Stevens v. State

PER Curiam. Alleging insufficiency of evidence, Samuel T. Stevens, Jr., appeals from his sentence following conviction by a jury in the Criminal Court of Baltimore for robbery with a deadly weapon. ⁴⁹ At the trial, the prosecuting witness, Barnes, testified that the appellant grabbed him from behind, threatened him with a knife, and took money from his pocket. An eye witness testified he saw Stevens and Barnes struggle and heard Barnes say he was going to get the police. An officer testified that Barnes complained of the robbery and led him to the scene, where he found a cap which had been worn by Barnes and a knife which Barnes said was like the one which Stevens had used.

At the conclusion of the State’s evidence, counsel for appellant moved for a judgment of acquittal, which was denied. Appellant then offered evidence, but failed to renew his motion at the end of the case. In such circumstances we may not review the sufficiency of the evidence. Code (1957), Art. 27, § 593; Woodell v. State, 223 Md. 89 .

Appellant further urges that the failure of court-appointed counsel below, who is not the counsel on this appeal, to renew the motion for a judgment of acquittal at the conclusion of all the evidence and his failure to require an alleged “key witness” to testify for the defense constituted such incompetency as to deprive the defendant of due process of law. We find no such deprivation. Although one’s constitutional rights may be violated where representation has been so