Opinion ID: 1613062
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: sufficiency of the evidence

Text: Mr. Galloway contends that the evidence was insufficient to prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. If this court finds that the jury, acting reasonably, could have found the defendant guilty, we may not disturb the finding. Gauthier v. State (1965), 28 Wis. (2d) 412, 416, 137 N. W. (2d) 101. In his attack on the sufficiency of the evidence, Mr. Galloway relies on two main arguments. The first is that the testimony of the two arresting officers was so grossly inconsistent that it was not credible. The second is that the record fails to establish that the defendant had an intent to steal or commit a felony, which is a requirement for conviction under sec. 943.10, Stats. In support of his claim that the testimony of the two police officers cannot be reconciled, the defendant's counsel has painstakingly and almost microscopically compared their testimony. Mr. Justice CARDOZO has said, It is for ordinary minds, and not for psychoanalysts, that our rules of evidence are framed. Shepard v. United States (1933), 290 U. S. 96, 104, 54 Sup. Ct. 22, 78 L. Ed. 196. There are, indeed, divergencies in the officers' testimony, but it cannot be said that the differences were so severe that they rise to the dignity of making their evidence wholly incredible. The flaws in their testimony were probably apparent to the jurors or brought to their attention by Mr. Galloway's trial attorney. The jury, acting reasonably, could have concluded that the inconsistencies were not decisive. This is especially true since both officers positively identified the defendant as the man they saw inside the office. Does the record contain sufficient proof of a felonious intent to uphold the conviction? In State v. Kennedy (1962), 15 Wis. (2d) 600, 113 N. W. (2d) 372, this court held that a presumption of an intent to steal does not arise solely from the proof of breaking and entering. Subsequently, in State v. Reynolds (1965), 28 Wis. (2d) 350, 137 N. W. (2d) 14, this court again rejected the state's contention that an inference to steal arises by a showing that there has been a breaking and entering. Said the court, at page 360: The breaking or entering may have been with an intent to commit a felony entirely different from stealing, yet the state would infer an intent to steal. The entry may have been made with the purpose of committing a misdemeanor or for an entirely innocent purpose. We do not think it unreasonable for the legislature to require proof of `intent to steal or commit a felony' in order to gain a conviction for burglary with the attending maximum ten-year imprisonment. In our opinion, the conviction in the instant case can be sustained without the slightest withdrawal from our holdings in State v. Kennedy and State v. Reynolds . The two latter cases involved a public school building, whereas the case at bar involves private premises; one who breaks and enters without consent into a private dwelling or a private office may more readily be found to have a felonious intent than one who breaks and enters into a public building. In addition, in the case at bar there was testimony by Officer Klein that he observed Mr. Galloway bent over behind a desk as though attempting to open the desk drawer. There was also testimony that the drawer was pried open, and a search of the defendant produced a pinch bar, the claws of which matched the gouge marks on the desk drawer. Further, there was testimony by the tenant of the office that before the alleged burglary the desk drawer had been locked and did not have gouge marks upon it. In our opinion, this evidence was sufficient to enable the jury to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr. Galloway possessed the requisite felonious intent.