State v. Hatley

(Filed March 17, 2009)

After a thorough review of the record in this appeal, and taking into consideration the arguments made by all parties, I concur with the ultimate result in this case.

I am writing separately to express my concern that the defendant may have been overcharged or, at a minimum, that the defendant was certainly entitled to a jury instruction on simple larceny.1 This Court has long recognized the distinction between robbery and simple larceny. In State v. Chambers, 22 W.Va. 779 (1883) we had one of our first opportunities to address the issue of pocketbook grabbing and…