Court Opinion

ID: 9741657
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 21:00:16.901141+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:24:25.348922
License: Public Domain

BAILEY, Judge
concurring in part and dissenting in part
I concur as to Issues 2 and 3, and respectfully dissent as to Issue 1. The post-conviction court did not commit error in its reliance upon Fields v. State, 676 N.E.2d 27 (Ind.Ct.App.1997). The post-conviction court properly analyzed Collier’s federal and state double jeopardy claims.

A. Double Jeopardy Under the United States Constitution

In Fields, we applied what was then a two-step double jeopardy test; first, we determined whether the defendant’s conduct violated two distinct statutory provisions which do not require proof of an additional fact, then finding no double jeopardy violation based upon the elements of the two offenses we analyzed the charging informations and proof at trial to determine whether the convictions were supported by different conduct. Id. at 30. In the wake of Games v. State, 684 N.E.2d 466 (Ind.1997), modified on other grounds, 690 N.E.2d 211 (Ind.1997), cert. denied, — U.S. —, 119 S.Ct. 98, 142 L.Ed.2d 78 (1998), and Grinstead v. State, 684 N.E.2d 482 (Ind.1997), federal double jeopardy analysis no longer permits the court to consider the charging informations and proof at trial. However, the Fields analysis of statutes which do not require proof of additional facts, or the “first step” alone, continues to comport with federal double jeopardy analysis post-Games.
In applying the “first step” of its double jeopardy analysis, the Fields court held the following: “We hold that for double jeopardy purposes, the elements of the offense of possession of a handgun include both the possession of a handgun and the lack of a valid license.” Fields v. State, 676 N.E.2d at 30. Accordingly, there was no federal double jeopardy violation based upon the elements of the offenses charged..

B. Double Jeopardy Under the Indiana Constitution

A separate double jeopardy analysis under Article 1, § 14 of the Indiana Constitution remains following the Indiana Supreme Court’s modification of its federal double jeopardy analysis in Games, 684 N.E.2d 466 and Grinstead, 684 N.E.2d 482. See Russell v. State, 711 N.E.2d 545 (Ind.Ct.App.1999). When analyzing a state double jeopardy claim “the courts look beyond the elements of the crimes and view the charging instruments, the jury instructions, and the proof at trial.” See id. 711 N.E.2d at 550. This test is quite similar to that utilized by the Fields court, only it was then referred to as the “second step” of the then coexisting federal and state double jeopardy analyses. This state double jeopardy test, when applied within the context of an appeal from a denial for post-conviction relief, reveals that Collier was not subject to double jeopardy under our state constitution.
A petitioner seeking post-conviction relief has the burden of establishing grounds for *945relief by a preponderance of the evidence. P-C.R. 1(5); Long[v. State, 679 N.E.2d 981,] at 983. The standard of review for a post-conviction hearing is similar to that of other trials where the trial judge hears the evidence and we review the trial court’s ruling. The judge who presides over the post-conviction hearing has exclusive authority to weigh the evidence and determine the credibility of the witnesses. Id. So, we imll not set aside the trial court’s ruling on a post-conviction petition unless the evidence is without conflict and leads solely to a result different from that reached by the trial court. Id.
Taylor v. State, 699 N.E.2d 270, 272-73 (Ind.App.1998) (emphasis added).
Here, multiple witnesses testified as to Collier’s possession of a handgun, and from these witnesses’ testimony, the post-conviction court could find proof of Collier’s possession of a handgun separate from that enveloped by the State’s other charges. See Fields v. State, 676 N.E.2d at 30. Accordingly, Collier’s convictions for both criminal recklessness, as a class D felony, and carrying a handgun without a license did not subject him to double jeopardy under Art. 1, § 14 of the Indiana Constitution.