Patrick Hebner v. State
09-15-00047-CR
| Tex. App. | Sep 28, 2016Background
- Patrick (Patrick James) Hebner was convicted by a jury of aggravated assault (Tex. Penal Code § 22.02(a)(2)) for threatening 16‑year‑old B.J. with a knife after a prank outside a church door; sentence 4 years, probation recommended.
- Incident occurred Jan. 11, 2012: B.J. held a door shut as a joke to impede children leaving; Hebner confronted B.J., pushed him against a wall, and witnesses testified Hebner displayed a knife.
- Three prosecution eyewitnesses (B.J., Micah, Hunter) testified Hebner had a knife pressed or displayed and threatened to kill B.J.; Micah and Hunter described seeing Hebner manipulate/close the knife after releasing B.J.
- Physical evidence: a key‑ring knife (approx. 2 3/4" blade) was recovered and admitted at trial; detectives classified it as a deadly weapon.
- Defense testimony (Hebner and J.H.) denied Hebner touched B.J. or put the knife to him; Hebner admitted carrying keys but denied threatening with an open blade and denied telling others he had held the blade to B.J.
- The jury credited the prosecution witnesses; on appeal Hebner challenged the sufficiency of the evidence that he displayed an open blade during the assault.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (Hebner) | Defendant's Argument (State) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sufficiency of evidence that Hebner displayed an open‑bladed knife during the assault | Witness accounts contain material discrepancies and are unreliable; insufficient to prove display of an open blade | Cumulative eyewitness testimony and admitted knife support a rational jury finding; credibility/resolution of conflicts for jury | Affirmed — testimony sufficient to support aggravated assault conviction |
| Clerical error in judgment (statute citation) | N/A (not a merits challenge) | Trial court judgment cited wrong subsection of Penal Code | Court corrected clerical error in judgment to § 22.02(a)(2) PC |
Key Cases Cited
- Williams v. State, 235 S.W.3d 742 (Tex. Crim. App. 2007) (appellate deference to jury credibility determinations)
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (1979) (standard for sufficiency review: view evidence in light most favorable to verdict)
- Brooks v. State, 323 S.W.3d 893 (Tex. Crim. App. 2010) (application of Jackson sufficiency standard in Texas)
- Hooper v. State, 214 S.W.3d 9 (Tex. Crim. App. 2007) (cumulative force of circumstantial evidence can support conviction)
- Fuentes v. State, 991 S.W.2d 267 (Tex. Crim. App. 1999) (jury decides credibility/conflicts)
- Sharp v. State, 707 S.W.2d 611 (Tex. Crim. App. 1986) (same)
- Turro v. State, 867 S.W.2d 43 (Tex. Crim. App. 1993) (conflicts in testimony resolved in favor of prosecution)