### IN THE COURT OF CRIMI NAL AP PEALS OF TENNES SEE AT JAC KSON A ssi gne d on Br ie fs Ma y 2, 200 6 STA TE OF TEN NES SEE v. RO NA LD CLIN TON
Direc t Appeal from the Cr im inal Cou rt for Shelby Coun ty No. 04-03211 Car olyn Wad e Blackett , Judge

No. W2005-02210-C CA-R 3-CD - F iled October 9, 2006
Following a jury

trial, Def endant, Ronald Cl inton, was convicted of one count of the unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, a

Class A misdemeanor; one count of eva ding a rre st, a Class E felony ; and one count of simple a ssault, a Class A misdemeanor. F ollowing a sentenc ing he aring , the trial court se nte nc e d D e fe nd a nt t o e le ve n mo nth s, tw e nty -n ine da y s for e a c h misd e me a no r co nv ic tio n, a ndsix y ear s as a Rang e I I I , car eer offe nder, f

or his felony

conviction, and ordere d the sentenc es to be ser ved c on se c uti ve ly

. De fe nd a nt d oe s n ot c ha lle ng e the su ff ic ie nc y of the e vid e nc e su pp ortin g his a ssa ult conviction, or the le ng th or manner of ser vice of

his sentence s. I n his appea l, Defe ndant ar g ues that the e vid e nc e wa s in su ff

ic ie nt to su pp ort his c on vic tio ns fo r the un a uth orize d u se of a mot or ve hic le a ndfe lon y

e va din g arr e st. Af

te r a tho ro ug h r e vie w, we a ff

ir m th e jud g me nts of

the tr ia l c ou rt

. Tenn. R. App . P . 3 Appeal as of Right; Judgme nts of

the Cr im inal Cou rt A ff irm ed
T H O M A S T. W O O D A LL , J ., delivere d the opinion of the court, in which J OHN E VE R E TT W I LLI A M S and J. C. M C L IN , J J ., joined.
Robert Wils on J ones, District Public Defe nder; Ga rland Erg uden, Assistant Public Defe nder; a nd Con sta nc e B arn e s, Assis ta nt P ub lic De fe nd e r, Me mph is, Te nn e sse e , f or the app e lla nt, Ron a ld Clint on. Pau l G. S u m m er s , At t o rn eyGe n er al an d R ep o rt er ; S o fi a S

. L ee , As s i s t an tAt t o rn eyGeneral; Will iam L . G ibb on s, Di stric t A tt orn ey Gen e ra l; a ndSta c y Mc En dr e e , A ssi sta nt D ist ri c t A tto rn e y

Ge ne ra l, for the a ppellee, the State of Tenne ssee. OP IN ION
I. Bac kgr ound At trial, the trial court allowed the State to re ad into the re cord G eorg e Christian’s former te sti mon y a t D e fe nd a nt’ s p re lim ina

ry he ari ng ba se d u po n M r. Christ ia n’ s u na va ila bil ity to the Sta te as a w itness at the time of trial. See Tenn. R. Evid. 804. I n h i s former testimony , Mr. Christian-2-

stated that he dr ove his black, 1999 F ord F -150 truck to a drug store ar ound 9:30 p.m. on J anuary 27, 2004. Mr. Christian le ft his vehicle unlocke d and the e ng ine running while he we nt inside the s t o re t o p u rc h as e me d i ci n e fo r hi s s o n . W h en h e re t u rn ed t o t h e pa rk i n g l o t , h i s tru ckwa s m i s s i n g. Mr. Christian did not see the per son who stole his truck.
Offic er Chad Conley

testified that he wa s on patrol on J anuary 31, 2004, when he rec eived a ca ll from the dispatche r base d on an anonymous tip concerning a possibly stolen black F ord F -150 truck whic h was pa

rked at the Whis pering Pines Apartments. Off icer Conley ar ri ved at the apartment complex at approx imat el y 3:00 a.m. and noticed the described vehicle backe d into a parking space . Offic er Conley turned off his he adlig hts a nd approa ched the truck on its passeng er side. Offic er Conley stated t hat t he parking lot was dark, and he used a flashlig ht to ill uminate the are a. He shone the fla shlight into the truck’ s open window and saw a pair of ey es open up. A man wa s c ro uc he d in the fr on t se a t. T he Af ri c a n- Am e ri c a n ma n wa s we ari ng blu e ov e ra lls or a jump s uit , and a bla ck tobog g an with an insig nia. The ma n was a lone in the vehicle

