Brittney Massey v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.) ( 2015 )

MEMORANDUM DECISION
Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D),
Oct 14 2015, 9:41 am
this Memorandum Decision shall not be
regarded as precedent or cited before any
court except for the purpose of establishing
the defense of res judicata, collateral
estoppel, or the law of the case.
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE
Victoria L. Bailey Gregory F. Zoeller
Marion County Public Defender Agency Attorney General of Indiana
Indianapolis, Indiana
Richard C. Webster
Deputy Attorney General
Indianapolis, Indiana
IN THE
COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
Brittney Massey, October 14, 2015
Appellant-Defendant, Court of Appeals Case No.
49A04-1503-CR-92
v. Appeal from the Marion Superior
Court
State of Indiana, The Honorable Lisa F. Borges,
Appellee-Plaintiff Judge
Trial Court Cause No.
49G04-1312-MR-76611
Baker, Judge.
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[1] Brittney Massey (Massey) appeals her conviction for Murder,1 arguing that
there is insufficient evidence supporting the conviction. Finding the evidence
sufficient, we affirm.
Facts
[2] On the morning of November 27, 2013, two-year-old Destinee Massey
(Destinee) was taken to the emergency room at Riley Children’s Hospital in
Indianapolis by her mother, Massey, and Massey’s husband, Michael Miles.
When Destinee arrived at Riley, she was nonresponsive. Massey told the
emergency room doctor that she had taken Destinee to the hospital because of
changes in Destinee’s breathing and her low body temperature. Shortly after
her arrival, Destinee stopped breathing and her heart stopped beating. Multiple
attempts to revive her were unsuccessful and she was pronounced dead less
than two hours after her arrival at the hospital.
[3] Destinee had injuries and trauma to her body that hospital personnel found to
be suspicious; therefore, they reported her death to law enforcement.
Indianapolis Police Detectives Delbert Shelton and Craig Converse responded
to the hospital and spoke with the treating physician, Massey, and Miles.
Massey told Detective Converse that the previous day had been a normal one.
Miles had gone to work around 2:00 p.m., she and the children had eaten
dinner around 8:00 p.m., and then Massey gave Destinee a bath and put her to
1
Ind. Code § 35-42-1-1.
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bed around 9:00 p.m. Miles returned home around 12:30 a.m. and, around
1:00 a.m., Miles carried Destinee in to Massey, concerned about her condition.
Destinee was making strange moaning noises, bubbles were coming out of her
mouth, her head was limp, and she was very cold. Miles wanted to take
Destinee to the hospital but Massey did not want to do so. The next morning,
at 8:30 a.m., Miles told Massey that they were taking Destinee to the hospital.
At that point, Destinee was gasping for breath. They took her to the hospital
around 10:00 a.m.
[4] On November 29, 2013, Doctor Randy Tashjian performed an autopsy on
Destinee. Doctor Miranda Geller, a forensic pathologist with the Marion
County Coroner’s Office, testified about the results of the autopsy. The autopsy
revealed multiple blunt force trauma injuries to Destinee’s head, chest,
abdomen, arms, and legs. She also had multiple contusions and abrasions to
her face, head, and forehead. Some of the injuries were older and healing but
others were more recent and had occurred within a couple of days of her death.
Her body bore multiple scars from older injuries. Destinee also had multiple
hemorrhages in her skull and brain. Dr. Geller testified that the cause of
Destinee’s death was a combination of blunt force trauma injuries and a
catastrophic lack of oxygen to the brain2 causing brain injury and the slow death
of brain cells. Tr. p. 72. Signs of severe anoxic brain injury include an altered
2
Dr. Geller and the treating physician referred to the lack of oxygen to the brain using multiple terms,
including “anoxic brain injury,” “diffuse global anoxic injury of the brain,” “diffuse severe anoxic brain
injury,” “second anoxic diffuse brain injury,” and “global hypoxia.” Tr. p. 12, 67-72.
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mental state, changes in body temperature, and limpness of the body. The
treating emergency room physician testified that Destinee’s condition when she
was brought to the hospital was consistent with global hypoxia as a cause of
death.
[5] After law enforcement received the autopsy results, they brought Massey into
police headquarters for another interview. Massey relayed a different version of
events during this interview. She stated that she had been potty training
Destinee but that Destinee continued to have accidents. When Destinee
urinated in a location other than the bathroom, Massey would spank and strike
her with belts, books, magazines, and newspapers. Massey struck Destinee
with a pan on one occasion, and struck her in the vagina with a belt on another
occasion. Massey stated that the night before Destinee’s death, Destinee
urinated on the floor after dinner. Massey grabbed Destinee by the face,
squeezed it, and dragged Destinee into the bathroom by her face, striking the
toddler repeatedly as she dragged her along the floor. Massey gave Destinee a
bath and put her to bed. Destinee was still crying. Massey left the room but
came back later to tell Destinee to stop crying. Destinee was on her back in
bed, and Massey turned her over so that she was face down. Massey held
Destinee’s arms in such a way that it caused Destinee’s face to press into the
bed and inhibited her ability to breathe. Destinee eventually stopped crying.
