People v. Murphy

1

PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. SUSANNE MARIE MURPHY, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 359830

Court of Appeals of Michigan

July 20, 2023

UNPUBLISHED

Macomb Circuit Court LC No. 2018-000270-FH

Before: GADOLA, P.J., and MURRAY and MALDONADO, JJ.

PER CURIAM.

Defendant appeals as of right her bench trial conviction for assault with a dangerous weapon, MCL 750.82 ("felonious assault"). Defendant was sentenced to 270 days in jail for the felonious assault conviction. We affirm.

This case arises out of the assault of the victim, Alexandria Glidewell, with a knife by defendant following a verbal altercation during a party. The victim attended a party at the home of Joseph Brazowski in Eastpointe. When the victim and her boyfriend first arrived at approximately 8:00 p.m Joseph, defendant, and two additional men were present. Approximately an hour into the party, a verbal altercation ensued between defendant and the victim; the victim was positioned inside the screened porch of the residence, while defendant was located just outside of the screened porch in the front yard.

The victim went to the screened porch because she wanted to retrieve her iced tea, and after spotting defendant, the victim accused defendant of having sex in the bathroom with one of the men attending the party. Both parties were alone at the time, and defendant and the victim had not met prior to this incident. The victim testified that "[defendant] called me a b***h and then I called her a wh**e. She called me a c**t and that's when I called her a homey hopper and that's when she had pulled out the knife." Following the exchange of derogatory language, defendant proceeded to pull out a knife from her coat pocket, which the victim described as "kind of like fast. It was in her pocket her, she put her hand in her pocket while we were exchanging the words, and it was like, I don't know, she just like flung it out of her hand."

The victim initially testified that she was approximately three inches from the porch screen, and the knife was two inches away from the victim. However, the victim later asserted that there was a span of two feet between each party and the porch screen. Defendant did not approach the victim with the knife instead, defendant was standing with the knife in her hand directed towards the victim, but the knife did not touch the screen. The victim was particularly concerned at the possibility of being stabbed because the knife was positioned near her stomach, and the victim was 10 weeks pregnant. The victim "freaked out and [she] ran inside the house to tell [her] boyfriend at the time[,]" because she was afraid she "was gonna lose her child if [defendant] actually stabbed [her]."

After the victim informed Joseph of what transpired, Joseph purportedly ordered defendant to leave the house. Five to 10 minutes later, the victim proceeded to step outside to look for the police, who had been contacted. As the victim was walking down the steps of the residence, she observed defendant next to her, and defendant subsequently grabbed the victim by her hair. The two then "tumbled around" for a few minutes until the officers arrived. The officers subsequently arrested defendant.

The sole issue on appeal is whether defendant's conviction should be vacated because there was insufficient evidence to establish an assault, an essential element of a felonious assault conviction.

We review de novo defendant's challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence, People v Byczek, 337 Mich.App. 173 182; 976 N.W.2d 7 (2021), considering the evidence in a light most favorable to the prosecution to discern whether any trier of fact could find the essential elements of the crime were proven beyond a reasonable doubt. People v Robinson, 475 Mich. 1, 5; 715 N.W.2d 44 (2006). "Circumstantial evidence and reasonable inferences arising therefrom may constitute proof of the elements of the crime." People v Head, 323 Mich.App. 526, 532; 917 N.W.2d 752 (2018) (quotation marks and citation omitted). "With regard to an actor's intent, because of the difficulties inherent in proving an actor's state of mind, minimal circumstantial evidence is sufficient." People v McKewen, 326 Mich.App. 342, 347 n 1; 926 N.W.2d 888 (2018) (quotation marks and citation omitted).

The crime of felonious assault is addressed in MCL 750.82, which provides, in pertinent part, that "a person who assaults another person with a . . . knife, . . . or other dangerous weapon without intending to commit murder or to inflict great bodily harm less than murder is guilty of a felony ...." The elements of a felonious assault are" '(1) an assault, (2) with a dangerous weapon, and (3) with the intent to injure or place the victim in reasonable apprehension of an immediate battery.'" People v Nix, 301 Mich.App. 195, 205; 836 N.W.2d 224 (2013), quoting People v Avant, 235 Mich.App. 499, 505; 597 N.W.2d 864 (1999). "An assault may be established by showing either an attempt to commit a battery or an unlawful act that places another in reasonable apprehension of receiving an immediate battery." People v Starks, 473 Mich. 227, 234 701 N.W.2d 136 (2005). Battery has been defined as "an intentional, unconsented and harmful or offensive touching of the person of another, or of something closely connected with the person." Id. (...