Opinion ID: 2088455
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Challenge to the Indictment

Text: The defendant next attacks the sufficiency of the indictment upon which he was convicted. Count II of the indictment charged: On or about the 10th day of December, 1983, in the County of Somerset, State of Maine, EDWARD B. MICHAUD, did engage in conduct which manifested a depraved indifference to the value of human life in that (a) a reasonable and prudent person in MICHAUD's situation would have known that there was a very high degree of risk that MICHAUD's conduct would cause serious bodily injury; and (b) MICHAUD's conduct, when viewed in light of the totality of the circumstances, reflected such an indifference to the value of human life that it would be generally regarded by a reasonable and prudent person as depraved, and, such conduct in fact caused the death of Garrett Brann, all in violation of 17-A M.R.S.A. § 201(1)(B) and (1-A) (1983 & Supp.1983). An indictment is sufficient if it contains such plain, concise, and definite allegations of the essential facts constituting the offense as shall adequately apprise a defendant of reasonable and normal intelligence of the act charged, enabling him to defend himself, and, upon conviction or acquittal, to make use of the judgment as the basis for a plea of former jeopardy, should the occasion arise. State v. Carter, 444 A.2d 37, 39 (Me.1982); see also State v. Weymouth, 496 A.2d 1053, 1057 (Me.1985). Applying this standard to Count II of the indictment, it is readily apparent that the indictment is sufficient. Count II notifies the defendant in plain terms that he is charged with the depraved indifference murder of Garrett Brann on or about December 10, 1983. Allegations of the victim's name, the date of the offense, and the provisions of the statute that the defendant was charged with violating, satisfied the standards for a valid indictment and were sufficient to sustain this conviction. See State v. Spearin, 477 A.2d 1147, 1157 (Me. 1984); State v. Crocker, 435 A.2d at 68; see also M.R.Crim.P. Form 4. Although subpart (a) of Count II of the indictment omits part of the statutory language contained in subpart A of section 201(1-A), the subpart contained in the statute is phrased in the alternative. Thus, the State can elect which part of the subpart it wishes to charge. If the defendant desired further specification of what conduct the State alleged manifested a depraved indifference to human life, he was free to request a bill of particulars. See M.R.Crim.P. 16(c)(2); see also State v. Crocker, 435 A.2d at 68. Relying on State v. Nappi, 369 A.2d 230 (Me.1977), the defendant also contends that Count II unfairly allowed the State to conceal from him the facts and theories of its case. His reliance on Nappi is misplaced because the issue there involved an alleged variance between the allegations of the indictment and the proof adduced at trial. Id. at 231-32. Moreover, we considered and rejected the substance of the defendant's argument in State v. Hickey, 459 A.2d 573, 579-83 (Me.1983). Without question the presiding justice correctly refused to dismiss Count II of the indictment.