State v. Bacon
State v. Bacon
Opinion
*464 I. Statement of the Facts
April Faison's ("Ms. Faison") residence at 276 Lakeview Drive in Whiteville, North Carolina ("the residence"), was broken into on 4 December 2013. Ms. Faison's adult daughter, Ashley Colson ("Ms. Colson"), lived next door, and discovered the break-in. Ms. Colson called Ms. Faison that afternoon and informed Ms. Faison of the break-in. Ms. Faison came home to find her back door open with the glass broken out of it, the home "tossed," and several items missing, including a flatscreen television ("the television"), a PlayStation 3 videogame system with three video games ("the gaming system"), a laptop computer ("the laptop"), a Canon camera ("the camera"), and two gold earrings ("the earrings"). Ms. Faison called 911 to report the break-in, and police responded. After the police officers left the residence, Ms. Faison and Ms. Colson reviewed video recorded from her home surveillance system that was stored in a DVR box in Ms. Faison's bedroom ("the video"). The video showed a man breaking the glass in the back door to the residence, *465 entering, and removing items from the residence. 1 The man's face was clearly visible in the video.
On 5 December 2013, Ms. Faison informed Detective Trina Worley of the Columbus County Sheriff's Office ("Detective Worley") about the video, and Detective Worley inquired about obtaining a copy of the video.
*405 When Ms. Faison could not figure out how to make a copy of the video, she carried the DVR box to the sheriff's office for law enforcement to view the video. Three detectives plugged in the DVR box and attempted to view the video, but were unable to locate the video.
At trial, Defendant objected to any reference to the video, arguing that the proper foundation had not been laid for admission of the video as evidence. During Ms. Faison's voir dire , the trial court determined that Ms. Faison was competent to testify about the video. Ms. Faison testified to the following: The video showed a man break the glass in the back door of Ms. Faison's residence, enter her residence through that door, and then remove items from Ms. Faison's residence. The man's face was clearly visible on the video and there were multiple instances, as the man looked around, when his face was directly visible. The man was not wearing a "hoodie," mask, or hat to obscure his face. Ms. Faison later saw a man walking down the road near her residence whom she believed to be the man in the video. She observed him enter a nearby house. Ms. Faison reported this information to the police, who initiated surveillance of the house and identified the man as Jawanz Bacon ("Defendant").
In accordance with the policy of the Columbus County Sheriff's Office, Detective Worley had a photo lineup prepared, with six pictures (Defendant and five "fillers") of men of similar age, race, height, and build. Captain Soles-an officer not involved in the investigation of the case-and who did not know the facts of the case or the identity of Defendant, administered the lineup to Ms. Faison on 31 December 2013. About thirty minutes later, Captain Soles administered the lineup to Ms. Colson, who was not present at the earlier lineup presentation. Both Ms. Faison and Ms. Colson positively identified Defendant as the man who broke into Ms. Faison's residence. Defendant was arrested on 31 December 2013 and was indicted for felony breaking or entering and felonious larceny. Defendant's indictment for felonious larceny reads as follows:
*466 [D]efendant named above unlawfully, willfully and feloniously did steal, take and carry away a flatscreen television, PlayStation 3 video game system, three video games for PlayStation 3, laptop computer, Canon camera, two gold earrings, the personal property of April Faison, such property having a value of $1,210.00, pursuant to a violation of Section 14-54 of the General Statutes of North Carolina.
Section 14-54 states in relevant part: "Any person who breaks or enters any building with intent to commit any ... larceny therein shall be punished as a Class H felon."
At trial, Defendant sought to call his grandfather, Jimmy Bacon ("Mr. Bacon"), as an alibi witness. However, the State objected because Defendant had not provided adequate notice of this alibi witness as required by N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-905(c)(1). The trial court allowed a voir dire of Mr. Bacon in which Mr. Bacon testified that Defendant was with him at his home the entire day of 4 December 2013. However, when questioned, Mr. Bacon could not recall any details as to specific dates of Defendant's stay or what Defendant did during his stay. The trial court ultimately granted the State's motion to exclude Mr. Bacon's testimony.
Defendant moved to dismiss at the close of the State's evidence and again at the close of all evidence, but Defendant's motions were denied. During the charge conference, Defendant pointed out that the State had not presented any evidence to prove the value of the items stolen and, therefore, the jury should not be instructed on felony larceny based upon the stolen items being in excess of $1,000.00. The State maintained that specific evidence of the value of the stolen items was unnecessary because the jury, based upon the nature of the items themselves, could determine that the items had a value of more than $1,000.00. The trial court agreed with the State and instructed the jury on felonious larceny based upon value in *406 excess of $1,000.00, with misdemeanor larceny as a lesser-included charge. However, the trial court declined to instruct the jury on felony larceny resulting from a breaking or entering. The jury found Defendant guilty of felony breaking or entering and felonious larceny with value in excess of $1,000.00. Defendant appeals. *467 II. Analysis
Defendant contends the trial court erred: (1) by denying Defendant's motion to dismiss the larceny charge due to a fatal variance between the indictment and the evidence presented at trial; (2) by failing to dismiss the larceny charge for insufficiency of the evidence as to the value of the stolen items; and (3) by abusing its discretion in excluding Mr. Bacon's alibi testimony.
