Opinion ID: 2324619
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Element of Force

Text: At the close of his case, defendant moved for a judgment of acquittal under Rule 29 of the Superior Court Rules of Criminal Procedure. In respect to the charge of robbery in the second degree, the basis for defendant's motion was that the snatching of the necklace, absent evidence of other violence or threat, did not rise to the level of the force that is required to be proven as an element of the crime of robbery in Rhode Island. Thus, defendant has argued, because such force was not expended, the state's proof fell short of the quantum of evidence legally required for conviction. The motion for judgment of acquittal was denied, and defendant has appealed. When considering a motion for judgment of acquittal, a trial justice must view the evidence in the light most favorable to the state and draw therefrom all reasonable inferences consistent with that defendant's guilt. State v. Snow, 670 A.2d 239, 243 (R.I.1996). Upon review of the trial justice's ruling by this Court, the same standard is applied. State v. Andrade, 657 A.2d 538, 542 (R.I.1995). The motion for judgment of acquittal may be granted only if the evidence viewed in such a light is insufficient to warrant a jury's verdict of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Id. This Court will overturn the trial justice's denial of the motion only if the evidence presented by the state is insufficient to warrant a verdict of guilt on a charge of robbery in the second degree. It is fundamental that the state is required to present evidence of every element of the crime charged. State v. Robalewski, 418 A.2d 817, 820 (R.I.1980). The statutory distinctions between the degrees of robbery and the punishment for each are set forth in § 11-39-1. The statute, however, does not define robbery. This Court has long held that the statute incorporates the common-law definition of robbery. State v. Innis, 433 A.2d 646, 649 (R.I.1981); State v. Reposa, 99 R.I. 147, 149, 206 A.2d 213, 215 (1965); State v. Domanski, 57 R.I. 500, 504, 190 A. 854, 857 (1937). Under common law, robbery consists of the `felonious and forcible taking from the person of another of goods or money to any value by violence or putting him in fear.' Reposa, 99 R.I. at 149, 206 A.2d at 215 (quoting 4 William Blackstone, Commentaries ). A required element of robbery is that the taking be accomplished by force, violence, or intimidation. State v. Froais, 653 A.2d 735, 738 (R.I.1995). The issue in this case is whether the element of force has been satisfied when the state presented evidence that the taking of the necklace was accomplished by defendant's snatching it from the neck of the victim. This Court last addressed a similar question in State v. McCune, 5 R.I. 60 (1857). The defendant in that case approached the victim, linked arms with him, exclaimed, Damn you, I will haveyour watch, and seized the victim's watch, thereby breaking the half-inch-wide silk ribbon on which the victim had worn the watch around his neck. Id. The Court found that the taking was accomplished by force sufficient to support a charge of robbery and that the force not only derived from McCune's snatching of the watch but also was evidenced by the manner in which he linked arms with the victim and from his clear statement of felonious intent at the time he took the watch. Id. at 61. Many states have considered the type and the degree of force that is required to support a conviction of robbery. See, e.g., People v. Taylor, 129 Ill.2d 80, 133 Ill.Dec. 466, 541 N.E.2d 677 (1989) (finding sufficient force where a chain was snatched from around a neck); State v. Aldershof, 220 Kan. 798, 556 P.2d 371 (1976) (finding insufficient force when a purse resting in a lap was snatched); Commonwealth v. Jones, 362 Mass. 83, 283 N.E.2d 840 (1972) (finding sufficient force when a purse was snatched from a shoulder); State v. Sein, 124 N.J. 209, 590 A.2d 665 (1991) (finding insufficient force when a purse carried under the arm was snatched); State v. Curley, 124 N.M. 295, 939 P.2d 1103 (1997) (finding sufficient force when a purse was snatched from a shoulder). Massachusetts has held that there is sufficient force as long as the taking is done in such a way that the victim is aware of the taking while it occurs, regardless of any physical impact on the person of the victim. Jones, 283 N.E.2d at 845. Virginia, on the other hand, has held that a sudden snatching of an object does not involve sufficient force except in those cases when a struggle ensues, where the victim is knocked down, or where the victim is put in fear. Winn v. Commonwealth, 21 Va.App. 179, 462 S.E.2d 911, 913 (1995). The overwhelming majority of states that have considered this issue have held that a snatching involves sufficient force to support a conviction of robbery if the article taken is so attached to the person or the clothes of the victim as to afford resistance. See, e.g., Smith v. State, 117 Ga. 320, 43 S.E. 736, 737 (1903); Taylor, 133 Ill.Dec. 466, 541 N.E.2d at 679; Raiford v. State, 52 Md.App. 163, 447 A.2d 496, 499 (1982), aff'd in relevant part by 296 Md. 289, 462 A.2d 1192 (1983); Sein, 590 A.2d at 668; Curley, 939 P.2d at 1105; Monaghan v. State, 10 Okla.Crim. 89, 134 P. 77, 79 (1913). It is our conclusion that the majority rule better supports the rationale that distinguishes robbery from larceny. Robbery is punished more severely than larceny because the crime presents the risk of harm to the person of the victim and not solely to the victim's property. Curley, 939 P.2d at 1106. One early commentary, in discussing robbery, noted that the [j]eoperdye that a man is in of his lyfe where it [is] so taken awaye from his persone causeth the offence to be greter than [if] it had ben thevysshely stolen. Vol. II The Reports of Sir John Spelman, 324 (J.H. Baker ed.1978) (quoting the boke of justyces of peas, (1515 ed.), sig. A5v.)). As Blackstone has noted, the force used in a robbery makes the violation of the person more atrocious than privately stealing. 4 William Blackstone, Commentaries . The risk of bodily injury that underlies the more severe treatment of robbery is present when the item that is being snatched is attached to the body or the clothing of the victim. See, e.g., State v. Williams, 202 Conn. 349, 521 A.2d 150, 155 (1987) (where victim whose purse was snatched suffered bruises to her shoulder); Santiago v. State, 497 So.2d 975, 976 (Fla.Dist.Ct.App.1986) (situation in which victim whose necklace was snatched suffered scratches on her neck); McCloud v. State, 335 So.2d 257, 258 (Fla.1976) (elderly victim fell during purse snatching, the fall resulting in her death); People v. Santiago, 62 A.D.2d 572, 405 N.Y.S.2d 752, 754 (N.Y.App.Div.1978) (victim of attempted purse snatching was pulled off subway platform and injured by train, death resulting). Because the forcible taking of an article attached to the body or the clothes of another person creates a risk of harm to that person, such a taking rises to the level of force necessary to support a conviction for robbery. In the case at bar, the prosecutor presented evidence that defendant snatchedtwo chains from the neck of Disirio that were therefore attached to his person so as to afford resistance. Consequently, evidence of sufficient force was present to satisfy the denial of defendant's motion for a judgment of acquittal.