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Stephens v. State

There was no evidence that the defendant intended to terrorize his supervisor when he wrote a letter requesting a transfer partially based on his desire to take a gun and kill his supervisor.

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Following a bench trial, the trial court found James Lee Stephens guilty of making terroristic threats. Stephens appeals, challenging the sufficiency of the evidence. For reasons that follow, we reverse. The standard of review for an appeal from a criminal bench trial requires us to view the evidence in a light most favorable to support the trial court’s judgment.1 We determine evidence sufficiency and do not weigh the evidence or determine witness credibility.2 So viewed, the evidence shows that Stephens worked as a housekeeper at the Carl Vinson VA Medical Center. Phyllis Tanner and Ronnie Skipper were his supervisors, and both had “problems” with Stephens at work. Tanner had “counseled” Stephens about not finishing his work on one occasion. She had also issued Stephens a letter indicating that he was abusing his sick leave. Stephens, however, refused to come to Tanner’s office to discuss his problems at work.

Although Stephens would not communicate with Tanner, he told Skipper that he was depressed, that he wanted to transfer to another service area, and that he “wanted to take a gun and kill his supervisor.” Stephens also told Skipper that he could not talk to Tanner because she made him mad and he felt like he would harm her. Skipper told Stephens to put in writing why he wanted to transfer to another service.

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