Ryan M. Richison v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)

MEMORANDUM DECISION
Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D),
this Memorandum Decision shall not be FILED
regarded as precedent or cited before any Jul 13 2020, 9:02 am
court except for the purpose of establishing
CLERK
the defense of res judicata, collateral Indiana Supreme Court
Court of Appeals
estoppel, or the law of the case. and Tax Court
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE
William T. Myers Curtis T. Hill, Jr.
Whitehurst & Myers Law Attorney General of Indiana
Marion, Indiana
Myriam Serrano
Deputy Attorney General
Indianapolis, Indiana
IN THE
COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
Ryan M. Richison, July 13, 2020
Appellant-Defendant, Court of Appeals Case No.
20A-CR-62
v. Appeal from the Huntington
Circuit Court
State of Indiana, The Honorable Davin G. Smith,
Appellee-Plaintiff. Judge
Trial Court Cause No.
35C01-1801-MR-2
Bailey, Judge.
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Case Summary
[1] Ryan Richison (“Richison”) challenges his aggregate twenty-seven-year
sentence for Voluntary Manslaughter,1 Residential Entry,2 and Criminal
Mischief.3 We affirm.
Issues
[2] Richison presents two issues for review:
I. Whether the trial court abused its discretion in the
determination of aggravating and mitigating
circumstances; and
II. Whether his sentence is inappropriate.
Facts and Procedural History
[3] Kali Swain (“Swain”) hosted a party at her Huntington, Indiana residence to
welcome the new year of 2018. Richison was one of about thirty guests. Soon
after Richison’s arrival at the party, another guest questioned him about his
dating life, and Richison “put his fist through a wall.” (Tr. Vol. V, pg. 33.)
Another guest, Kyle Randall (“Randall”), took Richison outside to the porch;
1
Ind. Code § 35-42-1-3.
2
I.C. § 35-43-2-1.5.
3
I.C. § 35-43-1-2.
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they conversed for a while and Richison calmed down. Eventually, the two
men hugged and returned to the party.
[4] Later, the subject of race relations was raised and Richison again became
agitated. Randall again tried to calm Richison, but “it didn’t work.” (Id. at
Vol. IV, pg. 76.) Randall urged Richison to “go outside and talk about this like
grown men,” but Richison refused. (Id. at Vol. 5, pg. 65.) The situation
deteriorated until Randall’s girlfriend, Katherine Mills (“Mills”), believed that
“both wanted to fight each other.” (Id. at 77.) Mills left the kitchen to retrieve
Randall’s belongings so that they could leave. When she returned, she saw that
Randall had a profusely bleeding wound to his neck. The men scuffled over a
knife before party guests were able to separate them. Randall lifted his shirt to
display two abdominal wounds and said, “he stabbed me.” (Id. at Vol. 4, pg.
80.) Randall then slid to the floor, unconscious.
[5] Swain and Mills called 9-1-1 but Randall died within minutes, having suffered a
stab wound to his heart. Richison ran to the nearby residence of Gregory
Hamilton (“Hamilton”), where he broke out a garage window to gain entry and
hide inside. Hamilton confronted Richison and called police. Richison was
arrested and charged with Murder, and the State later added charges of
Residential Entry and Criminal Mischief.
[6] Richison was brought to trial before a jury on August 19, 2019. On August 23,
the jury convicted Richison of Voluntary Manslaughter, Residential Entry, and
Criminal Mischief. On December 13, 2019, the trial court entered an Amended
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Sentencing Order, imposing upon Richison a term of twenty-five years
imprisonment (with five years suspended) for Voluntary Manslaughter, a
consecutive term of two years (with one year suspended) for Residential Entry,
and a concurrent term of 180 days for Criminal Mischief. Richison now
appeals.
Discussion and Decision
Abuse of Discretion
[7] Upon his conviction of Voluntary Manslaughter, a Level 2 felony, Richison
faced a sentence of between ten and thirty years, with seventeen and one-half
years as the advisory sentence. Ind. Code § 35-50-2-4.5. Upon his conviction
of Residential Entry, a Level 6 felony, he faced a sentence of between six
months and two and one-half years, with one year as the advisory sentence.
I.C. § 35-50-2-7(b). Upon conviction of Criminal Mischief, a Class B
misdemeanor, he faced a sentence of not more than 180 days. I.C. § 35-50-3-3.
Richison’s sentence of twenty-five years for Voluntary Manslaughter exceeded
the advisory sentence by seven and one-half years, but five years were
suspended to probation. His sentence of two years for Residential Entry
exceeded the advisory sentence by one year, but that year was suspended to
probation. In sentencing Richison, the trial court found Richison’s criminal
history and failure to benefit from court-ordered services as aggravators and
found his potential to become a productive member of society in the future (as
evidenced by his past hard work) to be a mitigating circumstance.
