D.D.T. v. State ( 2016 )

Cite as 2016 Ark. App. 82
ARKANSAS COURT OF APPEALS
DIVISION III
No. CR-15-551
Opinion Delivered February 10, 2016
D.D.T. APPEAL FROM THE FAULKNER
APPELLANT COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT
[NOS. JV-14-354, JV-14-500, JV-15-97,
V. JV-15-98]
STATE OF ARKANSAS HONORABLE TROY B. BRASWELL,
APPELLEE JR., JUDGE
AFFIRMED
BRANDON J. HARRISON, Judge
D.D.T. appeals his delinquency adjudication based on true findings that he
committed the crimes of refusal to submit to arrest, fleeing on foot, and third-degree
assault. He argues that the State failed to present sufficient evidence to support the
adjudication. We affirm.
On 3 November 2014, D.D.T. was charged with third-degree assault (JV-14-500).
On 29 January 2015, he was charged with refusal to submit to arrest and fleeing on foot
(JV-15-97). These charges were addressed at a bench trial held on 3 March 2015.
In JV-15-97, Officer Jaren Smith with the Conway Police Department testified
that on 12 October 2014, he was sent out on a call reporting four black males, one of
whom was displaying a handgun, in an area near Fred’s and Kroger. Smith and two other
officers went to that area and saw four black males on bicycles; D.D.T. was one of them.
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Cite as 2016 Ark. App. 82
Smith explained that as he and the other officers approached the males, they began to flee,
and that D.D.T. started to pedal away on his bicycle. Smith said he was yelling for the
boys to stop and that D.D.T. looked right at him and said “we didn’t do anything” before
pedaling away faster. Smith grabbed D.D.T. and physically removed him from his
bicycle. After he was in custody, D.D.T. told Smith that two of his friends had shoplifted
from Fred’s. On cross-examination, Smith clarified that having to pull D.D.T. off of his
bike constituted refusal to submit, and D.D.T.’s fast pedaling constituted fleeing on foot.
Fifteen-year-old D.D.T. testified that he and his friends saw the police coming down the
road, that he was pedaling normally, that he had headphones on and was listening to
music, and that he did not hear the officers telling them to stop. He testified that the
officer grabbed his arm, pulled him off of his bike, and asked him about a BB gun. D.D.T.
responded that none of them had a BB gun, but the police found a BB gun on one of his
friends. The court found Officer Smith’s testimony credible, found the allegations true for
both refusal to submit to arrest and fleeing on foot, and adjudicated D.D.T. delinquent on
that basis.
In JV-14-500, ten-year-old S.P. testified that on 15 August 2014, he was at the
park with his siblings and some friends and was “cussed out” by D.D.T. S.P. explained
that after he told D.D.T. to shut up, D.D.T. threw him on a bench and choked him. S.P.
also said that another individual, Dustin Moore, pushed D.D.T. off of him. S.P.’s fifteen-
year-old sister B.P. confirmed that D.D.T. had choked S.P., which they promptly
reported to the police. D.D.T. testified that on the day in question, Dustin Moore was
angry because D.D.T. had spoken to Moore’s girlfriend and because D.D.T. disapproved
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Cite as 2016 Ark. App. 82
of Moore giving S.P. marijuana and a cigarette. D.D.T. denied choking S.P. The court
found S.P.’s testimony credible, found the allegation of third-degree assault true, and
adjudicated D.D.T. delinquent.
The court entered a written order adjudicating D.D.T. delinquent and committing
him to the custody of the Division of Youth Services. 1 D.D.T. has filed a timely notice of
appeal from this order.
While a delinquency adjudication is not a criminal conviction, it is based on an
allegation by the State that the juvenile has committed a certain crime. A.D. v. State,
2015 Ark. App. 35, 453 S.W.3d 696. Our standard of review is the same as it would be
in a criminal case, that is, whether the adjudication is supported by substantial evidence.
Id. Substantial evidence is evidence, direct or circumstantial, that is of sufficient force and
character to compel a conclusion one way or the other, without speculation or conjecture.
Id. In considering the evidence presented below, we will not weigh the evidence or assess
the credibility of witnesses, as those are questions for the fact-finder. Id.
D.D.T. challenges the sufficiency of the evidence supporting the delinquency
findings for refusal to submit to arrest, fleeing on foot, and third-degree assault. He argues
that, according to his testimony, “he was unaware that the officers were asking him to
stop until the officer grabbed his arm, due to his headphones, thereby rebuking the failure
to submit and fleeing on foot charges.” Likewise, he argues that, according to his own
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The order also addressed a probation revocation based on disorderly conduct (JV-
14-354) and a true plea as to a theft-of-property charge (JV-15-98), but these dispositions
are not at issue on appeal.
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Cite as 2016 Ark. App. 82
testimony, “no harm came to S.P.,” and he contends that S.P.’s allegation was a
“conspiracy levied against him” for talking to a third party’s girlfriend.
We are not persuaded by D.D.T.’s arguments. They are based solely on his own
testimony and ignore the additional testimony of Officer Smith and S.P., whom the
circuit court found credible. We will not weigh the evidence or assess the credibility of
witnesses, as those are questions for the fact-finder. A.D. v. State, supra. Furthermore, the
fact-finder is not required to believe the testimony of any witness, especially that of the
accused, because he or she is the person most interested in the outcome of the
proceedings. Camp v. State, 2015 Ark. 90, 457 S.W.3d. 276. Based on this settled law,
we affirm.
Affirmed.
VAUGHT and HIXSON, JJ., agree.
Howard M. Holthoff, for appellant.
Leslie Rutledge, Att’y Gen., by: Jake H. Jones, Ass’t Att’y Gen., for appellee.
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