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Thomas v. State

Evidence that the defendant held a knife to the victim's face and then took her purse and used the knife again against the victim before taking money from her purse was sufficient to support his armed robbery conviction, even though the victim managed to get the knife out of his hand during the struggle and before the second taking.

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A jury found Darryl Thomas guilty of armed robbery and kidnapping with bodily injury, and not guilty of aggravated assault with intent to rape. The trial court directed a verdict of acquittal on a burglary charge. Thomas appeals from the judgment of conviction entered on the verdict, claiming the trial court erred in denying his motion for a directed verdict of acquittal on the armed robbery charge, failing to charge the jury on theft by taking as a lesser-included offense of armed robbery, and denying his motion to suppress evidence seized from his home. None of the arguments has merit, so we affirm his convictions. 1. Thomas contends he was entitled to a directed verdict of acquittal on the armed robbery charge because he did not possess a weapon at the time he took the victim’s money. Specifically, he points to the fact that he had lost control of his knife at the time he left the scene with the victim’s money. This argument presents no ground for reversal.

The standard of review for the denial of a motion for a directed verdict of acquittal is the same as determining the sufficiency of the evidence to support a conviction.1 We view the evidence in a light most favorable to the jury’s verdict, and the defendant no longer enjoys the presumption of innocence.2 We do not weigh the evidence or determine witness credibility, but only determine if the evidence was sufficient for a rational trier of fact to find the defendant guilty of the charged offense beyond a reasonable doubt.3

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