. Offic er Conley

said that both he and the occupant of the truc k wer e startled. O ffice r Conley drew his weapon, told the man to r aise his a rms, and beg an to back a way from the truc k. The man sa t up , s tart e d the truc k’ s e ng ine , a nd dr ov e a way . Of fi c e r Con le y a tte mpt e d to fo llo w the truc k in his patrol car

but l o s t s i g ht of the vehic le af ter it turned onto Airw ay s Bouleva rd. Off icer Conley identified De fenda nt at trial as the driver of the For d F- 150 truck.
After the incident, Of

fice r Conley re s u m ed h i s patrol duties. B etwee n 5:15 a.m. and 5:30 a.m., Off icer Conley spotted a blac k For d F- 150 truck driving southbound on Elvis P resley Boule vard a nd beg an to follow the ve hicle. The truck did not have a license pla te, but the tempora ry reg istration number on the pl aque in the back window matched the te mporary reg istration number of the ve hicle previously spotted at the Whis pering Pines A partments. Of fice r Conley

radioe d for back- up. When other patrol c ars a pproac h ed t h e ar ea, O ffice r Conley activate d his emerg ency equipment. The truc k drove a way from the inter section. Off icer C o n ley

said that he pursue d the truc k f or be tw e e n th irty

se c on ds a ndtw o mi nu te s b e fo re he re c e ive d w or d to aba nd on the pu rs uit

. Offic er Conley

said the pursuit was c ance led bec ause it had not b ee n v erified at that time that the ve hic le wa s a c tua lly sto le n. Of fi c e r Con le y sa id he a ndthe oth e r o ff ic e rs dis pe rs e d, re turnin g to the ir no rm a l du tie s. Sometime later that morning , Offic er Conley rec eived a

report that a black Ford F -150 truck had cr ashed into one of

the buildings a t th e W h ispering Pines Apartments. When Off icer Conley arrive d a t th e sc e ne , a no the r p oli c e of fi c e r ha d a ma n in c us tod y wh o w a s w e ari ng a

blu e jump s uit and a bla ck tobog g an with an insig nia. Off icer Conley identified t he man as t he same person he had se e n in a bla c k F or d F -1 50 e arl ie r tha t mo rn ing a t th e Whis pe ri ng Pin e Ap art me nts

. Offic er A lbert Parks testified that he responde d to the report c oncerning the black F ord F -150 truck c rashing into a building at the Whispering Pines Apartments. The report i ncluded a description of an A frica n-American male who was wea ring blue overa lls a nd a black skull ca p. Offic er Par

ks was tra veling on Dwig ht Street when he noticed a ma n matching the dispatche r’s de scription-3-

cra wling thr oug h a hole in a f ence . The man ran in front of Offic er Par ks’ patrol c ar. O ffice r Parks exit ed his vehicle and ca lled out for the man to stop. The ma n looked b ac k at Of fice r Parks but continued running toward a nother a partment c omplex

