May v. State
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Cite as 2009 Ark. App. 703
ARKANSAS COURT OF APPEALS
DIVISION II
No. CACR09-574
Opinion Delivered OCTOBER 28, 2009
BOBBY J. MAY
APPELLANT
V.
APPEAL FROM THE SEBASTIAN
COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT,
[NO. CR-1198-470]
HONORABLE JAMES O. COX,
JUDGE
STATE OF ARKANSAS
APPELLEE
AFFIRMED
ROBERT J. GLADWIN, Judge
Appellant Bobby J. May appeals the revocation of his suspended imposition of
sentence, for which he was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of three years in the
Arkansas Department of Correction and an additional ten years suspended. On appeal, he
challenges the sufficiency of the evidence. We affirm.
On October 12, 1998, appellant pleaded guilty to delivery of cocaine. He was
sentenced, pursuant to a judgment and commitment order filed on October 20, 1998, to five
years’ imprisonment to be followed by fifteen years’ suspended imposition of sentence.
Conditions of his suspended sentence included that he not violate any federal, state, or
municipal law, as well as that he pay $150 in court costs. Appellant was released on parole
on or about January 27, 2005.
Cite as 2009 Ark. App. 703
On December 15, 2008, the State filed a petition to revoke the suspended sentence
on the basis that appellant had committed the offense of domestic battery in the third degree
on December 6, 2008, as well as his failure to pay court costs in the amount of $150. A
hearing was held on the petition to revoke on March 4, 2009.
At the hearing, the State initially introduced, without objection, appellant’s fine and
cost ledger, which provided evidence that he had never paid the $150 in ordered court costs.
The State then presented testimony from a single witness, Officer Derek Harwood of the Fort
Smith Police Department. Officer Harwood testified that on December 6, 2008, he
responded to a domestic-disturbance call. At the residence, Officer Harwood spoke with
both appellant and his wife. Mrs. May was not present at the hearing, and accordingly,
Officer Harwood limited his testimony to those statements made by appellant at the scene.
Officer Harwood testified that appellant readily admitted that he “slapped the hell out of her
face,” referring to Mrs. May. Officer Harwood presented information he gained from firsthand observations and from reviewing Mrs. May’s driver’s license, including, (1) Mrs. May
was five-feet four-inches tall, (2) weighed approximately 140 pounds, (3) was thirty-four
weeks pregnant, and (4) had a swollen knot on her cheek and a knot over her right eye from
being hit.
The State rested at the conclusion of Officer Harwood’s testimony, at which time
appellant’s counsel moved to dismiss the petition to revoke on the basis that the State had not
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met its corpus delicti requirement of presenting evidence to corroborate appellant’s extrajudicial
confession. The circuit court denied appellant’s motion to dismiss.
Appellant then testified on his own behalf, explaining that his public defender told him
that his fines and costs would be satisfied by his prison time. He testified that was the reason
he had not paid the $150 in costs and stated that he could pay it that day if so ordered by the
circuit court.
Appellant then specifically acknowledged that he had slapped Mrs. May, but attempted
to excuse his actions by stating that, prior to the slap, Mrs. May had attacked him during an
argument and hit him in the face. Appellant also testified that Mrs. May told his parole officer
that he did nothing to harm her and that the parole hold on him was then removed,
permitting him to bond out of jail. Appellant denied telling Officer Harwood that he had
“slapped the hell out of her face” and stated that there were no bruises or marks on Mrs.
May’s face. He acknowledged that he stands six-foot three-inches and that his wife was
thirty-four weeks pregnant at the time of the incident.
After the defense rested, the circuit judge stated that he was not sold on appellant’s
answer regarding the $150 and directed him to forfeit that amount to the bailiff before leaving
the hearing room. As to the only other charge, domestic battery in the third degree, the
circuit court ruled that, based upon appellant’s statement to Officer Harwood combined with
Officer Harwood’s personal observations of Mrs. May’s injuries, appellant violated the terms
and conditions of his suspended sentence. He revoked appellant’s suspended sentence and
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sentenced him pursuant to a judgment and commitment order entered on March 5, 2009.
Appellant filed a timely notice of appeal on March 6, 2009, and an amended notice of appeal
on March 10, 2009. This appeal followed.
Standard of Review and Applicable Statutory Law
In a hearing to revoke probation or a suspended imposition of sentence, the State
must prove its case by a preponderance of the evidence. Haley v. State, 96 Ark. App. 256, 240
S.W.3d 615 (2006). To revoke probation or a suspension, the circuit court must find by a
preponderance of the evidence that the defendant inexcusably violated a condition of that
probation or suspension. Ark. Code Ann. § 5-4-309 (Supp. 2009); Haley, supra. The State
bears the burden of proof, but need only prove that the defendant committed one violation
of the conditions. Id. When appealing a revocation, the appellant has the burden of showing
that the trial court’s findings are clearly against the preponderance of the evidence. Id.
Evidence that is insufficient for a criminal conviction may be sufficient for the revocation of
probation or suspended sentence. Id. Since the determination of a preponderance of the
evidence turns on questions of credibility and the weight to be given testimony, we defer to
the trial judge’s superior position. Id.
Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-26-305(a)(1) (Supp. 2009) provides that a person
commits third-degree domestic battery if, with the purpose of causing physical injury to a
family member, the person causes physical injury to that family member. While normally a
Class A misdemeanor, third-degree domestic battery becomes a Class D felony when
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committed against a woman known to be pregnant. See Ark. Code Ann. § 5-26-305(b)(1),
(b)(2)(A). Physical injury is defined, in relevant part, as “the infliction of bruising, swelling,
or visible marks associated with physical trauma.” Ark. Code Ann. § 5-1-102(14)(C) (Supp.
2009).
Discussion
We hold that appellant’s admission that he slapped Mrs. May during the hearing on
the State’s petition to revoke, in conjunction with Officer Harwood’s personal observation
of the swollen knot on Mrs. May’s cheek and knot over her right eye from being hit, supports
the circuit court’s finding that appellant inexcusably violated a condition of that probation or
suspension. Ark. Code Ann. § 5-4-309 (Supp. 2009). See Selph v. State, 264 Ark. 197, 570
S.W.2d 256 (1978) (affirming a revocation where the appellant confessed to a burglary to his
probation officer, and holding that this section is not applicable to revocation hearings).
Selph is factually similar to the instant case, in that appellant’s suspended-sentence
conditions included that he not violate any federal, state, or municipal law, which would
include domestic battery in the third degree, and appellant admitted to Officer Harwood that
he hit his pregnant wife. Pursuant to Selph, appellant’s uncorroborated confession was
sufficient to establish that he violated a condition of his suspended sentence. The rule of
corpus delicti found in Arkansas Code Annotated section 16-89-111(d) (Repl. 2005) provides
that a confession of a defendant, unless made in open court, will not warrant a conviction
unless accompanied with other proof that the offense was committed. We hold that the rule
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does not apply in the instant case because appellant admitted to the battery in open court
during the hearing on the petition to revoke.
Despite appellant’s attempted excuse for his actions, we defer to the circuit judge’s
superior position regarding questions of credibility and the weight to be given testimony.
Haley, supra. As the trier of fact, the circuit court was free to believe all or part of any
witness’s testimony and to resolve questions of conflicting testimony and inconsistent
evidence. See Morgan v. State, 2009 Ark. 257, __ S.W.3d __.
Affirmed.
VAUGHT, C.J., and MARSHALL, J., agree.
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