Court Opinion

ID: 9742467
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 21:14:25.951153+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:24:32.890481
License: Public Domain

Mr. PRESIDING JUSTICE JONES, dissenting: I am in agreement with everything the majority says until they conclude that the People have failed to prove the fair cash market value of the property in question exceeds $150 and remand the case for imposition of a sentence for conviction of a Class A misdemeanor. The majority have chosen to ignore the obvious in concluding that the People failed to establish the value of the property taken from both the North Litchfield Township Building and the residence of Mr. Sluder, in the aggregate, did not exceed $150 in its fair cash market value. The majority state that the natural inference to be drawn from the testimony of the valuation witnesses is that they were referring to the cost of the several items of property. I disagree with this characterization of the valuation testimony and disagree that any such inference can be drawn from the testimony. Two witnesses gave valuation testimony, Mr. Davidson, the Township Highway Commissioner of North Litchfield Township, and Mr. Sluder, owner of the burglarized home. Any doubt as to the value of the property taken from the township building, or any question whether Mr. Davidson was talking about cost, replacement cost or value of the property, was removed by Mr. Davidson’s answer to the final valuation question asked of him: “Q. Mr. Davidson, the total value of the items that you have identified today in court as belonging to North Litchfield Township, would that value be more or less than $150 of those items that you have identified today in this courtroom? A. I would say they would be at least $150. Replace value would be more than that.” It thus clearly appears that he was talking about present value of the tools and equipment taken (23 separate items) and not the cost of replacement. Mr. Sluder, in his valuation testimony, made only one reference to the cost of any of the items taken from his home. He stated that his .12-gauge Ithaca double-barrel shotgun was “valued” at approximately $265, “what we paid for it.” The remainder of the valuation testimony of Mr. Sluder was clearly not based on cost. He stated the value of the Winchester rifle was approximately $103, the value of the Bulova watch was $100 and the value of the Toastmaster broiler/oven was $39. These items in themselves total $242 and exceed the amount of $150 even if one totally discounts any value for the Ithaca shotgun and radio taken from Mr. Sluder and the 23 items of tools and equipment taken from the township building. To say that the value of the property involved in this transaction does not exceed $150 requires that one abandon common sense in favor of stringent technicality. The majority have done this but I cannot and accordingly respectfully dissent.