Opinion ID: 1197916
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: Lack of Evidence of Valuation

Text: On Count II, the jury found defendant guilty of theft of property worth more than $750 and less than $1500. Defendant moved for a new trial pursuant to rule 24.1 because the state failed to offer substantial evidence to support the theft conviction. Defendant now contends that his theft conviction should be reduced to a class one misdemeanor because the state failed to prove the value of the 1984 Dodge Rampage truck that he allegedly stole from Jeanette. Although defendant possessed the truck at the time of his arrest, he had taken it from Jeanette, and therefore he was not qualified as the owner of the truck to give an opinion as to its value. See State v. Rushing, 156 Ariz. 1, 4, 749 P.2d 910, 913 (1988) (the owner of property is competent to give an opinion of its value). However, specific testimony of value is not always necessary if value may be inferred from other evidence, and the item is not so unique as to require expert valuation testimony. State v. Blankinship, 127 Ariz. 507, 511-12, 622 P.2d 66, 70-71 (App. 1980). The state offered the following evidence of valuation: (1) defendant told his California girlfriend and police officers that he paid $3000 for the truck, and (2) Jeanette's friend testified that the truck was in good condition. Furthermore, we know that the truck was operable because defendant drove it until the time of his arrest. This evidence makes this case distinguishable from State v. Grannis, 183 Ariz. 52, 900 P.2d 1 (1995), in which we held that the fact that the victim withdrew $200 on the night of the murder and that his wallet was never found were insufficient to prove theft of property worth $1500 or more. 183 Ariz. at 57 n. 1, 900 P.2d at 6 n. 1. Because the truck in this case was not unique, we find that the state offered sufficient evidence at trial from which the jury could infer that the truck was worth between $750 and $1500.