Opinion ID: 2025372
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: sufficiency of the evidence

Text: McBroom claims the evidence is insufficient to sustain his conviction for murder. He concedes that he shot Ott, but he seeks to have the murder conviction reduced to voluntary manslaughter. He claims he killed Ott in sudden heat. When this Court reviews the sufficiency of the evidence, it considers the evidence and all reasonable inferences most favorable to the verdict. We will neither reweigh the evidence nor judge the credibility of the witnesses to determine if there was substantial probative evidence to prove each element beyond a reasonable doubt. The distinguishing factor between murder and manslaughter is sudden heat. Ind. Code § 35-42-1-3(b) (Burns 1985 Repl.). Sudden heat is anger, rage, resentment, or terror sufficient to obscure the reason of an ordinary man; it prevents deliberation and premeditation, excludes malice, and renders a person incapable of cool reflection. Utley v. State (1986), Ind., 491 N.E.2d 200, 202. When a defendant asserts he acted with sudden heat, the State bears the burden of negating the presence of sudden heat beyond a reasonable doubt. Smith v. State (1987), Ind., 502 N.E.2d 485. Five days before the killing, McBroom received a telephone call from Cunningham telling him that Ott had raped McBroom's daughter. Shortly after the call, McBroom drove to Ohio, registered at a hotel under a false name, and learned Ott's destination. He armed himself and waited for Ott in the parking lot of the human services office. McBroom lured Ott into his car and drove for several hours before stopping. At some point, one of McBroom's companions tied Ott's hands together behind his back. When McBroom stopped the car, he ordered Pitstick to drive a short distance and return. McBroom led Ott down the embankment and shot him. Although he testified he shot Ott after Ott laughed about raping McBroom's daughter, the evidence of premeditation and deliberation is sufficient to support the jury's verdict for murder.