Opinion ID: 852465
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: sufficiency of the evidence

Text: Pittman also contends that the State did not present sufficient evidence to prove that Pittman intentionally killed Hobert or Myrtle. The Supreme Court of the United States has held that the Eighth Amendment requires a showing of the defendant's major participation in a crime and reckless indifference to human life before imposing a death sentence. Tison v. Arizona, 481 U.S. 137, 157-58, 107 S.Ct. 1676, 95 L.Ed.2d 127 (1987). Because Indiana's death penalty statute applies equally to life without parole sentences, we have held that Tison also applies to life without parole sentences. Ajabu v. State, 693 N.E.2d 921, 937 (Ind.1998). Additionally, because Indiana Code section 35-50-2-9(b)(1) permits a sentence of life without parole only if the defendant has committed a murder by intentionally killing a victim while committing another crime, the State must prove that the defendant was a major participant in the killing and the killing was intentional in order to impose a sentence of life without parole under subsection (b)(1). Id. at 939. A person engages in conduct `intentionally' if, when he engages in the conduct, it is his conscious objective to do so. Ind. Code § 35-41-2-2(a) (2004). In Ajabu, we found that the State did not establish that the defendant had intentionally killed even though he helped plan and substantially participated in the crimes leading to the murders, was present and armed with a loaded weapon when violence escalated, and was aware of the high probability of a victim's death at the hands of an accomplice. Ajabu, 693 N.E.2d at 939. Pittman's argument is in substance a claim that the evidence is insufficient to support a finding of the (b)(1) aggravator. We disagree as to Myrtle and find that the State presented sufficient evidence for the jury to find that Pittman intentionally killed Myrtle. Linda testified that when she pulled the van into her driveway, Pittman emerged from the garage and began shooting into the occupied van from a very close range. After getting into the Explorer and driving past the van, Pittman got out of the Explorer and fired additional shots into the van. Only after Linda played dead did Pittman return to the Explorer and leave the scene. These facts are sufficient to allow a jury to find that Pittman intentionally killed Myrtle either alone or in concert with Naylor. Hobert's killing presents a different picture. There is no evidence that Pittman killed Hobert, who died from a single wound. An expert testified that he could not determine what type of firearm was used. There is clear evidence that both Pittman and Naylor were at the scene, but no evidence as to who shot Hobert, even assuming one of the pair did. We agree that the State has not established beyond a reasonable doubt that Pittman killed Hobert. Imposition of life without parole based on this aggravator is therefore not permitted under Indiana law.