Dionysios Spiro Kosmetatos v. State
01-15-00095-CR
| Tex. App. | Oct 23, 2015Background
- On Jan. 13, 2014, police Officers Patrick Woods and Serguei Gromyko responded to a disturbance at an apartment after a 911 call; no report of weapons was made.
- Officers arrived without lights/sirens; testimony conflicts about whether they knocked/announced; stairwell lighting at top floor was dim and a fixture was out.
- Appellant Dionysios Kosmetatos exited an apartment holding a knife and was shot multiple times by Officer Woods within seconds; officers sustained no injuries.
- At trial the jury convicted Kosmetatos of two counts of Aggravated Assault — Public Servant and acquitted on a related family-member assault; he was sentenced to 40 years.
- Defense moved for an instructed verdict arguing insufficient evidence that Kosmetatos knew the victims were public servants; the trial court denied the motion and Kosmetatos appealed seeking reversal and acquittal.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (State) | Defendant's Argument (Kosmetatos) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether evidence proves defendant knew the victims were public servants | The circumstances and testimony permit a reasonable inference that defendant saw officers in uniform and knew they were peace officers | Lighting was poor, officers did not announce or use lights/sirens, encounter occurred in seconds so defendant could not have known they were officers | Trial court denied the instructed-verdict motion; appellant urges reversal for legal insufficiency |
Key Cases Cited
- Brooks v. State, 323 S.W.3d 893 (Tex. Crim. App. 2010) (standard for reviewing sufficiency of the evidence)
- Clayton v. State, 235 S.W.3d 772 (Tex. Crim. App. 2007) (factfinder resolves conflicts and draws reasonable inferences)
- Isassi v. State, 330 S.W.3d 633 (Tex. Crim. App. 2010) (review deference to jury credibility and weight determinations)
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (U.S. 1979) (due-process sufficiency standard: evidence must permit a rational trier of fact to find guilt beyond a reasonable doubt)
- Williams v. State, 937 S.W.2d 479 (Tex. Crim. App. 1996) (directed-verdict legal-sufficiency challenge guidance)