Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 45A03-1611-CR-2657 | May 18, 2017 Page 1 of 4

MEMORANDUM DECISION

Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D), 

this Memorandum Decision shall not be 

regarded as precedent or cited before any 

court except for the purpose of establishing 

the defense of res judicata, collateral 

estoppel, or the law of the case.

ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT

Marce Gonzalez, Jr.

Crown Point, Indiana

ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE

Curtis T. Hill, Jr.

Attorney General of Indiana

Ellen H. Meilaender

Deputy Attorney General

Indianapolis, Indiana

I N T H E

COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA

Deundre Rashad Kearney,

Appellant-Defendant,

v.

State of Indiana,

Appellee-Plaintiff

May 18, 2017

Court of Appeals Case No.

45A03-1611-CR-2657

Appeal from the Superior Court of 

Lake County

The Honorable Diane Ross 

Boswell, Judge

Trial Court Cause No.

45G03-1601-F3-5

Altice, Judge.

Case Summary
Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 45A03-1611-CR-2657 | May 18, 2017 Page 2 of 4

[1] Deundre R. Kearney appeals his conviction for Level 3 felony armed robbery. 

He challenges the sufficiency of the evidence.

[2] We affirm.

Facts & Procedural History

[3] On the evening of January 11, 2016, Olivia Exum was working alone at Gift 

Cards for Cash when a young, black male kicked in the door to her office. The 

man had a scarf covering the area below his nose, but his eyes, nose, and hair 

were showing. Armed with a handgun, he directed Exum to give him 

everything. As Exum fumbled while trying to open the register, the man told 

her to hurry. He took her purse and cellphone, the store’s iPad, and the cash in 

the register. The incident was caught on the store’s surveillance cameras.

[4] When a police officer arrived on the scene shortly thereafter, Exum described 

the suspect as a skinny, dark-skinned black male, approximately six feet and 

two inches tall, with hair styled in short dreads. Thereafter, on January 21, 

Detective Gregory Wolf, a violent crimes investigator, interviewed Exum and 

presented her with a photo array.1 Exum positively identified Kearney.

[5] Exum testified at Kearney’s bench trial on September 22, 2016. She recounted 

the robbery, identified Kearney, and testified that she was “absolutely positive” 

 

1 Detective Wolf included Kearney’s picture in the array because Kearney was a suspect in two other recent 

robberies in the area and fit the physical description provided by Exum.
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in her identification even though the robber wore a scarf partially covering his 

face. Trial Transcript at 45. The surveillance videos were submitted at trial, as 

well as a mug shot taken of Kearney six days after the robbery. Kearney 

matched the physical description provided by Exum on the night in question.

[6] The trial court found Kearney guilty as charged of Level 3 felony armed 

robbery. In doing so, the court expressly rejected Kearney’s lack-ofidentification defense as follows:

I’ve reviewed the evidence, gone over the photographs, I saw the 

video. It is clear in the video that the witness, Ms. Exum, had a 

clear view of what she testified to from the nose - - from the nose 

up - - from the top of the lip up.

Id. at 80. Kearney now appeals.

Discussion & Decision

[7] As he did below, Kearney challenges the evidence regarding identification. He 

argues that a significant portion of the robber’s face was shielded by a scarf and 

therefore Exum’s identification of Kearney as the person who robbed her is 

“based on a certain degree of speculation.” Appellant’s Brief at 7. Accordingly, 

Kearney claims that the evidence was insufficient.

[8] We reject Kearney’s blatant invitation to reweigh the evidence. See McHenry v. 

State, 820 N.E.2d 124, 126 (Ind. 2005). The unequivocal identification by a 

witness is sufficient to support a conviction. Gorman v. State, 968 N.E.2d 845, 

848 (Ind. Ct. App. 2012), trans. denied. Further, “[t]he identity of the 
Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 45A03-1611-CR-2657 | May 18, 2017 Page 4 of 4

perpetrator of a crime is a question of fact, not law, and the weight given to 

identification evidence and any determination of whether it is satisfactory or 

trustworthy is a function of the trier of fact.” Watkins v. State, 551 N.E.2d 1145, 

1147 (Ind. 1990). 

[9] Here, Exum positively identified Kearney both in a photo array ten days after 

the robbery and at trial. When cross examined regarding her identification of 

Kearney, Exum did not sway. Additionally, Kearney fit the physical

description Exum provided of the suspect immediately following the robbery. 

The evidence sufficiently established that Kearney committed the robbery.

[10] Judgment affirmed.

Kirsch, J. and Mathias, J., concur.