. Offic er Par

ks stated that it was very dark around the apartment buildings in the are a, and he lost sight of the running m an. Offic er Parks eventua lly discovere d the m an crouching in front of a n apartment. Office r Parks a dvised the man to show his hands. Offic er Par ks said that the man stood up and attacke d him. The man struck Offic er Parks with his fist in the chest a fe w times, and then Offic er Par

ks and the man fell to the ground, sti ll wre stling. Other police off icer s arrived and he lped restra in the man.
Offic er Parks said that he c ould not identify his assailant bec ause it wa s very dark, a nd the phy sical alter cation only

lasted two or t h re e minutes. Office r Parks said that he did not have any more c ontact with the man a fter he was h andcuffed and place d in the squad ca r. Off icer Parks a c kn ow le dg e d th a t a t th e pr e lim ina ry he ari ng heide nti fi e d th e wr on g ma n a s h is a ssaila nt. Of fi ce r J ason Moore responde d to the report of a wr ecke d truck at the Whis pering Pines Apartments. Whil e he was view ing the black F ord F -150, an unide ntified reside nt told him that an Afric an-A merica n man wea ring blue over alls and a bla ck ca p had run awa y from the truck into the apartment complex after the wr eck.
L ieutenant Phillip Funderbur k testified th at the vehicle identification number of the black For d F- 150 which was wre cked at Whis pering Pines Apartments matche d the vehicle identification number of Mr . Christian’s stolen vehicle.
II. Su ff iciency of the Evid ence Def endant' s challeng e to the suff iciency of the e vidence supporting his convictions of the unauthorized use of a n automobile and fel ony evading arr est is directe d toward the identification evidenc e pre sented a t trial. When a defe ndant challeng es t he sufficiency of t he convic ting e vidence , we must revie w the evidenc e in a light most fa vorable to the prosec ution in determining w hether a rati on al trie r o f f

a c t c ou ld h a ve fo un d a ll the e sse nti a l e le me nts of the c ri me be y on d a

re a so na ble doubt. J ac k so n v . V irg ini a , 443 U.S.307, 319, 99 S. C t. 2781, 2789, 61 L . Ed. 2d 560 (1979). O nce a jury fi nd s a de fe nd a nt g uil ty , h is o r h e r p re sumpt ion of inn oc e nc e is r e mov e d a ndre pla c e d w ith a presumption of g uilt. State v. Black , 815 S.W .2d 166, 175 (Tenn. 1991). The de fenda nt has the burden of overc oming this presumption, and the State is entitled to the strong est leg itimate vie w of the evidenc e along with all rea sonable infe renc es which may be dra wn from that e vidence

. Id .; Sta te v . Tu gg le , 6 39 S.W. 2d91 3, 91 4 ( Te nn . 1 98 2) . T he jury is pr e su me d to hav e re so lve d all c on fl ic ts and dra wn any

rea sonable infe renc es in favor of the State. Sta te v . S he

ffi e ld , 676 S.W .2d 542, 547 (Tenn. 1984) . Questions conce rning the cr edibilityof witnesses, the w eig ht an d v alue to be give n the e vid e nc e , a nda ll f

a c tua l is su e s r a ise d b y

the e vid e nc e are re so lve d b y the tr ie r o f f

a c t a ndno t th is court. State v. Bland , 958 S.W .2d 651, 659 (Tenn. 1997). These r ules are applicable to findings of-4-

g uilt predicate d upon direc t evidenc e, circumstantial evidenc e, or a combination of both direc t and circ umstantial evidence

. Sta te v . M att he ws , 805 S.W .2d 776, 779 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1990)

. As rele vant in the ca se sub judice , “[i] t is unlawful for any person, while operating a motor vehicle on a

street, r oad, alley

or hig hway

in this st ate, to intentionally flee or attempt to elude a ny la w e nf or c e me nt of

fi c e r, a ft e r ha vin g re c e ive d a ny sig na l fr om su c h o ff ic e r t o b ri ng the ve hic le to a stop.” T.C.A. § 39-16-603( b)(1)