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[8] Sentencing is principally a discretionary function in which the trial court’s
judgment should receive considerable deference. Cardwell v. State, 895 N.E.2d
1219, 1222 (Ind. 2008). Accordingly, “[a] trial court’s sentencing order will be
reviewed for an abuse of discretion.” Rice v. State, 6 N.E.3d 940, 943 (Ind.
2014). The Indiana Supreme Court has held that an abuse of discretion occurs
in four ways, where the trial court: (1) fails to enter a sentencing statement; (2)
cites an aggravating or mitigating factor that is not supported by the record; (3)
fails to cite factors that are clearly supported by the record; and (4) relies on
reasons that are improper as a matter of law. Anglemyer v. State, 868 N.E.2d
482, 490-91 (Ind. 2007), clarified on reh’g, 875 N.E.2d 218 (Ind. 2007). Richison
argues that the trial court abused its sentencing discretion by considering his
history of misdemeanor offenses and failing to consider his remorse and
hardship to his minor child, previously in Richison’s primary physical custody.
[9] The trial court’s consideration of Richison’s criminal history is supported by the
record. Richison provides no authority suggesting that a trial court is precluded
from considering misdemeanor convictions. Rather, he argues that remote
misdemeanor offenses should not be heavily weighed in the sentencing process.
We cannot provide Richison relief upon this argument. “While we review the
aggravating and mitigating factors considered by the trial court for abuse of
discretion, we do not review the relative weight or value assigned to each
factor.” Deloney v. State, 938 N.E.2d 724, 732 (Ind. Ct. App. 2010), trans. denied.
[10] An allegation that the trial court failed to identify a particular mitigating factor
requires the defendant to establish that the mitigating evidence is both
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significant and clearly supported by the record. Wells v. State, 836 N.E.2d 475,
479 (Ind. Ct. App. 2005). Here, Richison asked the trial court to impose a
sentence less than the advisory sentence, arguing that alcohol had been
involved, the circumstances were unlikely to reoccur, there was strong
provocation, and his criminal history was minor. He did not advance for
consideration at the sentencing hearing his role as a single parent, undue
hardship to his child, or an expression of remorse. Thus, the trial court cannot
be said to have abused its discretion by omitting consideration of these alleged
factors.
Inappropriateness
[11] Article 7, Sections 4 and 6 of the Indiana Constitution authorize independent
appellate review and revision of a sentence imposed by a trial court. See, e.g.,
Sanders v. State, 71 N.E.3d 839, 843 (Ind. Ct. App. 2017), trans. denied. This
appellate authority is embodied in Indiana Appellate Rule 7(B). Id. Under
7(B), the appellant must demonstrate that his sentence is inappropriate in light
of the nature of his offense and his character. Id. (citing Ind. Appellate Rule
7(B)). In these instances, deference to the trial courts “should prevail unless
overcome by compelling evidence portraying in a positive light the nature of the
offense (such as accompanied by restraint, regard, and lack of brutality) and the
defendant’s character (such as substantial virtuous traits or persistent examples
of good character).” Stephenson v. State, 29 N.E.3d 111, 122 (Ind. 2015).
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[12] The Indiana Supreme Court has explained that the principal role of appellate
review is an attempt to leaven the outliers, “not to achieve a perceived ‘correct’
result in each case.” Cardwell, 895 N.E.2d at 1225. The question is not whether
another sentence is more appropriate, but whether the sentence imposed is
inappropriate. King v. State, 894 N.E.2d 265, 268 (Ind. Ct. App. 2008).
[13] Here, the nature of the primary offense is that Richison inflicted multiple stab
wounds upon a friend who had repeatedly tried to reason with Richison and
dissuade him from his anger. The violence was committed in the vicinity of
several traumatized partygoers. Thereafter, Richison did not seek medical
attention for the victim, but fled. He then awakened Hamilton during the early
morning hours by breaking into Hamilton’s garage. There is nothing in the
circumstances of these crimes that militates toward a lesser sentence than that
imposed.
[14] As to Richison’s character, he failed to benefit from prior leniency and
rehabilitative efforts. True, his criminal history consists of only two
misdemeanor offenses. But the first of those convictions, for criminal mischief,
involved Richison’s extreme expression of anger against relatives. He used a
baseball bat to break into his mother’s house and he also vandalized his sister’s
vehicle, while threatening to kill both of them. Unpersuaded to control his
behavior, Richison then violated an order of protection. This resulted in his
conviction for Invasion of Privacy. Although he had no history of juvenile
adjudications, Richison had, at age sixteen, been ordered to refrain from
contact with his mother. The police officer who had responded to the property
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damage report expressed the fear that Richison was so volatile, he would likely
kill someday. Sadly, although Richison received counseling services, his
destructive behavior escalated. In sum, Richison’s character has not been
portrayed in a positive light.
Conclusion
[15] Richison has not demonstrated an abuse of the trial court’s sentencing
discretion. His sentence is not inappropriate.
[16] Affirmed.
Crone, J., and Altice, J., concur.
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