Portage County Legal News

Woman who stole TV, phone from father-in-law loses appeal

ANNIE YAMSON
Special to the Legal News
Published: September 15, 2014

In the 9th District, a panel of three appellate judges recently affirmed the judgment of the Wayne County Municipal Court, which ruled there was enough evidence to convict Juanita Good of petty theft for stealing from her father-in-law.

Case summary states that, on the evening of March 20, 2013, William Shaffer called the police to report that his TV, phone and Blu-ray player had disappeared while he was sleeping.

Officer Joshua Timko of the Wooster Police Department responded to Shaffer’s residence, which was a room in a boarding house.

Shaffer told Timko that his daughter-in-law, Good, had disappeared from the apartment around the same time his belongings were discovered missing.

Though the missing property was never recovered, Good was charged and convicted of petty theft.

Upon appeal, she challenged the sufficiency of the evidence sustaining the conviction.

According to her, the evidence did not support a reasonable inference that she stole the items and she claimed the trial court “inferred her guilt from inadequate circumstantial evidence.”

“We disagree,” wrote Judge Beth Whitmore on behalf of the court of appeals. “In criminal cases, a trier of fact may reach a guilty verdict only where it may reasonably conclude that the evidence establishes each element of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.”

According to the courts, circumstantial evidence and direct evidence possess the same probative value.

In Good’s case, the appellate panel ruled that a reasonable trier of fact could infer that Good took Shaffer’s TV, phone and Blu-ray player.

Shaffer’s testimony at trial established that he lived in a shared house with a secured main entrance.

When he went to sleep at 6 p.m., all of his possessions were still in his apartment as was Good.

By the time he woke up around 10 p.m. that evening, Good and his things were gone.

Shaffer told the trial court that he had lived in his apartment for three years without anybody walking into his room, even though he kept his door unlocked.

Another resident in the building testified that, during the time in question, Good asked him to admit her to the building from the outside.

She stated she had left to buy Shaffer some medication and needed to get inside to administer it to him.

“Viewing this testimony in a light most favorable to the state, a trier of fact could reasonably conclude that Shaffer’s belongings disappeared while he slept and that Good, who had been present when he fell asleep but was missing when he awakened, is the person who stole the items in question,” Judge Whitmore concluded.

After determining that her conviction was supported by sufficient evidence, the appellate panel addressed Good’s second assignment of error where she challenged the manifest weight of the evidence.

Taken as a whole, the panel ruled that the evidence indicated that the trier of fact did not lose its way and create a manifest miscarriage of justice.

Witness testimony established that Good was seen exiting and entering the building while Shaffer was asleep.

Although she was not seen carrying anything, it was well known that Good was staying with Shaffer.

The appellate panel conceded that there was some evidence from which one could conclude that Shaffer’s testimony was inaccurate, “but that evidence does not prohibit a fact finder from believing the testimony necessary to convict Good.”

Additionally, the court of appeals noted that Officer Timko’s testimony corroborated some of Shaffer’s claims.

“Based on the limited argument before us, the inferences necessary to find Good guilty of stealing Shaffer’s items are neither so numerous or improbable that they indicate a miscarriage of justice,” Judge Whitmore concluded.

The judgment of the Wayne County court was affirmed with Presiding Judge Eve Belfance and Judge Jennifer Hensal concurring.

The case is cited State v. Good, 2014-Ohio-3536.

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