Oates v. State

PRENTICE, Justice.

Defendant (Appellant) was convicted of Murder, Ind.Code § 35-42-1-1 (Burns 1979) and Battery, Ind.Code § 35-42-2-1 (Burns 1979) and sentenced to forty (40) years imprisonment upon the Murder conviction to run concurrently with five (5) years imprisonment upon the Battery conviction. This direct appeal presents two issues:(1) Whether the evidence is sufficient to support either verdict.(2) Whether Defendant was denied his lawful presumption of innocence.

ISSUE I

The evidence most favorable to the State reveals that on April 8, 1980, Mary Leavell and Beulah Brasher were sitting…