A. Fatal Variance in the Indictment
Defendant first argues the trial court erred in denying his motion to dismiss the felonious larceny charge. More specifically, Defendant contends there was a fatal variance between the owner of the stolen property as alleged in the indictment and the proof of ownership of the stolen items presented at trial. We agree in part.
Defendant asks this Court to vacate his felonious larceny conviction. Defendant argues that, while the indictment alleged Ms. Faison to be the owner of all the property stolen from her residence, the evidence at trial demonstrated she was not the owner of the laptop or the gaming system. We agree with Defendant, but note that Defendant failed to address the items properly attributed to Ms. Faison in the indictment-the television and the earrings-and what that means for Defendant's motion to dismiss. Although Defendant concedes that some of the items listed in the indictment were correctly listed as the property of Ms. Faison, he contends that fatal variances with respect to other items included in the indictment require quashing the indictment and further require dismissal of all larceny charges.
In support of his argument, Defendant cites
State v. Seelig
for the proposition that " 'the evidence in a criminal case must correspond to the material allegations of the indictment, and where the evidence tends to show the commission of an offense not charged in the indictment, there is a fatal variance between the allegations and the proof requiring dismissal.' "
State v. Seelig
,
"[A]n indictment 'must allege lucidly and accurately all the essential elements of the offense endeavored to be charged.' " In order to be fatal, a variance must relate to "an essential element of the offense." Alternately, "[w]hen *468 an averment in an indictment is not necessary in charging the offense, it will be 'deemed to be surplusage.' "
Id
. at 162-63,
Defendant provides no argument or citations to any legal authority to support the proposition that a larceny indictment that properly alleges the owner of certain stolen property, but improperly alleges the owner of additional property, must be dismissed in its entirety. Because Defendant fails to make this argument on appeal, it is abandoned.
See
State v. Evans
, --- N.C. App. ----, ----,
Assuming, arguendo , that Defendant has not abandoned this argument, we find no error.
In North Carolina our courts have been clear that:
The general law has been that the indictment in a larceny case must allege a person who has a property interest in the property stolen and that the State must prove that that person has ownership, meaning title to the property or some special property interest. If the person alleged in the indictment to have a property interest in the stolen property is not the owner *407 or special owner of it, there is a fatal variance entitling defendant to a nonsuit.
Furthermore, although the law acknowledges that a parent has a special custodial interest in the property of his minor child kept in the parent's residence, that special interest does not extend to a caretaker of the property even where the caretaker had actual possession.
State v. Salters
,
The indictment in a larceny case is required to allege the ownership of the stolen property in order to: "(1) inform defendant of the elements of the alleged crime, (2) enable him to determine whether the allegations constitute an indictable offense, (3) enable him to prepare for trial, and (4) enable him to plead the verdict in bar of subsequent prosecution for the same offense."
State v. Holley
,
*469
Concerning ownership of stolen property, a variance between an indictment and the evidence presented at trial can be fatal: " 'If the proof shows that the article stolen was not the property of the person alleged in the indictment to be the owner of it, the variance is fatal and a motion for judgment of nonsuit should be allowed.' "
State v. Schultz
,
In the present case, while Ms. Faison did have actual possession of all of the stolen items-as they were taken from her home-she was not the owner of the laptop, the camera, or the gaming system. Further, the State failed to produce any evidence that Ms. Faison was a bailee or otherwise had a special property interest in those items.
The State, relying on
State v. Carr
, argues that a possessor has a special property interest in an item when that person has sole possession, use, and control of the item.
State v. Carr
,
*470
The State further argues that "a parent has a special custodial interest in the property of his minor child kept in the parent's residence," and therefore Ms. Faison had a special property interest in her daughter's laptop.
See
State v. Salters
,
We, therefore, hold that the evidence presented at trial was sufficient to demonstrate that Ms. Faison was the owner of the television and the earrings, but that there was a fatal variance between the ownership of the laptop, the camera, and the gaming system as alleged in the indictment, and the evidence of ownership presented at trial.
While we have located no authority directly on point regarding a fatal variance in ownership of some, but not all, of the items alleged to have been stolen, in general: "A defect in an indictment is considered fatal if it
wholly fails to charge some offense
... or fails to state some essential and necessary element of the offense of which the defendant is found guilty."
