Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 71A03-1603-CR-672 | November 22, 2016 Page 1 of 9

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

Marielena Duerring

South Bend, Indiana

ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE

Gregory F. Zoeller

Attorney General of Indiana

Katherine Modesitt Cooper

Deputy Attorney General

Indianapolis, Indiana

I N T H E

COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA

Bryant Johnson,

Appellant-Defendant,

v.

State of Indiana,

Appellee-Plaintiff.

November 22, 2016

Court of Appeals Case No.

71A03-1603-CR-672

Appeal from the St. Joseph 

Superior Court

The Honorable Elizabeth C. 

Hurley, Judge

Trial Court Cause No.

71D08-1508-MR-10

Robb, Judge.
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Case Summary and Issue

[1] Following a jury trial, Bryant Johnson was convicted of murder, attempted 

murder, and battery. Johnson appeals his convictions, raising the sole issue of 

whether the trial court abused its discretion in admitting certain evidence. 

Concluding the trial court did not abuse its discretion, we affirm.

Facts and Procedural History

[2] In the early morning hours of August 1, 2015, Justin Sharpe and Marcus Harris 

were passengers in a green SUV driven by Stephen Johnson (“Stephen”). 

Around 2:30 a.m., Stephen pulled out of a gas station and proceeded toward an

intersection near 301 North Lafayette Street in South Bend, Indiana. While 

stopped at the intersection, a champagne-colored Chevrolet Tahoe pulled up to 

right of the green SUV and a white vehicle pulled up behind the green SUV. 

Stephen recognized the driver of the Tahoe as Johnson. Johnson then pulled 

out a revolver and fired four bullets in the direction of the green SUV. One of 

the bullets struck Stephen in the shoulder and at least one bullet struck Sharpe. 

As Stephen attempted to drive away, an individual in the white vehicle also 

fired at least three bullets in the direction of the green SUV. 

[3] South Bend Police Officer John Cox heard the gunshots, but did not know 

where the sound was coming from until he received a ShotSpotter alert 
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notifying him the shots were fired near 301 North Lafayette Street.1 Upon 

arrival at that address, police officers observed multiple bullet holes in the green 

SUV’s front passenger-side window and door; Sharpe was pronounced dead at 

the scene from multiple gunshot wounds. Police officers then collected 

fragments of ammunition from the street and the green SUV indicating at least 

one of the guns used was either a .38 caliber special or a 357 magnum revolver. 

Some of these fragments recovered from the scene matched the fragments 

removed from Sharpe’s body during an autopsy. On August 5, 2015, the State 

charged Johnson with murder, a felony; attempted murder as a Level 1 felony;

and battery as a Level 5 felony. 

[4] At trial, the State elicited testimony pertaining to ShotSpotter technology from 

Paul Greene, the lead forensic analyst and lead customer service support 

engineer for SST Inc., the manufacturer of ShotSpotter. Greene testified 

ShotSpotter is an acoustic gunshot detection and location system and its 

purpose is to provide law enforcement with rapid notification of when and 

where local gunfire occurs. The system uses microphone sensors with GPS 

antennas to detect gunshots by recording nearly twenty acoustic measurements 

and a location server that measures the latitude and longitude of the gunshots 

recorded. The system then plots the location of gunshots on a map and reports 

the location of gunshots to police departments. SST Inc. guarantees

 

1 Evidence pertaining to ShotSpotter is the sole issue on appeal, which we discuss in detail below.
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ShotSpotter will detect and locate at least 80 percent of all 

outdoor detectable gunfire and will locate that gunfire to within 

25 meters of where the weapon was actually fired. So you take 

where the weapon is fired, draw a 25 meter line out, draw a big 

single [sic] and we guarantee that at least 80 percent of the time 

that gunfire will have originated within that 25 meter or 50 meter 

diameter circle, actually, which actually comes out to about 150 

feet diameter, 160 feet diameter or so.

Transcript at 267. Greene explained the more sensors that record a gunshot, 

the more precise the system can be. For example, if at least five sensors record 

a gunshot, then it is likely the system will pinpoint a location on the map within 

ten meters of the gunshot’s location. Id. at 267-69.

[5] The State then moved to admit State’s Exhibit 180, a detailed ShotSpotter

forensic report of the August 1 incident. Specifically, the report includes a map 

showing the location of the shooting; a map showing the number of 

microphone sensors that recorded the shooting; and a table showing the exact 

time the gunshots were recorded and the strength and sharpness of the 

recordings. Johnson objected on the ground the report was cumulative. 

Specifically, Johnson expressed concern that one page of the report merely gave 

“a description about ShotSpotter . . . .” Id. at 271. The trial court agreed the 

one page was cumulative of Greene’s previous testimony, but noted the 

remaining pages, which include the maps and tables, would assist the jurors in 

understanding Greene’s testimony. Johnson objected again, this time arguing 

the remainder of the report was scientific evidence lacking proper foundation 

pursuant to Indiana Evidence Rule 702. Specifically, he expressed concern as 
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to how much ShotSpotter has been tested and whether it has been subjected to 

peer review. The trial court disagreed and overruled the objection as to the 

remainder of the report, noting, “I would find it to be . . . more of a weight issue 

than an admissible evidence issue and [an] argument that you could make, 

[Defense Counsel], should you choose to do so.” Id. at 274. 

