Jamie E. Green v. State of Indiana ( 2012 )


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  • Pursuant to Ind.Appellate Rule 65(D), this
    Memorandum Decision shall not be
    regarded as precedent or cited before any
    FILED
    Apr 17 2012, 9:09 am
    court except for the purpose of
    establishing the defense of res judicata,                          CLERK
    collateral estoppel, or the law of the case.                     of the supreme court,
    court of appeals and
    tax court
    ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT:                         ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE:
    BARBARA J. SIMMONS                              GREGORY F. ZOELLER
    Oldenburg, Indiana                              Attorney General of Indiana
    ANDREW R. FALK
    Deputy Attorney General
    Indianapolis, Indiana
    IN THE
    COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
    JAMIE E. GREEN,                                 )
    )
    Appellant-Defendant,                     )
    )
    vs.                               )      No. 49A05-1106-CR-316
    )
    STATE OF INDIANA,                               )
    )
    Appellee-Plaintiff.                      )
    APPEAL FROM THE MARION SUPERIOR COURT
    The Honorable Rebekah F. Pierson-Treacy, Judge
    The Honorable Shatrese Flowers, Commissioner
    Cause No. 49F19-1103-CM-14302
    April 17, 2012
    MEMORANDUM DECISION – NOT FOR PUBLICATION
    RILEY, Judge
    STATEMENT OF THE CASE
    Appellant-Defendant, Jamie Green (Green), appeals his conviction for disorderly
    conduct, a Class B misdemeanor, 
    Ind. Code § 35-45-1-3
    .
    We affirm.
    ISSUES
    Green raises two issues on appeal, which we restate as follows:
    (1) Whether the State presented sufficient evidence to support Green’s conviction
    beyond a reasonable doubt; and
    (2) Whether Green’s disorderly conduct conviction violates Article 1, Section 9 of
    the Indiana Constitution.
    FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY
    On March 2, 2011, Green and his friends went to the Brass Flamingo, a bar in
    Marion County, Indiana. They arrived close to the end of the cover charge period. Green
    and his friends attempted to enter the Brass Flamingo without paying the cover charge,
    but left the bar after the bouncer refused to let them in. Subsequently, Green and his
    friends returned and tried again to enter the Brass Flamingo without paying the cover
    charge. The bouncer then pushed Green out the door of the Brass Flamingo and pinned
    him against a car near the entrance.
    During the confrontation between Green and the bouncer, Officer Scott Yaden
    (Officer Yaden), a police officer with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department,
    arrived at the scene. Officer Yaden did not immediately step into the confrontation, but
    took the time to observe and assess the situation. Officer Yaden observed that the
    bouncer had already pinned Green down and was repeatedly telling Green to calm down
    and leave. Officer Yaden noticed that Green was “combative” and “argumentative.”
    (Transcript p. 13).   He could also smell “the strong odor of an alcoholic beverage”
    emanating from Green. (Tr. p. 14).       When observing that Green did not leave as
    instructed, Officer Yaden stepped in and told Green to leave. However, Green did not
    comply and started arguing with the staff of the Brass Flamingo instead. About this time
    Officer Yaden saw that a crowd was gathering. After Green continued arguing with the
    staff of the Brass Flamingo, Officer Yaden told Green that he had “had [his] chance,”
    arrested Green, and sat him down on the curb. (Tr. pp. 16-17).
    Although Green was initially quiet after being arrested, he then “began to get
    loud” and questioned “why he was being placed under arrest.” (Tr. p. 17). Officer Yaden
    responded that he was arrested for public intoxication. Green’s friends kept coming out
    of the Brass Flamingo, “pretty much enticing [Green].” (Tr. p. 17). Green became
    “louder and louder” and cursed at a volume “loud enough [to be heard] a block away.”
    (Tr. p. 18). Officer Yaden instructed Green several times to be quiet, but Green did not
    obey. Green’s yelling drew around “forty to fifty people” to the scene, forcing the staff
    of the Brass Flamingo to “escort people in and out to their vehicles” in order to break up
    the crowd. (Tr. pp. 18, 25-26).
