Summary 2008 WY 33

Summary of Decision issued March 27, 2008

Summaries are prepared by Law Librarians and are not official statements of the Wyoming Supreme Court.

Case Name: Patterson v. State

Citation: 2008 WY 33

Docket Number: S-07-0005

Appeal from the District Court of Laramie County, the Honorable Nicholas G. Kalokathis, Judge

Representing Appellant (Defendant): Diane M. Lozano, Wyoming State Public Defender; Tina N. Kerin, Appellate Counsel; Ryan R. Roden, Assistant Appellate Counsel; Diane E. Courselle, Director, and William Elliott, Student Intern, of the Defender Aide Program.

Representing Appellee (Plaintiff): Patrick J. Crank, Wyoming Attorney General; Terry L. Armitage, Deputy Attorney General; D. Michael Pauling, Senior Assistant Attorney General; Leda M. Pojman, Assistant Attorney General.

Facts/Discussion: Patterson appealed his conviction of being an accessory before the fact to second degree murder. He claimed the evidence was insufficient to support a conviction for being an accessory and that the jury was improperly instructed on the elements of second degree murder.
Sufficiency of the Evidence: Patterson claimed that his actions on the night of Blankenship’s death did not equate to aiding and abetting second degree murder. He argued that since Blankenship died of head injuries and that he (Patterson) never kicked Blankenship in the head – only in the torso, he did not participate in the acts which led to the injuries which caused Blankenship’s death. The Court did not agree, stating that accomplice liability is inherently derivative because the accomplice does not directly perform the acts constituting the substantive crime. The jury was properly instructed that the State had to prove that the defendant knowingly associated himself with the crime in some way as a participant, not as a mere spectator. Patterson’s actions conclusively associated him with the unidentified man who maliciously, purposely, stomped on Blankenship’s head. Patterson aided and abetted by initiating the violent attack as Blankenship was lying on the ground and then by helping prevent him from rising or otherwise defending himself.

Holding: The evidence adduced at trial overwhelmingly supported a finding that Patterson aided and abetted in the culpable conduct that resulted in the second degree murder of Blankenship. Patterson effectively disabled Blankenship, kicked him as he lay on the ground and continued to kick him as someone else “stomped” multiple times on his head. Given the viciousness of the attack, Blankenship’s death was a virtual certainty. No alteration in the jury instructions as proposed by Patterson would change the outcome of the case.

Affirmed.

J. Golden delivered the decision.

Link: http://tinyurl.com/3dvjch .

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