Nangreave v. State

The circumstantial evidence sufficiently authorized a rational trier of fact to conclude that all reasonable hypotheses were excluded but for the defendants' guilt in their trial for burglary.

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Appellants Bifford White and Debra Nangreave were convicted of burglary on April 28, 2009. White was sentenced by the trial court to a term of ten years, five to be served in incarceration and five to be served on probation. Nangreave was sentenced as a First Offender to ten years with 330 to 360 days to be served in a detention center. Nangreave moved for a new trial on May 4, 2009, as did White on May 12, 2009. The trial court denied the motions, and the appellants now appeal, contending that the evidence was circumstantial in nature and did not rule out every other reasonable hypothesis except that of the defendants’ guilt. For the reasons that follow, we affirm.

On appeal, we must view the evidence “in the light most favorable to the verdict and the appellant no longer enjoys the presumption of innocence; moreover, on appeal this court determines evidence sufficiency and does not weigh the evidence or determine witness credibility.” Citation and punctuation omitted. Williams v. State, 217 Ga. App. 636, 638 3 458 SE2d 671 1995. So viewed, the evidence shows that a witness approached Nangreave when he noticed her sitting alone in the passenger seat of a white parked car. He asked her if she was having car trouble and needed help, but Nangreave declined, stating that her husband had “gone to get gas.” The witness drove away after Nangreave assured him that she did not require assistance, but he then noticed a man, later identified as White, standing in a nearby alley. The witness testified that White’s “feet were on the ground, but he looked as if he was coming out of the window” of a store. He asked White what he was doing, and White “ducked down” behind an air compressor. When the witness exited his truck and approached White, White emerged from behind the air compressor, picked up a bag, and ran away. The witness pursued White but was unable to catch him.

Nangreave v. State

The circumstantial evidence sufficiently authorized a rational trier of fact to conclude that all reasonable hypotheses were excluded but for the defendants' guilt in their trial for burglary.

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