State v. Wilson
,
*471 The defendant named above unlawfully, willfully and feloniously did steal, take and carry away a flatscreen television, ... [and] two gold earrings, the personal property of April Faison, such property having a value of $1,210.00, pursuant to a violation of Section 14-54 of the General Statutes of North Carolina.
"It is usually held ... that the verdict of the jury is not vulnerable to a motion in arrest of judgment because of defects in the indictment, unless the indictment
wholly
fails to charge some offense cognizable at law or fails to state some essential and necessary element of the offense of which the defendant is found guilty."
State v. Gregory
,
B. Evidence of Value to Support Felonious Larceny
Next, Defendant argues the trial court erred in failing to dismiss the felonious larceny charge for insufficiency of the evidence. Specifically, Defendant contends there was insufficient evidence as to the value of the stolen items. We agree.
We review the denial of a motion to dismiss
de novo
.
State v. Smith
,
*472
The language of the indictment appears to have charged Defendant with felonious larceny pursuant to both N.C.G.S. § 14-72(a) and 14-72(b)(2) :
[D]efendant named above unlawfully, willfully and feloniously did steal, take and carry away a flatscreen television ... [and] two gold earrings, the personal property of April Faison, such property having a value of $1,210.00, pursuant to a violation of Section 14-54 of the General Statutes of North Carolina. 2
However, the trial court expressly declined to instruct the jury on the charge of felony larceny committed pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 14-54 -intent to commit larceny after breaking or entering. When the State requested that the trial court instruct the jury on felonious larceny after breaking or entering, the judge responded:
You may be right, and when it's over, you show me and I'll apologize to you and tell you I'm wrong. But we tried it this way off this indictment, and we are going to stay with the instructions off this indictment, which to my mind are value in excess of $1,000.
We have long recognized that "a defendant may not be convicted of an offense on a theory of his guilt different from that presented to the jury."
State v. Smith
,
The trial court instructed the jury solely on felonious larceny based upon the stolen property having a value in excess of $1,000.00 pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 14-72(a). The trial court also instructed the jury on the lesser-included offense of misdemeanor larceny. In response to *473 Defendant's objection to the lack of evidence of value presented at trial, the trial court ruled that the value of the stolen items was a question of fact for the jury to decide, even though the State presented no specific evidence concerning the value of any of the stolen items.
However, this Court has held that a jury cannot estimate the value of an item without any evidence put forth to establish a basis for that estimation.
See
In re J.H.
,
*410
It is proper to vacate and remand for entry of judgment and resentencing on a lesser-included offense when a trial court instructed the jury on a lesser-included offense, along with the greater offense, and the jury necessarily found that all the elements necessary to establish the lesser-included offense were proven, but the evidence presented at trial was insufficient to prove an essential element of the greater offense.
State v. Snead
,
C. Defendant's Alibi Witness
Finally, Defendant argues that the trial court abused its discretion by excluding Defendant's alibi witness as a sanction for Defendant's violation of discovery rules. We disagree.
The trial court granted the State's motion to exclude Mr. Bacon based upon Defendant's failure to give timely notice that he intended to call Mr. Bacon as an alibi witness. When the State complies with its *474 discovery obligations, the defendant is required to give notice of any alibi defense within twenty working days after the case is set for trial. N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-905(c)(1).
(a) If at any time during the course of the proceedings the court determines that a party has failed to comply with this Article or with an order issued pursuant to this Article, the court in addition to exercising its contempt powers may
....
(3) Prohibit the party from introducing evidence not disclosed[.]
(b) Prior to finding any sanctions appropriate, the court shall consider both the materiality of the subject matter and the totality of the circumstances surrounding an alleged failure to comply with this Article or an order issued pursuant to this Article.
N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-910 (2015).
"A trial court's decision concerning the imposition of discovery-related sanctions ... may only be reversed based upon a finding that the trial court abused its discretion, which means that the trial court's ruling was so arbitrary that it could not have been the result of a reasoned decision."
State v. Allen
,
In making its decision, the trial court considered the materiality of Mr. Bacon's proposed testimony. When asked about specifics regarding Defendant's stay at his home, Mr. Bacon testified as follows:
Q. Now, on the day in question, that is, December 4, 2013, was [Defendant] residing with you?
A. Yes.
Q. And how long had that been the case?
A. He comes and stay with me weeks at a time. I remember the incident good, because it was my birthday. December 2nd is on my birthday.
Q. So he had come to visit you on December 2nd ?
A. Yeah.
Q. And he had stayed over through December 4th?
*475 A. Yeah.
Q. Were you aware of his whereabouts over the course of December 4th?
A. Yeah. He was there with me.
Q. For what period of time was he there with you?
A. He was there earlier. He was there a couple days before my birthday and stayed until-I remember my wife taking him home and bringing-and coming back with the newspaper. The newspaper come out on Thursday. And she read about it in the newspaper. And I said, "Well, how could he do that when he was here ?"
