 332, 336, 365 A.2d 1200 (1976); see also State v. Hicks, 169 Conn. 581, 584-85, 363 A.2d 1081 (1975); State v. Laffin, 155 Conn. 531, 536, 235 A.2d 65......
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State v. Patterson
...to murder and the conspiracy to commit murder statutes. State v. Beccia, 199 Conn. 1, 3-4, 505 A.2d 683 (1986); State v. Teart, 170 Conn. 332, 336, 365 A.2d 1200 (1976). After the trial court announced its decision, the state protested the trial court's ruling on the conspiracy counts argui......
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State v. Simms
...burden of proving intent. In construing the mens rea element of accessorial liability, this court concluded in State v. Teart, 170 Conn. 332, 334-36, 365 A.2d 1200 (1976), that "to establish the guilt of the accused as an accessory ... the state must prove criminality of intent and communit......