Massey stated that she pressed Destinee’s face into the mattress because the
toddler was crying and Massey was tired of listening to it.
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[6] On December 2, 2013, the State charged Massey with murder, class A felony
battery, and class A felony neglect of a dependent. Massey waived a jury trial,
and her bench trial took place on January 9, 2015. On January 14, 2015, the
trial court found Massey guilty as charged. At the February 6, 2015, sentencing
hearing, the trial court entered judgment on the murder conviction and vacated
the other two convictions on double jeopardy grounds. The trial court
sentenced Massey to sixty years imprisonment with four years suspended to
probation. Massey now appeals.
Discussion and Decision
[7] Massey’s sole argument on appeal is that the evidence is insufficient to support
her conviction for murder. To convict Massey of murder, the State was
required to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that she knowingly killed
Destinee. I.C. § 35-42-1-1.
[8] When we review a challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence, we neither
reweigh the evidence nor assess witness credibility. McClellan v. State, 13
N.E.3d 546, 548 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014), trans. denied. Instead, we consider only
the probative evidence supporting the conviction and the reasonable inferences
that may be drawn therefrom. Id. If there is substantial evidence of probative
value from which a reasonable factfinder could have drawn the conclusion that
the defendant was guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, then the verdict will not be
disturbed. Id.
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[9] Massey contends that there is insufficient evidence proving that she acted
knowingly. A person “engages in conduct ‘knowingly’ if, when he engages in
the conduct, he is aware of a high probability that he is doing so.” Ind. Code §
35-41-2-2(b). It is well established that intent and knowledge may be proved
solely by circumstantial evidence and reasonable inferences drawn from the
facts and circumstances of each case. Heavrin v. State, 675 N.E.2d 1075, 1079
(Ind. 1996). One “is presumed to have intended the reasonable results of his or
her own acts.” Id.
[10] With respect to the crime of murder, to “knowingly” kill requires, at a
minimum, an awareness on the part of the defendant of a high probability that
death will result from his actions. Storey v. State, 552 N.E.2d 477, 483 (Ind.
1990). In evaluating the defendant’s intent, the trier of fact may consider the
nature of the attack, the circumstances surrounding the crime, the duration and
brutality of the defendant’s actions, and the relative strengths and sizes of the
defendant and victim. Williams v. State, 749 N.E.2d 1139, 1141 (Ind. 2001);
Childers v. State, 719 N.E.2d 1227, 1229 (Ind. 1999); Nunn v. State, 601 N.E.2d
334, 339 (Ind. 1992).
[11] In the case before us, at the time of her death, Destinee weighed approximately
twenty pounds and had just turned two years old. Massey was a fully grown
adult. Massey admitted that she became angry, grabbed Destinee by the face,
and dragged her down the hallway, striking the toddler as she dragged her. She
heard Destinee gasping as she squeezed the toddler’s face. An hour later,
Massey pushed Destinee’s face into her mattress to stop her from crying. It was
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reasonable for the trial court, acting as factfinder, to infer from these actions
that Massey was aware of a high probability that Destinee’s death would result
from her actions.3 Given the relative strength and sizes of Massey and
Destinee, as well as the duration and brutality of Massey’s actions, it was
reasonable to infer that Massey acted with the requisite intent to murder
Destinee. Massey’s arguments to the contrary amount to a request that we
reweigh the evidence—a request we decline. Consequently, we find the
evidence sufficient to support Massey’s murder conviction.
[12] The judgment of the trial court is affirmed.
Bailey, J., and Mathias, J., concur.
3
Massey argues that because the State was unable to discern and prove the precise injury that caused
Destinee’s death, it was unable to prove her state of mind at the time the fatal action occurred. We do not
believe the State is required to meet such a burden. The State proved that blunt force trauma and a
catastrophic lack of oxygen to the brain caused Destinee’s death, and it proved that Massey struck her child,
dragged her down the hall by her face, and then forcibly pushed her face into a mattress and held it there,
preventing her from breathing. It is reasonable to infer that Massey acted with the requisite intent throughout
the attacks of her child, regardless of which precise injury led to Destinee’s death.
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