    On March 2, 2011, the State filed an Information charging Green with disorderly
    conduct, a Class B misdemeanor, 
    Ind. Code § 35-45-1-3
    . On June 9, 2011, the trial court
    conducted a bench trial. The trial court found Green guilty as charged and sentenced him
    to 180 days, with 2 days credit and 178 days suspended. The trial court also ordered
    Green to perform 32 hours of community service at a not-for-profit organization.
    Green now appeals. Additional facts will be provided as necessary.
    DISCUSSION AND DECISION
    I. Sufficiency of the Evidence
    On appeal, Green challenges the sufficiency of the evidence to support his
    disorderly conduct conviction. In reviewing the sufficiency of the evidence needed to
    support a criminal conviction, we consider only the probative evidence and reasonable
    inferences supporting the decision. Turner v. State, 
    953 N.E.2d 1039
    , 1059 (Ind. 2011)
    (quoting Whedon v. State, 
    765 N.E.2d 1276
    , 1277 (Ind. 2002)). We neither reweigh the
    evidence nor judge witness credibility. Bailey v. State, 
    907 N.E.2d 1003
    , 1005 (Ind.
    2009).     On a challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence, the evidence needs not
    overcome every reasonable hypothesis of innocence. Pogue v. State, 
    937 N.E.2d 1253
    ,
    1256 (Ind. Ct. App. 2011), trans. denied. The evidence is sufficient if an inference may
    reasonably be drawn from it to support the conviction. Drane v. State, 
    867 N.E.2d 144
    ,
    147 (Ind. 2007). When confronted with conflicting evidence, we consider it in a light
    most favorable to the trial court’s ruling. 
    Id. at 146
    . We will affirm a conviction unless
    “no reasonable fact-finder could find the elements of the crime proven beyond a
    reasonable doubt.” 
    Id.
     (quoting Jenkins v. State, 
    726 N.E.2d 268
    , 270 (Ind. 2000)).
    Green maintains that the facts of his case do not fit the elements of disorderly
    conduct as charged. In particular, Green argues that he did not create any unreasonable
    noise during his encounter with Officer Yaden. Indiana Code § 35-45-1-3 provides, in
    pertinent part, that “[a] person who recklessly, knowingly, or intentionally: (1) engages
    in fighting or in tumultuous conduct; [or] (2) makes unreasonable noise and continues to
    do so after being asked to stop … commits disorderly conduct, a Class B misdemeanor.”1
    Under the Indiana disorderly conduct statute, the purpose of criminalizing
    “unreasonable noise” is to prevent “the harm which flows from the volume of the
    expression.” Price v. State, 
    622 N.E.2d 954
    , 966 (Ind. 1993). The statute specifically
    prohibits “context-inappropriate volume.” Whittington v. State, 
    669 N.E.2d 1363
    , 1367
    (Ind. 1996).     Accordingly, to sustain a disorderly conduct conviction for making
    unreasonable noise, the State must prove that the sound produced by a defendant is too
    loud for the circumstances. 
    Id.
    Expression with an excessive volume can be found unreasonable when it agitates
    others at the scene, interferes with law enforcement operations, or is quite annoying to all
    present.   Id.; J.D. v. State, 
    859 N.E.2d 341
    , 344 (Ind. 2007).                In Whittington, the
    defendant cursed and yelled with a volume that could be heard from one room to another
    during an encounter with law enforcement, and he persisted in a “very loud and angry
    manner” after the police asked him to be quiet. Whittington, 669 N.E.2d at 1366. The
    Whittington court affirmed the defendant’s disorderly conduct conviction because his
    loud speaking agitated others nearby, disrupted police investigations, made coordination
    of investigations difficult, and was very annoying to those present at the scene. Id. at
    1367, 1371. Likewise, in J.D., the defendant persistently yelled at an eardrum breaking
    1
    On appeal, the State conceded that only the unreasonable noise element is applicable and accordingly
    argued that Green only committed disorderly conduct by making unreasonable noise (Appellee Br. p. 7).
    volume when encountering the police and persisted to do so after the police threatened
    him with arrest. J.D., 859 N.E.2d at 343. The J.D. court rejected the defendant’s
    challenge of insufficient evidence as her yells interfered with a policeman’s function as a
    law enforcement officer. Id. at 344.
