The Akron Legal News

Attempt to steal mower is enough for robbery conviction

JESSICA SHAMBAUGH
Special to the Legal News
Published: June 14, 2012

The 10th District Court of Appeals recently affirmed a man’s robbery conviction based on his attempt to steal his employer’s lawn mower and his use of a gun to break the windows in his employer’s vehicle.

A three-judge appellate panel held that testimony from an alleged victim, a witness and responding officers was enough to support Allesta Brewley’s conviction of trying to steal lawn care equipment after being fired in the middle of a job.

“Therefore, his conviction for robbery, although not likely characterized as a traditional, run-of-the-mill robbery, such as a hold up at a convenience store or a purse-snatching at gun point, is nevertheless supported by sufficient evidence and is not against the manifest weight of the evidence,” 10th District Judge John Connor wrote for the court.

Case summary states that Brewley was mowing a yard on Karl Road as part of his job when his employer, Cherone Hood, arrived to check on the progress of the work.

Hood testified that he saw Brewley mishandling the equipment and that Brewley stopped working and told him the mower was broken. Hood fired Brewley and said he would finish the work himself.

According to testimony from Hood and his son, who was working with Brewley, Brewley was upset and stated that he needed to be paid for work he had previously completed. When Hood told Brewley he would be paid at a later date, Brewley attempted to take the lawn mower.

Brewley and Hood “tussled” over the lawn mower and eventually began fighting over a weed trimmer.

Brewley stopped fighting, went to his car where he pulled out a .40 caliber handgun and pointed it toward Hood, according to the summary.

Hood and his son fled the scene and heard “popping sounds” as they ran.

After calling the police, Hood returned to the scene and found three broken windows and blood on his Lincoln Navigator. He also found live bullets and parts of a gun clip inside the vehicle. Brewley was no longer there.

Brewley was arrested and admitted in an interview that he had been fired and had tried to take a lawn mower as payment. He also admitted that he had injured his hands breaking the windows in the Navigator, but denied using the gun to do so.

The interviewing officer testified the evidence was consistent with Brewley using the butt of the gun to break the windows because the bottom of the clip was found broken off in the Navigator.

The Franklin County Court of Common Pleas found Brewley guilty of robbery with a gun specification and sentenced him to four years in prison.

On appeal to the 10th District, Brewley contended there was insufficient evidence to support the conviction and that the conviction was against the manifest weight of the evidence because he abandoned his effort to steal the lawn mower and he only used the gun as a criminal tool.

The appellate panel found this argument unconvincing. The judges held that “abandonment” required more than just leaving the scene without the lawn mower or weed trimmer. They also stated that Brewley had injured his hands when he broke the windows, which could have been the reason for leaving the equipment.

“A reasonable jury could have easily concluded appellant’s failure to complete the theft offenses by actually absconding with the property was the result of an involuntary cessation caused by his hand injury,” Connor stated.

The judges also found that a jury could have reasonably concluded that Brewley used the gun to further the commission of the robbery because it allowed him to flee.

Finding that the testimonies provided adequate support for the conviction, the judges affirmed the common pleas court ruling.

“Based upon the foregoing analysis, we find all of the essential elements of the crime have been demonstrated and the evidence is legally sufficient to support appellant’s conviction for robbery with a one-year firearm specification as a matter of law,” Connor stated.

“Accordingly, we overrule appellant’s first and second assignments of error. The judgment of the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas is affirmed.”

Fellow 10th District Judge Peggy Bryant and Presiding Judge Susan Brown joined Connor to form the majority.

The case is cited State v. Brewley, case No. 2012-Ohio-2525.

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