Opinion ID: 1060577
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Sufficiency of the EvidencePremeditation

Text: The defendant argues that the evidence presented by the State was not sufficient to support the jury's verdict of premeditated first degree murder. The State maintains that the evidence was sufficient to support the jury's verdict. It is well-settled that the proper inquiry for an appellate court determining the sufficiency of the evidence to support a conviction, is whether, considering the evidence in a light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. See Tenn. R.App.P. 13(e); Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979); State v. Hall, 8 S.W.3d 593, 599 (Tenn.1999); State v. Cazes, 875 S.W.2d 253 (Tenn.1994). A guilty verdict by the jury, approved by the trial court, accredits the testimony of the witnesses for the State and resolves all conflicts in favor of the prosecution's theory. State v. Bland, 958 S.W.2d 651, 659 (Tenn.1997). Questions about the credibility of witnesses, the weight and value to be given the evidence, as well as all factual issues raised by the evidence are resolved by the trier of fact, and this Court does not reweigh or reevaluate the evidence. Id. A verdict of guilt removes the presumption of innocence and replaces it with a presumption of guilt, and the defendant has the burden of illustrating why the evidence is insufficient to support the verdict rendered by the jury. Id.; See also State v. Tuggle, 639 S.W.2d 913, 914 (Tenn.1982). Therefore, on appeal, the State is entitled to the strongest legitimate view of the trial evidence and all reasonable and legitimate inferences which may be drawn from the evidence. Hall, 8 S.W.3d at 599; Bland, 958 S.W.2d at 659. At the time this offense was committed, first degree murder was defined as the premeditated and intentional killing of another. Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-13-202(a)(1)(Supp.1995). Section 39-13-202(d) provided then as it does now: As used in subdivision (a)(1) `premeditation' is an act done after the exercise of reflection and judgment. `Premeditation' means that the intent to kill must have been formed prior to the act itself. It is not necessary that the purpose to kill pre-exist in the mind of the accused for any definite period of time. The mental state of the accused at the time the accused allegedly decided to kill must be carefully considered in order to determine whether the accused was sufficiently free from excitement and passion as to be capable of premeditation. The defendant argues that the State presented no evidence that he premeditated killing the victim before the confrontation at the Taco Bell. He says that the death of the victim was not the result of premeditation but of an overpowering rage at finally realizing that [the victim] was not returning to appellant's home, that he had lost yet another woman whom he had cared about deeply and in whom he had invested all he had, and for reasons appellant could not understand. The defendant relies upon the testimony of Dr. Matthews to support his argument. As previously stated, Dr. Matthews opined that the killing was not premeditated and was instead an impulsive and explosive act of violence caused by basic, primitive emotions of anger and fear and hurt, all mixed together. The element of premeditation is a question of fact to be resolved by the jury. Bland, 958 S.W.2d at 660. It may be established by proof of the circumstances surrounding the killing. Id.; State v. Brown, 836 S.W.2d 530, 539 (Tenn.1992). As we stated in Bland, there are several factors which tend to support the existence of premeditation which include: the use of a deadly weapon upon an unarmed victim; the particular cruelty of the killing; declarations by the defendant of an intent to kill; evidence of procurement of a weapon; preparations before the killing for concealment of the crime, and calmness immediately after the killing. See State v. Pike, 978 S.W.2d 904, 914 (Tenn.1998); Bland, 958 S.W.2d at 660; Brown, 836 S.W.2d at 541-42; State v. West, 844 S.W.2d 144, 148 (Tenn.1992). Considering the proof in this record in the light most favorable to the State, as we are required to do, we agree with the Court of Criminal Appeals that the evidence is legally sufficient to support the jury's verdict of premeditated first degree murder. The record reflects that the defendant grabbed the unarmed victim when she refused to go home with him and held a pocket knife to her throat. When the victim's daughter got out of the car and approached the couple, the defendant told her to Get back or I'll kill her. After the victim told the defendant she would go with him, the defendant released her, closed the knife, and put it back into his pocket. When the victim then attempted to flee to the safety of the Taco Bell, the defendant chased her, tackled her, took out his knife, opened it, slashed her throat, and stabbed her several times while she lay helpless on the ground, and then, turned the victim over and stabbed her several more times. When the attack was over, the defendant got up, wiped the knife on his pants to remove the blood, then nonchalantly walked across the parking lot to his car, and drove out of the parking lot, smiling at the victim's daughter as he passed. Less than one hour after the assault, the defendant telephoned a friend and calmly described the assault, saying that he had cut the victim's throat and had stabbed her in the chest and in the back. The defendant parked his car at a church one mile from his home in an apparent effort to conceal the crime. When the defendant was taken into custody, he was described as unemotional and indifferent. Attempting to negate the element of premeditation, the defendant claimed that he had not closed the knife and placed it back in his pocket after releasing the victim, and offered the testimony of Dr. Matthews that the killing was an impulsive act rather than an act of premeditation. As previously explained, however, whether a killing is premeditated is a question of fact for the jury to decide. The jury was in a position to evaluate the testimony of both the defendant and Dr. Matthews in this case and obviously accredited the State's witnesses when it returned a verdict of guilty of first degree premeditated murder. Again, as previously noted, a guilty verdict by the jury accredits the testimony of the witnesses for the State and resolves all conflicts in favor of the prosecution's theory. We agree with the Court of Criminal Appeals that, while the proof does not necessarily reflect that the defendant intended to kill the victim when he initially stopped at the Taco Bell, the proof is sufficient to support the jury's finding that the defendant acted with premeditation at the time of the murder. Accordingly, the defendant's challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence to support the jury's finding of premeditation is without merit.