    Green’s yelling at high volume sufficiently supports his conviction. The facts in
    the present case are akin to those in Whittington and J.D.            Green’s yelling was
    unreasonably loud because it could be heard “a block away.” (Tr. p. 18).         Although
    Green was initially loud, he became even worse when his friends started to incite him,
    resulting in a gathering of “forty to fifty people.” (Tr. pp. 18, 25). Though Officer Yaden
    asked Green to stop and be quiet several times, Green did not comply. The crowd drawn
    by Green’s yelling forced the staff of the Brass Flamingo to “escort people in and out to
    their vehicles so that they weren’t standing there.” (Tr. 26). Based on these facts, a
    reasonable inference can be made that Green disrupted law enforcement operations and
    annoyed the Brass Flamingo’s patrons. Thus, we find that the State presented sufficient
    evidence beyond a reasonable doubt to support Green’s conviction.
    II. Article 1, Section 9 of the Indiana Constitution
    Next, Green argues that his disorderly conduct conviction violates the Indiana
    Constitution because his expression was protected political speech. Article 1, Section 9
    of the Indiana Constitution mandates:
    No law shall be passed, restraining the free interchange of thought and
    opinion, or restricting the right to speak, write, or print, freely, on any
    subject whatever: but for the abuse of that right, every person shall be
    responsible.
    Since one’s expressive activity may be political speech protected under the
    Indiana Constitution’s free speech provision, an application of the Indiana disorderly
    conduct statute must pass constitutional scrutiny. See Price, 622 N.E.2d at 961. In
    Indiana, we employ a two-step analysis in reviewing the constitutionality of an
    application of the Indiana disorderly conduct statute. Whittington, 669 N.E.2d at 1367.
    Pursuant to this two-step analysis, we need to decide (1) “whether [a] state action has
    restricted a [defendant’s] expressive activity” and (2) “whether the restricted activity
    constitute[s] an ‘abuse’ of the right to [free speech].” Id.
    A. Restrictions on Expressive Activity
    Under the first prong of the analysis, a defendant must establish that “the state
    action has, in the concrete circumstances of the case, restricted his or her opportunity to
    engage in expressive activity.” Id. This prong may be satisfied when a defendant has
    been convicted of disorderly conduct based on his loud expression during an encounter
    with law enforcement. Id. at 1370. Green was convicted of disorderly conduct for
    yelling with an inappropriate volume and for persisting to do so after being asked to stop.
    Thus, Green has established that the State has restricted his opportunity to engage in
    expressive activity.
    B. Political Expression
    If, as here, the State action has restricted one’s expressive activity, we then must
    decide whether the restricted activity constituted an “abuse” of the right to free speech.
    See U.M. v. State, 
    827 N.E.2d 1190
    , 1192 (Ind. Ct. App. 2005). In the ordinary case, we
    only have to find that the State’s determination of an “abuse” to be rational. See 
    id.
    However, if a defendant is able to show that his expressive activity was “political,” the
    State must demonstrate that it did not “materially burden” the defendant’s opportunity to
    engage in political expression.     
    Id.
       The State does not materially burden political
    expression if the restricted speech “inflicted particularized harm analogous to tortuous
    injury on readily identifiable private interests.” 
    Id.
     “Evidence of mere annoyance or
    inconvenience is not sufficient” to justify restricting political speech. 
    Id.
