Opinion ID: 1998034
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: sufficiency of evidence to sustain burglary conviction

Text: First, we consider Williams's contention that the evidence presented at trial was insufficient to sustain his conviction for burglary. The test for evidentiary sufficiency in a criminal case is `whether, after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.' Wiggins v. State, 324 Md. 551, 567, 597 A.2d 1359, 1366 (1991) (citations omitted), cert. denied, 503 U.S. 1007, 112 S.Ct. 1765, 118 L.Ed.2d 427 (1992). The essential elements of burglary are the breaking and entering of the dwelling of another at night with the intent to commit a felony. E.g. Oken v. State, 327 Md. 628, 662, 612 A.2d 258, 274 (1992), cert. denied, 507 U.S. 931, 113 S.Ct. 1312, 122 L.Ed.2d 700 (1993). The breaking element of burglary may be satisfied by evidence showing either an actual breaking, or a breaking accomplished constructively via artifice, fraud, conspiracy or threats. Id. Williams argues that there was no evidence of a breaking, either actual or constructive. Hence, Williams asserts that the trial court erred in not granting his motion for judgment of acquittal on the burglary charge. We agree. In Oken, this Court reversed a burglary conviction because we found insufficient evidence of a breaking. 327 Md. at 663, 612 A.2d at 275. In that case, we noted that the only evidence of an actual or constructive breaking was testimony from several witnesses who stated that on prior occasions the defendant had attempted to gain entry to homes by fraudulently representing that he needed to use the telephone, and on one occasion he attempted to stop a woman in her car by posing as a police officer. Based on this evidence, the State argued that the jury could have reasonably inferred that the defendant used a similar tactic to gain entry to the victim's home, where he committed murder. We reversed Oken's burglary conviction, explaining: While it is true that ... a conviction may rest on circumstantial evidence alone, we have also explained: `to ensure that the trier of fact bases a finding of guilt on the appropriate degree of certainty, ... a conviction [based] upon circumstantial evidence alone is not to be sustained unless the circumstances, taken together, are inconsistent with any reasonable hypothesis of innocence.' Here, aside from the evidence of ruses employed by Oken in connection with the entry or attempted entry of other residences in the neighborhood of the victim's apartment, the record is completely devoid of any evidence showing a breaking, either actual or constructive, of [the victim's] apartment. Consequently, we are not convinced that a jury could find such circumstantial evidence inconsistent with any reasonable hypothesis that the victim's apartment was entered by Oken without a constructive breaking. Therefore, we hold that Oken's conviction for burglary must be reversed. (Citations omitted). Oken, 327 Md. at 662-63, 612 A.2d at 275. In the instant case, the State concedes that there was no evidence of a forced entry into the Gilbert/Trias home. As evidence of a breaking, the State points to testimony indicating that Trias was security conscious and that the home was equipped with a security system. The State contends that the jury could infer that this type of person would not leave his door open for a stranger to walk in off the street, and that entry into the home was made by Williams's opening a door, threatening the victims, or obtaining entry by deceit. We hold that any such inference, without more, is insufficient to prove a breaking beyond a reasonable doubt. We agree with Williams that the evidence adduced at his trial to prove a breaking was even weaker than the evidence we found to be insufficient in Oken. Hence, we reverse Williams's burglary conviction. Because our reversal is based on a finding of insufficient evidence, Williams cannot be retried for burglary. See Oken, 327 Md. at 663, 612 A.2d at 275.