Opinion ID: 1501332
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Capital-murder convictions

Text: For his first point on appeal, Bangs argues that the State failed to present sufficient evidence to support his two capital-murder convictions. Pursuant to Ark. Code Ann. § 5-10-101(a)(4)(Repl.1997), a person commits capital murder if with the premeditated and deliberated purpose of causing the death of another person, he causes the death of any person. Appellant contends that the evidence failed to establish premeditation and deliberation and that the only direct evidence supported his position that the shootings were an impulsive act. However, the State presented testimony that Bangs went to his estranged wife's home on the afternoon of the crime and hid in the home until he was discovered by his sister-in-law, Crystal. After the two talked, Bangs left the home. Between 6:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Crystal and her son left the home, leaving it unlocked. According to appellant, he returned to the house, parked his truck at a neighbor's house, a quarter of a mile away, 250 feet from the road, and in some trees, so that the Turners would not see it upon their return. Bangs testified that he then entered the house, hid in the bathroom shower, and remained there until the family returned and went to bed around 10:30 p.m. Subsequently, Bangs left the cover of the shower and shot Carol twice in the chest and Darrell in the upper left back and right arm, also causing injury to Darrell's right wrist. Bangs explained that Carol was sitting up in the bed when he shot her and that he merely clicked and began shooting. However, the medical examiner testified that both Carol and Darrell's injuries were consistent with their lying asleep in bed when they were shot. Tests of Carol's clothing also revealed that she was shot at close range. We have stated that the trier of fact is free to believe all or part of a witness's testimony. Freeman, 331 Ark. at 134, 959 S.W.2d at 402 (citing Mosley v. State, 323 Ark. at 250, 914 S.W.2d at 734)). Moreover, the credibility of witnesses is an issue for the jury and not for this court. Marta v. State, 336 Ark. 67, 74, 983 S.W.2d 924, 928 (citing Sanford v. State, 331 Ark. 334, 962 S.W.2d 335 (1998); Bell v. State, 334 Ark. 285, 973 S.W.2d 806 (1998)). Here, the jury declined to believe appellant's theory that he acted impulsively. In any event, premeditation is not required to exist for a particular length of time. It may be formed in an instant and is rarely capable of proof by direct evidence but must usually be inferred from the circumstances of the crime. Green v. State, 330 Ark. 458, 467, 956 S.W.2d 849 (1997). Similarly, premeditation and deliberation may be inferred from the type and character of the weapon, the manner in which the weapon was used, the nature, extent, and location of the wounds, and the accused's conduct. Id. Here, the medical evidence revealed that the victims' wounds were located in positions inconsistent with appellant's testimony and consistent with the victims lying in their bed. The nature and distribution of the wounds coupled with appellant's own testimony that he waited in the Turners' home, hidden in the shower and armed with a gun, provided substantial evidence of premeditation and deliberation. Viewed in the light most favorable to the State, we conclude that there is sufficient evidence to support appellant's capital-murder convictions.