Case Title: McKinley v. State

Citation: 281 N.E.2d 91

Docket Number: 1070S258

State: indiana

Court: Indiana Supreme Court

Date: 1972-04-14T00:00:00Z

Document:
281 N.E.2d 91 (1972)
Michael McKinley, Appellant,
v.
STATE of Indiana, Appellee.
No. 1070S258.

Supreme Court of Indiana.
April 14, 1972.
Rehearing Denied May 30, 1972.
*92 Palmer K. Ward, Indianapolis, for appellant.
Theodore L. Sendak, Atty. Gen., William F. Thompson, Asst. Atty. Gen., for appellee.
DeBRULER, Justice.
This is an appeal from a conviction for robbery in a trial without jury in the Marion Criminal Court, No. 2. Appellant's first allegation is that there was insufficient evidence to sustain the trial court finding of guilty. In reviewing the allegation of insufficient evidence this Court will not weigh the evidence nor resolve questions of credibility of witnesses, but will look to that evidence and the reasonable inferences therefrom which support the finding of the trial court. Asher v. State (1969), Ind., 244 N.E.2d 89. The conviction will be affirmed if from that viewpoint there is evidence of probative value from which the trier of fact could reasonably infer that the appellant was guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Smith v. State (1970), Ind., 260 N.E.2d 558.
Appellant was convicted under I.C. 1971, XX-XX-X-X, being Burns' § 10-4101, which reads in pertinent part:
The charging affidavit in this case states that the appellant "did then and there unlawfully, feloniously, forcibly by violence and by putting Mabel Wilson, in fear with a firearm, to-wit: revolver... ." rob her.
Appellant's specific argument is that the affidavit charged robbery by violence and by putting in fear and there was no evidence of the use of violence by appellant. The facts are not in dispute. On January 18, 1968, Mabel Wilson was employed as a clerk in a retail store in Marion County. At approximately 3:00 p.m. appellant attempted to purchase merchandise with a credit card. Wilson called the bank and then refused to honor the card. She then testified as follows:
The appellant was captured by the police before he left the store and he was in possession of a loaded .22 caliber pistol.
*93 We find no merit in this position and therefore affirm the conviction. Appellant pointed a loaded pistol at the victim and forced her to lay down on the floor while he took the money from the cash register, and then ordered her to assist him in gathering up the items he intended to take. Pointing a loaded pistol at another person and thereby forcing him to do the robber's bidding is an act of violence within the meaning of § 10-4101, supra. Cross v. State (1956), 235 Ind. 611, 137 N.E.2d 32; Payton v. State (1965), 246 Ind. 401, 206 N.E.2d 143. We hold that the evidence was sufficient to sustain the trial court finding of guilty.
Finally, the appellant urges us to modify his sentence to reduce his maximum from twenty-five years to twenty years, in accordance with Dembowski v. State (1968), 251 Ind. 250, 240 N.E.2d 815. We agree with this position and hereby affirm the judgment and remand this case to the trial court for modification of sentence.
ARTERBURN, C.J., and GIVAN, HUNTER and PRENTICE, JJ., concur.