Q. In particular, sir, what we are asking about is-you may not have been with him *411 every second of every moment, every minute. What period of time can you definitely testify as to his whereabouts ?
A. I don't live on no big estate, you know. I live in a small house. I had an eye on him. He was right there. He didn't go nowhere .
Q. For December 12th-excuse me-December 4th?
A. Yeah. Until that Thursday. That's when his grandma took him home .
Q. And do you recall what date that was , sir?
A. It was- I know the newspaper come out on Thursday. Because my birthday is on the 2nd. So he was there until Thursday. I can't recall what date that was .
Q. All right, sir.
A. But it had to happen before then, because it was already in the newspaper when my wife came home with it . (Emphasis added).
The incident occurred on 4 December 2013. Generally, Mr. Bacon's testimony was very vague concerning Defendant's whereabouts during the relevant time period. Mr. Bacon could not account for Defendant's whereabouts for any specific part of 4 December 2013, even had he been able to establish that Defendant was residing with him on that day.
More specifically, Mr. Bacon ties the date he remembers Defendant being with him-4 December 2013-to an article in the paper that *476 apparently identified Defendant as the suspect in the 4 December 2013 incident. Mr. Bacon testified that he knew Defendant was with him on 4 December 2013 because the very next day, "[t]he newspaper come [sic] out[.] And [my wife] read about it in the newspaper. And I said, 'Well, how could he do that when he was here?' " However, Defendant was not arrested until 31 December 2013, and no article related to his arrest could have been published before that date. Therefore, Mr. Bacon's testimony suggested he was remembering Defendant being at Mr. Bacon's residence on a date after 31 December 2013. This contradicts the record, which shows that, after his arrest on 31 December 2013, Defendant was in custody until 9 October 2014. Given that no article could have been published about Defendant's arrest before Defendant was arrested and given that Defendant spent 283 days incarcerated after his arrest, Mr. Bacon's testimony regarding his wife taking Defendant home and bringing back the alleged newspaper article is not reliable.
Considering the materiality of Mr. Bacon's proposed testimony, which we find minimal, and the totality of the circumstances surrounding Defendant's failure to comply with his discovery obligations, we cannot find that the trial court abused its discretion in excluding this testimony pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 15A-910.
3
Allen
,
Even were we to assume,
arguendo
, that it was error for the trial court to exclude Mr. Bacon's testimony as a discovery sanction, Defendant has failed to show that the error was prejudicial. In order to show prejudice requiring reversal, Defendant must show "that there is a reasonable possibility that a different result would have been reached had the error not been committed. N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-1443(a) (2005)."
State v. Jones
,
*477
Ms. Faison recognized Defendant as he was walking down the street and reported this to the
*412
police, who followed up and identified Defendant. Both Ms. Faison and Ms. Colson
independently
identified Defendant, with near certainty, as the perpetrator after they had, according to their testimony, viewed the video of the actual break-in and had received multiple good looks at Defendant during the break-in and larceny. We conclude there was no reasonable possibility that the jury would have reached a different result had Mr. Bacon's alibi testimony been allowed.
See
Jones
,
Finally, Defendant's ineffective assistance of counsel claim is premature and should have been initially considered pursuant to a motion for appropriate relief by the trial court.
State v. Parmaei
,
To prevail on an ineffective assistance of counsel claim, Defendant must demonstrate not only that the trial counsel's conduct fell below an objective standard of reasonableness, but must also prove that his attorney's deficient performance prejudiced Defendant such that Defendant was deprived of a fair trial.
State v. Braswell
,
III. Conclusion
Defendant does not challenge his conviction for felony breaking or entering, so that conviction stands. We hold that the trial court erred in denying Defendant's motion to dismiss with respect to the charge of felony larceny, but that the evidence and the elements properly found by the jury support entry of judgment for the lesser-included offense of misdemeanor larceny. We therefore vacate Defendant's conviction for felony larceny and remand for resentencing based upon misdemeanor larceny. Defendant's arguments related to the exclusion of Mr. Bacon's testimony fail.
NO ERROR IN PART, VACATED IN PART, AND REMANDED.
Judges TYSON and INMAN concur.
Ms. Faison testified that she did not think about her surveillance equipment until after the police had left her residence.
We have removed the language deemed surplusage in our analysis of Defendant's first argument above, and only consider the property of Ms. Faison in our analysis-the television and the earrings.
Defendant argues that he should be awarded a new trial because the trial court failed to make findings of fact, as required by N.C.G.S. § 15A-910(d), beyond that notice had not been given. However, the failure to make findings of fact does not
per se
require a new trial.
State v. Adams
,
Reference
- Full Case Name
- STATE of North Carolina v. Jawanz BACON
- Cited By
- 5 cases
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- Fatal variance