Burns v. State

GARRITY, Judge. This matter concerns the offense of harboring a fugitive. 1 We shall examine its elements and determine whether the evidence presented to the Circuit Court for Washington ²⁵⁴ County (Corderman, J.) was sufficient to sustain the conviction of the appellant, Angel M. Burns, who was sentenced to serve a period of one year imprisonment in the Washington County Detention Center. Facts According to Officer Gary Spielman of the Hagerstown Police Department, he received information from an anonymous caller that Tommy Joe Stoner, who was wanted on a charge of robbery, was at a certain apartment located on West Antietam Street. Upon confirming that a felony warrant for Stoner’s arrest was outstanding, 2 he and his partner proceeded to the residence and knocked on the door, which was opened by the appellant. 3 Thereafter, the following transpired: Office Spielman advised the appellant that he had a felony warrant for the arrest of Stoner.

In response to the officer’s questions regarding the whereabouts of Stoner, the appellant stated that Stoner was not in the apartment. The officer then related that harboring a fugitive was unlawful and a punishable offense. The appellant again responded that Stoner was not in the apartment. Thereupon, the officer asked the appellant if the police “could enter the apartment to take a look.” The appellant denied the request and demanded a search warrant.

Officer Carl E. Braum confirmed the testimony of his partner and further related that upon Officer Spielman’s departure to obtain a search warrant, he stationed himself in a stairwell near the apartment’s front door. A few minutes later, he observed Stoner and the appellant exit the apartment and he placed Stoner under arrest. ²⁵⁵ Discussion The standard for reviewing the sufficiency of evidence to support a criminal conviction is whether, after reviewing the evidence in a light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319 , 99 S.Ct. 2781, 2789 , 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979); Bloodsworth v. State, 307 Md. 164, 167 , 512 A.2d 1056 (1986). Md.Ann.Code art. 27, § 268F(a) (1957, 1987 Repl.Vol., 1988 Cum.Supp.), provides: Whoever harbors any fugitive, so as to prevent his discovery and arrest, after notice or knowledge of the fact that a felony warrant has been issued for the apprehension of that fugitive, and after notice that harboring that fugitive is a punishable offense, is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be fined not more than $1,000 or imprisoned not more than one year, or both. 4 Section 268F(a) makes it a crime to harbor any fugitive so as to prevent his or her discovery and arrest after notice or knowledge of the fact that a felony warrant has been issued for the