Opinion ID: 853311
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Sentence Enhancement for Use of a Firearm

Text: Crawford contends that his right to due process and to a jury trial was violated when his sentence for attempted murder was enhanced by five years based on the trial court's finding beyond a reasonable doubt that he had used a firearm in the commission of this offense. Crawford bases his argument on Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U.S. 466, 491-97, 120 S.Ct. 2348, 147 L.Ed.2d 435 (2000), in which the United States Supreme Court held that the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution are violated where a defendant's sentence is enhanced beyond the statutory range based on a fact not found beyond a reasonable doubt by a jury. We need not address this issue because the statute allowing an additional sentence for use of a firearm by its terms is inapplicable to this case. Indiana Code section 35-50-2-11 allows the trial court to enhance a sentence by five years if the defendant used a firearm in the commission of an offense. An offense is defined as a felony under IC-35-42 that resulted in death or serious bodily injury. [2] In this case, the State charged that Crawford did knowingly or intentionally use a firearm in the commission of said Attempted Murder. No part of Chapter 42 defines the crime of attempted murder. Because attempted murder is not an offense as the statute defines that term, an enhancement may not be attached to it. Attempted crimes are defined in Indiana Code section 35-41-5-1: A person attempts to commit a crime when, acting with the culpability required for commission of the crime, he engages in conduct that constitutes a substantial step toward commission of the crime. An attempt to commit a crime is a felony or misdemeanor of the same class as the crime attempted. However, an attempt to commit murder is a Class A felony. In Ellis v. State, 736 N.E.2d 731, 736 (Ind.2000), this Court held that attempted murder was not a crime of violence for purposes of Indiana Code section 35-50-1-2. The Court reasoned that `[c]rimes of violence' is a defined term, a straightforward list, including such crimes as murder and attempted battery. It does not include attempted murder. Id. Although this writer dissented from Ellis, stare decisis requires that the same reasoning applies here. The enhancement statute identifies a specific list of crimes that may be enhanced by reference to Chapter 42 of Title 35. Because attempted murder is not a crime found in Indiana Code 35-42, it is not an offense eligible for the five-year enhancement pursuant to Indiana Code section 35-50-2-11. [3] Because the statute by its terms is inapplicable, we do not address the Apprendi issue Crawford raises.