[6] The jury found Johnson guilty as charged. At the sentencing hearing, the trial 

court entered judgment of conviction and ordered Johnson to serve an 

aggregate sentence of eighty-five years executed in the Indiana Department of 

Correction. This appeal ensued. 

Discussion and Decision

I. Standard of Review

[7] The trial court has broad discretion in ruling on the admissibility of 

evidence. Washington v. State, 784 N.E.2d 584, 587 (Ind. Ct. App. 2003). This 

court will reverse the trial court’s ruling only if it abused that discretion. Id. An 

abuse of discretion involves a decision that is clearly against the logic and effect 

of the facts and circumstances before the court. Huffines v. State, 739 N.E.2d 

1093, 1095 (Ind. Ct. App. 2000) (citation omitted), trans. denied.
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II. ShotSpotter Evidence

[8] Johnson argues the trial court abused its discretion in admitting State’s Exhibit 

180.2 Specifically, he contends the trial court failed to assess the reliability of 

the ShotSpotter technology pursuant to Rule 702(b). We disagree.

[9] Rule 702(b) states, “Expert scientific testimony is admissible only if the court is 

satisfied that the expert testimony rests upon reliable scientific principles.” 

Stated differently, “expert scientific testimony is admissible only if reliability is 

demonstrated to the trial court.” Doolin v. State, 970 N.E.2d 785, 787 (Ind. Ct. 

App. 2012), trans. denied.

The proponent of expert testimony bears the burden of 

establishing the foundation and reliability of the scientific 

principles. There is no specific test that must be considered in 

order to satisfy Rule 702(b). Rather, reliability may be 

established by judicial notice or, in its absence, by sufficient 

foundation to convince the trial court that the relevant scientific 

principles are reliable. In determining whether scientific 

evidence is reliable, the trial court must determine whether the 

evidence appears sufficiently valid, or, in other words, 

trustworthy, to assist the trier of fact.

Id. at 787-88 (citations and internal quotation marks omitted). 

[10] Prior to admission of Exhibit 180, the State elicited extensive testimony from 

Greene. Our review of Greene’s testimony indicates he explained how the 

 

2

Johnson does not challenge Greene’s testimony or any other exhibits the State admitted that contained 

evidence pertaining to ShotSpotter.
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ShotSpotter system operates to inform local law enforcement of any shots fired 

in their jurisdiction. Specifically, he explained how the system generates 

reports pinpointing the location of gunshots within twenty-five meters. As 

noted above, Exhibit 180 is a ShotSpotter report prepared by Greene with 

regard to the August 1 incident and it is clear by the trial court’s own words it

determined Exhibit 180 would “help” and “assist” the jurors “in understanding 

the testimony.” Tr. at 272. Therefore, contrary to Johnson’s assertion, the trial 

court properly assessed the reliability of the ShotSpotter evidence prior to the 

admission of Exhibit 180.

[11] In addition, we note “Rule 702 is not intended to interpose an unnecessarily 

burdensome procedure or methodology for trial courts.” Turner v. State, 953 

N.E.2d 1039, 1050 (Ind. 2011) (citation and internal quotation marks omitted). 

Rather, the intent of Rule 702 is to liberalize the admission of reliable scientific 

evidence and therefore the evidence need not be conclusive to be admissible. 

Id. In the event shaky—but reliable—scientific evidence is admitted, the 

appropriate means of attacking such evidence is by “[v]igorous crossexamination, presentation of contrary evidence, and careful instruction on the 

burden of proof . . . .” Id. (alteration in original) (citation omitted). For 

example, by cross-examining the witness, the opposing party has the 

opportunity to expose the differences between the actual evidence and the 

scientific theory. Id. at 1051. “The dissimilarities go to the weight rather to the 

admissibility of the evidence.” Id. To the extent Johnson argues the evidence 

lacked reliability, the trial court concluded the evidence was reliable and would 
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assist the jury in understanding Greene’s testimony. Even assuming the 

evidence was “shaky,” the trial court correctly noted Johnson’s reliability 

concerns went to the weight of the evidence, not its admissibility. Johnson had 

a full opportunity to attack the credibility of the evidence in an attempt to 

diminish any weight it carried with the jury. We conclude the trial court did 

not err in admitting Exhibit 180.

[12] Further, and assuming the trial court erred, we conclude any error was 

harmless. See Barnhart v. State, 15 N.E.3d 138, 143 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014) 

(“Errors in the admission or exclusion of evidence are to be disregarded as 

harmless error unless they affect the substantial rights of a party.”) (citation 

omitted). Exhibit 180 merely shows a shooting occurred near 301 North 

Lafayette Street, and at trial, the State admitted numerous other ShotSpotter 

exhibits also showing a shooting occurred near 301 North Lafayette Street; 

Johnson does not challenge the admission of these other exhibits on appeal. In 

addition, many witnesses testified they heard a shooting occur, Stephen testified 

Johnson shot him, the green SUV had numerous bullet holes, and Sharpe was 

killed by a gunshot. This evidence undoubtedly indicates a shooting occurred. 

Exhibit 180 is no different and its admission did not prejudice Johnson. 

Conclusion

[13] The trial court did not abuse its discretion in admitting evidence. Accordingly, 

we affirm Johnson’s convictions.
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[14] Affirmed.

Mathias, J., and Brown, J., concur.