SCOTT v. STATE (2025)

MEMORANDUM DECISION

[1] Kentrell Scott appeals his conviction for Level 5 felony battery. Scott raises a single issue for our review, namely, whether the State presented sufficient evidence to demonstrate that his trial was properly venued in Marion County. We affirm.

Facts and Procedural History

[2] Around 9:30 p.m. on January 25, 2024, Scott and Adarsh Nash were passengers on an IndyGo bus. At that time, the bus stopped on Alabama Street in “Marion County, Indiana.” Tr. Vol. 2, p. 24. Nash exited the bus at that stop with Scott exiting behind him. Laniese Coach, the driver of the bus, then observed Scott “walk[ ] up really fast on the left side” of Nash and make a stabbing motion toward Nash's abdomen. Coach opened the bus doors again and asked Nash what just happened; Nash came back inside the bus with blood coming through his clothing.

[3] Emergency medical personnel and law enforcement officers from the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (“IMPD”) arrived soon thereafter. Officers then located and arrested Scott. Scott had a hunting knife on his person, and a later DNA analysis of blood on the knife tested positive for Nash's DNA. And Scott admitted to officers that he had stabbed Nash.

[4] The State charged Scott with Level 5 felony battery. The trial court found him guilty after a bench trial and sentenced him accordingly. This appeal ensued.

Discussion and Decision

[5] On appeal, Scott argues that the State failed to demonstrate by a preponderance of the evidence that his trial was properly venued in Marion County. As we have explained:

[Defendants have] both a constitutional and a statutory right to be tried in the county where the crime was committed. See Mullins v. State, 721 N.E.2d 335, 337 (Ind. Ct. App. 1999), trans. denied. Proof of proper venue by a preponderance of the evidence is essential to any crime. Id. The State may establish proper venue by circumstantial evidence. Id. Thus, the State meets its burden of establishing venue if the facts and circumstances permit the trier of fact to infer that the crime occurred in the given county. Id.

Eckstein v. State, 839 N.E.2d 232, 233 (Ind. Ct. App. 2005).

[6] We initially note that Scott did not object to his trial being held in Marion County. Accordingly, we agree with the State that Scott has not preserved his argument for appellate review. Scott's waiver notwithstanding, Coach testified that the stabbing occurred in Marion County. Further, the stabbing occurred at an IndyGo stop, and IMPD officers responded to it. The State therefore presented more than sufficient evidence to permit the trier of fact to conclude that the crime occurred in Marion County and, thus, that his trial was properly held in the Marion Superior Court.

[7] For all of these reasons, we affirm Scott's conviction for Level 5 felony battery.

[8] Affirmed.

Mathias, Judge.

Foley, J., and Felix, J., concur.