Horton v. State
2014 Ark. App. 250
| Ark. Ct. App. | 2014Background
- Horton was convicted of aggravated residential burglary, theft, and failure to appear; he appealed only the aggravated-residential-burglary conviction.
- On March 17, 2011, homeowner Lisa Stanfield returned to her closed garage to retrieve an item and found an unfamiliar vehicle and a man (Horton) exiting toward her.
- Stanfield testified Horton approached aggressively, kept his hands in his pockets, warned her to "back off," and she believed he had a gun and feared being shot.
- Police found disturbed contents and missing property; fingerprints lifted from the home matched Horton, and Stanfield identified him from photos and at trial.
- The jury convicted Horton of aggravated residential burglary; he challenged sufficiency of the evidence that he represented he was armed and that the garage was a “residential occupiable structure.”
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether evidence supports that Horton represented he was armed with a deadly weapon | State: Victim perceived Horton as armed based on his conduct and words | Horton: No direct evidence of a weapon; hands-in-pocket alone insufficient to show representation of being armed | Court: Affirmed — victim’s credible perception (hands in pockets, aggressive approach, warning) is substantial evidence of representation of being armed |
| Whether the garage is a “residential occupiable structure” | State: Attached garage is part of the home and used daily, thus occupiable | Horton: Stanfield never entered the house and garage not shown to be used for overnight accommodation | Court: Affirmed — attached, functionally interconnected garage where homeowner lived is a residential occupiable structure |
Key Cases Cited
- Edwards v. State, 360 Ark. 413 (standard for reviewing sufficiency of the evidence)
- Parker v. State, 271 Ark. 84 (victim’s belief a defendant had a gun supported aggravated-robbery conviction)
- Winters v. State, 41 Ark. App. 104 (attached storage room may be an occupiable structure if functionally interconnected)
- Julian v. State, 298 Ark. 302 (occupiable status depends on nature of premises, not actual presence of persons)