Criminal Practice – Armed Robbery & Kidnapping – Acting in Concert

State v. James (Lawyers Weekly No. 13-07-0266, 15 pp.) (Donna S. Stroud, J.) Appealed from Guilford County Superior Court (Stuart Albright, J.) N.C. App.

Holding: Although it was defendant’s cousin who brandished the gun, defendant was not “merely present” for the kidnapping and robbery: Both men approached the victims’ car as defendant’s cousin forced a group of college students into the car at gunpoint; while police were chasing the car, defendant yelled at the driver to keep driving; defendant pushed one of the students to the floor of the backseat until his cousin told him to stop; and when the car eventually stopped, defendant fled from the police and took the purse of one of the students with him. The evidence supports a reasonable conclusion that defendant acted in concert with his cousin.

We find no error in defendant’s conviction of kidnapping and armed robbery. His claim of ineffective assistance is dismissed without prejudice.

Defendant contends there was no armed robbery of victim Jefferson because she dropped her purse when she got into the car and therefore did not have anything to turn over when defendant’s cousin ordered the students to give up their belongings. We disagree.

Ms. Jefferson dropped her purse in the car only after she was forced into the backseat at gunpoint. Defendant’s cousin ordered Ms. Jefferson to find the items they wanted, and she handed over the belongings of victims Herberg and Gallman.

There was no evidence that defendant directly took Ms. Jefferson’s purse from her person. When he was apprehended, however, the police discovered Ms. Jefferson’s purse in defendant’s pocket. The only logical inference from this evidence was that defendant took the purse and carried it away from the vehicle, which Ms. Jefferson was forced into at gunpoint. The kidnapping and the robbery were all part of one continuous transaction that began when defendant’s cousin pointed a gun at the students and continued through the removal of the students’ property from the car. Therefore, the temporal order of the threat or use of a dangerous weapon and the taking is immaterial. The evidence, taken in the light most favorable to the state, was sufficient to support a reasonable conclusion that defendant took Ms. Jefferson’s purse from her presence after his cousin threatened her with a firearm.