    In determining whether expressive activity is political expression, we review the
    nature of the expression under an objective standard without speculating what the speaker
    might have meant. Whittington, 669 N.E.2d at 1370. The defendant bears the burden of
    demonstrating that his expression was political. Id.
    Expressive activity constitutes political expression “if its aim is to comment on
    government action, including criticism of an official acting under color of law.”
    Blackman v. State, 
    868 N.E.2d 579
    , 585 (Ind. Ct. App. 2007), trans. denied. On the other
    hand, expressive activity is not political expression when the expressive activity focuses
    on the conduct of private individuals, including on the speaker himself or herself.
    Whittington, 669 N.E.2d at 1370. A mixture of political expression and non-political
    expression renders the expressive activity ambiguous. Blackman, 
    868 N.E.2d at 585-86
    .
    If expressive activity is ambiguous in context, we will find that it does not constitute
    political speech and will review the constitutionality of the state-imposed restriction
    under the rationality standard. Whittington, 669 N.E.2d at 1370.
    In Blackman, the defendant’s expressive activity encompassed two parts: (1) her
    shouted curses at a police officer during a pat-down search, her continued shouting after
    the search was over, her refusal to leave the scene despite the officer telling her to do so
    several times, and (2) her assertion of her right to be where she was. Blackman, 
    868 N.E.2d at 585-86
    . The defendant’s former expressions were considered “political in
    nature” as they were directed to the legality and appropriateness of government actions
    under color of law. 
    Id.
     However, we found that the defendant’s assertion of her right to
    be where she was an expression focusing on her own conduct and was therefore not
    political in nature. 
    Id. at 586
    . We considered the expressions of the defendant as a whole
    and concluded that the defendant’s expressive activity was ambiguous as to whether the
    defendant was commenting on her own conduct or that of the police. 
    Id.
    Green’s yelling was akin to the defendant’s ambiguous expressions in Blackman
    because Green’s expressive activity included not only comments on an official acting
    under color of law, but also expressions involving the conduct of private individuals.
    Specifically, Green’s comments concerning his arrest, which he questioned as “why he
    was being placed under arrest,” were political expressions because they were comments
    on Officer Yaden’s actions. (Tr. p. 17). However, we cannot consider Green’s loud
    yelling in response to his friends as political expression because a reasonable inference
    can be made that such expressive activity focused on the conduct of private individuals.
    When taking all of Green’s abovementioned expressions as a whole, we find that Green’s
    expressive activity was ambiguous.
    Having concluded that Green’s speech was not a political expression, we evaluate
    constitutionality of his disorderly conduct conviction “under standard rationality review.”
    Whittington, 669 N.E.2d at 1370. A disorderly conduct conviction that does not involve
    political speech is constitutional if it is reasonable to conclude that the defendant’s
    expressive activity “was an ‘abuse’ of the right to speak or was, in other words, a threat
    to peace, safety, and well-being.” Id. at 1371.
    Here, Green’s expressive activity certainly met this standard.        Green’s high
    volume while yelling drew a gathering of “forty to fifty” people watching outside of the
    Brass Flamingo. (Tr. pp. 18, 24-25). The gathering was significant enough to force the
    staff of the Brass Flamingo to “escort people in and out to their vehicles.” (Tr. p. 26). A
    reasonably inference can be made that Green’s expressive activity posed a threat to
    peace, safety, and well-being. Therefore, Green’s conviction does not violate his free
    speech rights protected under Article 1, Section 9 of the Indiana Constitution.
    CONCLUSION
    Based on the foregoing, we conclude that (1) the State presented sufficient
    evidence to support Green’s disorderly conduct conviction beyond a reasonable doubt,
    and (2) Green’s conviction does not violate Article 1, Section 9 of the Indiana
    Constitution.
    Affirmed.
    FRIEDLANDER, J. and MATHIAS, J. concur
    

Document Info

Docket Number: 49A05-1106-CR-316

Filed Date: 4/17/2012

Precedential Status: Non-Precedential

Modified Date: 4/17/2021