Case Title: Carroll v. State

Citation: 355 N.E.2d 408

Docket Number: 476S112

State: indiana

Court: Indiana Supreme Court

Date: 1976-09-30T00:00:00Z

Document:
355 N.E.2d 408 (1976)
Melon CARROLL, Appellant (Defendant below),
v.
STATE of Indiana, Appellee (Plaintiff below).
No. 476S112.

Supreme Court of Indiana.
September 30, 1976.
*409 Harriette Bailey Conn, Public Defender, Carr L. Darden, Sr., Deputy Public Defender, Indianapolis, for appellant.
Theodore L. Sendak, Atty. Gen., Daniel Lee Pflum, Deputy Atty. Gen., Indianapolis, for appellee.
PRENTICE, Justice.
This is an appeal from the denial of Post-Conviction Relief. The petitioner was convicted in a bench trial December 19, 1973, of kidnapping and rape, over an alibi defense. He was sentenced to life imprisonment. His direct appeal challenged the sufficiency of the evidence as the only issue presented and was decided adversely to him on July 23, 1975. (Reference Ind., 324 N.E.2d 809.)
The petition for relief alleged the following enumerated grounds, was denied on November 4, 1975, and the motion to correct errors was overruled on January 6, 1976.
(1) Defendant was not duly advised of the charges against him, contrary to the guarantees of the Constitution of the United States, Fifth, Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments and of the Constitution of Indiana, Article I, Section 13.
(2) Petitioner was not called and had no opportunity to testify before the grand jury that returned the indictments upon which he was tried.
(3) The trial court erred and abused his discretion in denying petitioner's motion for a change of venue.
(4) Sentence of life imprisonment for kidnapping is cruel and unusual punishment as disproportionate to the seriousness of the offense, contrary to the Constitution of the United States, Eighth Amendment.
(5) Petitioner was denied effective representation prior to and during his trial.
Except as to the fourth allegation, the State met the petitioner with both denials and claims of waivers, and it would appear that, absent a finding of ineffective representation, the issues presented under allegations one, two and three had been waived by failure to raise them at the appropriate stages of the proceedings. Brown v. State, (1974) 261 Ind. 619, 308 N.E.2d 699; Kidwell v. State, (1973) 260 Ind. 303, 295 N.E.2d 362; Graham v. State, (1973) 261 Ind. 330, 303 N.E.2d 274; Davis v. State, (1975) Ind., 330 N.E.2d 738. However, inasmuch as the trial judge *410 elected to treat these claims upon their merits, we shall review his findings and conclusions upon their merits.
At the outset, we note that the petitioner in a post-conviction proceeding has the burden of establishing his grounds for relief by a preponderance of the evidence. Ind.R.P.C. 1, § 5. The judge hearing the petition weighs the evidence and the credibility of the witnesses. Davis v. State, supra. His determination will be reversed only where the evidence is without conflict and leads unerringly to a result not reached by the trial court. Roberts v. State, (1975) Ind., 324 N.E.2d 265.
At the hearing, the petitioner's testimony disclosed that he was sufficiently advised of the charges against him. His only complaint was that he did not personally receive a copy of the indictment. We do not perceive this to be error under the circumstances of this case. There has been no showing or attempt to show how he was harmed. He entered a plea of not guilty, and the State was required to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt. If there was any lack of understanding upon his part, it is, nevertheless, apparent that such did not impair his defense. Davis v. State, supra.
Petitioner had no right to appear before the grand jury to protest or lessen the likelihood that it would return indictments against him. He cites no authority supporting his claim that such a requirement for grand jury procedures would be preferable, and we do not agree that it would be. It is ludicrous to assert that the failure to call him as a grand jury witness in any way prejudiced his fair trial rights. He could as well have been tried upon an information. Ind. Code 1971, 35-3.1-1-1.
A hearing was held upon the motion for a change of venue, notwithstanding the State's motion to strike it for late filing. There is no bill of exceptions containing the evidence submitted in support of the motion. Had the trial judge in fact erred in his ruling upon the motion, it would have been subject to a sufficiency review as are other issues of fact. Without a bill containing the evidence, however, nothing could have been presented for review. Turner v. State, (1972) 259 Ind. 344, 287 N.E.2d 339; Stephens v. State, (1973) 260 Ind. 326, 295 N.E.2d 622; Cooper v. State, (1972) 259 Ind. 107, 284 N.E.2d 799.
Nevertheless, the trial judge at the post-conviction hearing permitted the petitioner to relate his reasons for wanting a change.
We can say categorically that the petitioner's testimony did not reflect any error in the denial of the motion for a change of venue.
This issue is controlled by Critchlow v. State, (1976) Ind., 346 N.E.2d 591, and Vacendak v. State, (1976) Ind., 340 N.E.2d 352, wherein we have declared that a life sentence for kidnapping had no constitutional infirmities as cruel and unusual punishment as being disproportionate to the seriousness of the crime.
Petitioner's claim of ineffective representation was limited to his testimony that his counsel appeared to be inexperienced and that he, the attorney, failed to ask certain questions that the petitioner felt were important. Standing alone, such *412 evidence would not preponderate against the presumption of competency. Beck v. State, (1974) 261 Ind. 616, 308 N.E.2d 697. In this case, however, the trial judge at the post-conviction hearing also had the testimony of the trial attorney which contradicted the claim of incompetence. The evidence favorable to the State is supportive of the judgment of the trial court.
We find no error, and the judgment of the trial court is affirmed.
GIVAN, C.J., and ARTERBURN, De BRULER and HUNTER, JJ., concur.