Buchanan v. State
| Docket Number: | 2010-KM-00695-COA Linked Case(s): 2010-KM-00695-COA ; 2010-CT-00695-SCT |
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| Court of Appeals: |
Opinion Link Opinion Date: 09-20-2011 Opinion Author: Barnes, J. Holding: Affirmed |
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| Additional Case Information: |
Topic: Misdemeanor simple assault - Lesser-included offense instruction Judge(s) Concurring: Lee, C.J., Griffis, P.J., Myers, Ishee and Roberts, JJ. Concur in Part, Concur in Result 1: Maxwell, J., concurs in part and in the result without separate written opinion. Procedural History: Jury Trial Nature of the Case: CRIMINAL - MISDEMEANOR |
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| Trial Court: |
Date of Trial Judgment: 03-11-2010 Appealed from: Harrison County Circuit Court Judge: Roger T. Clark Disposition: CONVICTED OF MISDEMEANOR SIMPLE ASSAULT AND SENTENCED TO SIX MONTHS IN THE CUSTODY OF THE SHERIFF OF HARRISON COUNTY, WITH SIX MONTHS SUSPENDED FOR SIX MONTHS OF GOOD BEHAVIOR District Attorney: Cono A. Caranna, II Case Number: B2401-08-136 |
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| Party Name: | Attorney Name: | |||
| Appellant: | Robert Lee Buchanan |
WILLIAM WENDELL MARTIN WARREN LEON CONWAY |
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| Appellee: | State of Mississippi | OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL: STEPHANIE BRELAND WOOD |
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Synopsis provided by:  If you are interested in subscribing to the weekly synopses of all Mississippi Supreme Court and Court of Appeals hand downs please contact Tammy Upton in the MLI Press office. |
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| Topic: | Misdemeanor simple assault - Lesser-included offense instruction |
| Summary of the Facts: | Robert Buchanan was convicted of misdemeanor simple assault. Buchanan received a six-month suspended sentence. He appeals. |
| Summary of Opinion Analysis: | Buchanan argues that the trial court erred in allowing the State to instruct the jury on the lesser-included offense of misdemeanor simple assault. To warrant the lesser-included offense instruction, a defendant must point to some evidence in the record from which a jury could reasonably find him not guilty of the crime with which he was charged and at the same time find him guilty of a lesser-included offense. Only where the evidence could only justify a conviction of the principal charge should a lesser offense instruction be refuted. Another factor to be considered is the disparity in maximum punishments between the offenses. A great disparity is a factor in favor of giving the lesser included offense instruction. Here, a reasonable juror could not exclude the evidence on misdemeanor simple assault beyond a reasonable doubt. There is clearly evidence that Buchanan attempted to cause bodily injury to a police officer by charging at him with the baseball bat raised over his head once he had been tased the first time, and not necessarily in self-defense. Regarding whether the baseball bat can only be considered a deadly weapon, the question of whether an instrument used in an assault is a deadly weapon is a question of fact for the jury to determine. The jury apparently deemed that the bat was not a deadly weapon in this instance since they found Buchanan guilty of simple assault. While it is true, as the defense points out, that throughout trial the State contended the baseball bat was a deadly weapon, this fact was not stipulated to by the parties. There was no agreement between the parties that a baseball bat was a deadly weapon; it was a fact issue for the jury to determine, so it was proper for the jury to receive an instruction on the lesser offenses as there was an evidentiary basis for the instruction. There is evidence to show Buchanan may not have realized the officer was acting within his scope and duty as a peace officer during the incident. The jury had the choice of convicting Buchanan of either simple assault of a peace officer or merely simple assault; so apparently the jury did not think Buchanan knew the officer was a peace officer. Considering the evidence in the light most favorable to the State, which submitted the lesser-included-offense instruction, and giving the State the benefit of all reasonable inferences, reasonable jurors could have found, and did find, Buchanan guilty of misdemeanor simple assault. |
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