Dontai Antwan Maurice Green v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)

MEMORANDUM DECISION
Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D),
this Memorandum Decision shall not be
regarded as precedent or cited before any
FILED
court except for the purpose of establishing Oct 10 2017, 10:19 am
the defense of res judicata, collateral CLERK
Indiana Supreme Court
estoppel, or the law of the case. Court of Appeals
and Tax Court
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE
Kristin A. Mulholland Curtis T. Hill, Jr.
Crown Point, Indiana Attorney General of Indiana
Jesse R. Drum
Deputy Attorney General
Indianapolis, Indiana
IN THE
COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
Dontai Antwan Maurice Green, October 10, 2017
Appellant-Defendant, Court of Appeals Case No.
45A03-1705-CR-1114
v. Appeal from the Lake Superior
Court
State of Indiana, The Honorable Diane Ross
Appellee-Plaintiff. Boswell, Judge
Trial Court Cause No.
45G03-1608-F3-24
Bailey, Judge.
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Case Summary
[1] Dontai Antwan Maurice Green (“Green”) pleaded guilty to Robbery, as a Class
5 felony,1 and was sentenced to two years of imprisonment in the Indiana
Department of Correction. Green now seeks appellate revision of his sentence.
[2] We affirm.
Facts and Procedural History
[3] Green used to work at a Dollar Tree store in Merrillville, and was familiar with
the store’s closing procedures. On August 3, 2016, Green and two passengers—
Tre Vion Conell Carlisle (“Carlisle”) and Dejontaye Desmond Latraze Moore
(“Moore”)—drove to the Dollar Tree parking lot, where they waited for store
employees to close the store and walk out with a deposit bag. After watching
two employees lock the doors and begin walking to their vehicles, Green stayed
behind while Carlisle and Moore approached the employees and demanded the
deposit bag. At some point during the encounter, an employee was sprayed in
the face with pepper spray. Carlisle and Moore obtained the deposit bag,
returned to Green’s vehicle, and Green drove them away.
1
Ind. Code § 35-42-5-1.
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[4] The State initially charged Green with Armed Robbery, as a Level 3 felony, 2
and Battery by Means of a Deadly Weapon, as a Level 5 felony. 3 Green and
the State subsequently entered into a plea agreement whereby the State would
add a count of Robbery, as a Level 5 felony, to which Green would plead
guilty, and the State would later move to dismiss the remaining counts. The
agreement further provided that Green would face a maximum-possible
sentence of three years.
[5] The trial court accepted the agreement, and Green pleaded guilty to Robbery,
as a Level 5 felony. A sentencing hearing was held, at the conclusion of which
the trial court imposed a two-year sentence and dismissed the remaining counts.
The sentence was to be served in Lake County Community Corrections with
initial placement in the Kimbrough Work Program.
[6] This appeal ensued.
Discussion and Decision
[7] Pursuant to Indiana Appellate Rule 7(B), we “may revise a sentence authorized
by statute if, after due consideration of the trial court’s decision,” we “find[]
that the sentence is inappropriate in light of the nature of the offense and the
character of the offender.” The “principal role” of our review is “to attempt to
2
I.C. § 35-42-5-1.
3
I.C. §§ 35-42-2-1(c)(1), -1(g)(2).
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leaven the outliers, . . . but not to achieve a perceived ‘correct’ result in each
case.” Cardwell v. State, 895 N.E.2d 1219, 1225 (Ind. 2008). Ultimately, it is the
defendant’s burden to persuade us that his sentence is inappropriate. Childress v.
State, 848 N.E.2d 1073, 1080 (Ind. 2006).
[8] “[T]he advisory sentence is the starting point the Legislature has selected as an
appropriate sentence for the crime committed.” Anglemyer v. State, 868 N.E.2d
482, 494 (Ind. 2007), clarified on reh’g, 875 N.E.2d 218. Here, Green pleaded
guilty to a Level 5 felony, for which our legislature has selected a sentencing
range of one year to six years, with an advisory sentence of three years, see I.C.
§ 35-50-2-6; thus, Green’s two-year sentence is less than the advisory sentence.
As to the nature of the offense, Green argues that his sentence warrants revision
because “it was Carlisle and Moore who actually approached the employees
and used the pepper-spray” whereas Green only “did the driving.” Appellant’s
Br. at 9. However, we are not persuaded by Green’s arguments in this regard.
As the State notes, “there would have been no robbery without Green,”
Appellee’s Br. at 7, who admitted to planning the robbery because he needed
the money, knew about the Dollar Tree’s closing procedures, and drove his
accomplices to and from the store.
[9] As to the character of the offender, Green argues that he was fairly young—
twenty years old—at the time of the offense, that he lacked a criminal record,
and that his decision to plead guilty reflects an acceptance of responsibility for
his crime. Yet, Green was an adult who consciously planned to steal from his
former employer, and he used his knowledge to conspire with Carlisle and
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Moore. Moreover, Green tried to remove his GPS ankle bracelet while on
home monitoring, which does not reflect well on his character. Further,
although Green accepted responsibility for his crime and thereby benefitted the
State and the victims by eliminating the need for a trial, Green also received a
substantial benefit by entering the plea agreement, which provided for a
maximum-possible sentence of only three years.
[10] Green has not persuaded us that his two-year sentence is inappropriate.
Conclusion
[11] The trial court did not impose an inappropriate sentence.
[12] Affirmed.
Baker, J., and Altice, J., concur.
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