Christopher Duncan v. State of Indiana
23 N.E.3d 805
| Ind. Ct. App. | 2014Background
- On Aug. 15, 2011 Trooper Rozzi stopped a vehicle for a traffic violation and smelled burnt marijuana; passenger (later identified as Christopher Duncan) gave a false name and fled when officers arrived.
- During a foot pursuit, officers observed a muzzle flash and felt a projectile; Sergeant Rogers deployed a TASER, Duncan fell, and a 9mm Hi-Point handgun fell from him.
- At booking Duncan again gave a false name and stated he had smoked marijuana; subsequent investigation and a jail call produced a search warrant for a third location where officers found Duncan’s Social Security card, birth certificate, small amounts of marijuana/paraphernalia, and a bag with over 80 rounds of 9mm ammunition.
- Duncan was charged with multiple counts including attempted murder, attempted aggravated battery, attempted battery by means of a deadly weapon (class C), identity deception (class D), pointing a firearm (class D), possession of marijuana (class D), and resisting law enforcement (class D). A jury acquitted on the two attempted homicide counts but convicted on the remaining counts.
- At trial Duncan’s defense was that the firearm discharge was involuntary (a reflex from being TASERed). He challenged admission of evidence from the garage, sufficiency of identity-deception evidence, and asserted double jeopardy overlap among the firearms-related convictions.
- The Court affirmed in part, reversed the identity-deception conviction (insufficient evidence that the name used belonged to an actual person), vacated the pointing-a-firearm conviction (actual-evidence double jeopardy), and reduced the resisting-law-enforcement conviction to a misdemeanor (to cure double jeopardy), yielding a reduced aggregate sentence.
Issues
| Issue | State's Argument | Duncan's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Admissibility of items found in Vernon’s garage (ammunition, marijuana, paraphernalia) | Evidence was relevant to link Duncan to the 9mm gun and to show knowledge the gun was real/loaded; probative value outweighed prejudice. | Evidence irrelevant to contested issue (voluntariness of the trigger pull) and unfairly prejudicial by portraying Duncan as dangerous/drug user. | Court: Ammunition admissible (ties to gun/caliber and Duncan’s ID documents); marijuana/paraphernalia error (if any) harmless given stronger independent evidence. |
| Sufficiency of evidence for identity deception (using name “George F. Walker”) | Criminalized false naming because it impedes investigation; statute doesn’t require actual harm. | Insufficient—State produced no evidence that the identifying information matched any real person. | Court: Reversed conviction—statute requires use of identifying information of another (real) person; fictitious or unproved identities insufficient. |
| Double jeopardy (attempted battery by deadly weapon; pointing a firearm; resisting law enforcement with deadly-weapon enhancement) | Separate offenses and elements; testimony supported distinct convictions and enhancements. | Convictions overlap because the jury may have used the same evidentiary fact (that Duncan fired at officers) for multiple convictions/enhancements. | Court: Actual-evidence double jeopardy violation as to pointing a firearm — vacate that conviction; resisting-law-enforcement enhancement impermissibly duplicated attempted-deadly-weapon harm — reduce to class A misdemeanor and impose amended sentence; attempted battery conviction affirmed. |
Key Cases Cited
- Filice v. State, 886 N.E.2d 24 (Ind. Ct. App. 2008) (standard of review for evidentiary rulings)
- Lashbrook v. State, 762 N.E.2d 756 (Ind. 2002) (trial court discretion in balancing probative value and unfair prejudice)
- Brown v. State, 868 N.E.2d 464 (Ind. 2007) (identity-deception requires use of identifying information of a real person)
- Richardson v. State, 717 N.E.2d 32 (Ind. 1999) (actual-evidence double jeopardy test)
- Davis v. State, 770 N.E.2d 319 (Ind. 2002) (clarifies actual-evidence test application)
- Lee v. State, 892 N.E.2d 1231 (Ind. 2008) (practical assessment of jury reliance under the actual-evidence test)
- Zieman v. State, 990 N.E.2d 53 (Ind. Ct. App. 2013) (remedying double jeopardy by vacatur or reduction of convictions)