Jvon K. Sydnor v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
65A04-1704-CR-738
| Ind. Ct. App. | Nov 30, 2017Background
- On Sept. 21, 2016, Jvon Sydnor was picked up in Mount Vernon and rode in a car with Meagan Gumbel (driver) and Brandon Stewart; Gumbel had two children in the vehicle.
- Sydnor exited the car, entered a liquor store wearing his shirt over his face, demanded money, pulled a gun, pointed it at clerk Angela Ricketts, and took cash; the robbery was captured on surveillance video.
- After the robbery Sydnor returned to the car holding a paper bag and a handgun; Gumbel and Stewart later saw a gun in the vehicle and returned it to Sydnor after briefly removing it.
- Police arrested Sydnor; he was charged with two counts of armed robbery (Level 3 felonies); the handgun was not recovered by police.
- A jury convicted Sydnor on both counts; the trial court merged the convictions and sentenced him to nine years executed in the Indiana Department of Correction.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (State) | Defendant's Argument (Sydnor) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sufficiency: whether evidence showed Sydnor was armed with a deadly weapon during the robbery | Surveillance video, victim testimony, and witness testimony prove Sydnor brandished a handgun and pointed it at the clerk | State failed to prove Sydnor was actually armed because the gun was not introduced into evidence | The evidence was sufficient; victim, video, detective, and witness testimony established he was armed |
| Sentencing appropriateness: whether nine-year executed term was inappropriate | Sentence within statutory range; court considered aggravators and mitigators; no abuse of discretion | Trial court failed to weigh mitigating factors (family testimony, hardship to children, low likelihood to reoffend, no prior executed DOC time) | No abuse of discretion; court considered mitigators, gave them little weight, and reasonably relied on prior record and risk to reoffend |
Key Cases Cited
- Bailey v. State, 979 N.E.2d 133 (Ind. 2012) (standard for sufficiency review and appellate deference to jury verdicts)
- Gray v. State, 903 N.E.2d 940 (Ind. 2009) (weapon need not be produced at trial to prove use during crime)
- Harvey v. State, 542 N.E.2d 198 (Ind. 1989) (victim testimony that defendant had a gun can suffice to prove deadly-weapon use)
- Anglemyer v. State, 868 N.E.2d 482 (Ind. 2007) (standards for reviewing sentencing decisions and mitigating-factor findings)
- Reid v. State, 876 N.E.2d 1114 (Ind. 2007) (defendant bears burden to show sentence is inappropriate under Rule 7(B))
- Beason v. State, 690 N.E.2d 277 (Ind. 1998) (trial court not required to assign same weight to mitigators as defendant)
- Fugate v. State, 608 N.E.2d 1370 (Ind. 1993) (trial court not required to explain rejection of mitigators once considered)
- Dowdell v. State, 720 N.E.2d 1146 (Ind. 1999) (imprisonment causing hardship to children is not a mitigating circumstance absent special facts)