. The off ense of unauthorized use of a n automobile involves the taking of a motor ve hicle without the conse nt of t he owner when “the person does not have the intent to deprive the owner

there of.” Id . § 39-14-106. The identity

of the pe rpetrator is an essential e lement of any crime. See State v . Thompson , 519 S.W .2d 789, 793 (Tenn.1975) . The re liabilityof an i n -c o u rt identification depe nds on the totalityof the c ircumstance s, “including the opportunity of the witness to view the off ender at the time of the crime, the witness’s deg ree of attention, the a ccur acy of the prior

description of the offe nder, the level of c erta inty of the witness at t h e conf rontation, and the le ng th of time betwee n the crime, and the confr ontation.” Ma ns on v . B ra thw ait e , 432 U.S. 98, 114, 97 S. Ct. 2243, 2253, 53 L . E d. 2d14 0 ( 19 77 ); Ri ppy v . S tat e , 55 0 S.W. 2d 63 6, 63 9- 40 (T e nn . 1 97 7) ); State v. Be al , 614 S

. W

. 2 d 7 7 , 8 2 (T en n . C ri m . Ap p . 1 9 8 1 ) ( ci t i n g Ne il v . B igg e rs , 409 U.S. 188, 199, 93 S. C t. 375, 38 2, 34 L

. Ed

. 2d 40 1 (1 97 2)

. Th e c re dib le te sti mon y of on e ide nti fi c a tio n w itn e ss i s su ff ic ie nt t o su pp ort a c on vic tio n if the wi tne ss vie we d the a c c us e d u nd e r s uc h c ir c ums ta nc e s a s w ou ld p e rm it a positive ide ntification to be made

. State v. Radley , 29 S.W .3d 532, 536 (Tenn. Crim. App.1999) (c i t i n g State v. Strickland, 885 S.W .2d 85, 87-88 (Te nn. Crim. App. 1993)). The identity of the perpe trator of

a crime may

be ac complished by

either d i re ct o r circumstantial evidenc e, or both. Thompson , 519 S.W .2d at 793.
Offic er Conley

identified Defenda nt as the oc cupant of the black F ord F -150 par ked at the Whis p e r in g Pi n e s A p ar tm e n ts a t a p p r o xim a te ly

3 :0 0 a . m. o n Ja n u ar y

3 1 , 2 0 0 4

. O f

f ic e r Conley order ed De fenda nt to raise his hands, but Defenda nt fled in t he vehic le. Def endant wa s alone in the vehicle. A pproxi mately

two hours later , Offic er Conley ag ain spotted the blac k For d F- 150 driving southbound on Elvis P resley Boule vard. Although Office r C onley could not identify the driver of the F- 150, Offic er Conley followed the veh i cl e and ascerta ined that the tempora ry reg istration number of the vehicle w as the same numb er a s the one display ed on the blac k For d F- 150 seen ear lier at Whis pering Pines A partments. Offic er Conley signa led for thevehicle to stop by activating his emerg ency

signa ls, but the vehicle drove off.
L ater that morning , the black F ord F -150 wa s ag ain d i s covered at the Whis pering Pine Apartments where it had cra shed into one of the a partment building s. Defe ndant was a pprehe nded near the vicinity

of the car. Offic er Conley identified Defenda nt as t he occupant of the Ford F- 150 discovere d earlier that morning at Whispering Pines Apartments. The vehicle identification number of the ve hicle found at t he scene matched t he vehic le identifica tion number of the blac k For d F- 150 reported as stolen by

Mr. Christian.-5-

Ba sed on our r eview of

the re cord, the combination of direc t and circ umstantial evidence was sufficie nt to identify

Def endant a s the perpe trator of the offe nses of fe lony

evading arr est and the unauthorized use of a

motor vehicle, a nd sufficie nt for a r ational trier of fa ct t o fi n d bey ond a re a so na ble do ub t th a t D e fe nd a nt w a s g uil ty of the of fe ns e s. De fe nd a nt i s n ot e nti tle d to re lie f on this issue.
CO NC LU SION
Af te r a tho ro ug h r e vie w o f the re c or d, we a ff ir m th e jud g me nts of

thetr ia l c ou rt

.

___________________________________ THOMAS T. WOODAL

L , J UDGE