Aaron Hope, Appellant-Defendant v. State of Indiana, Appellee-Plaintiff (2026)

MEMORANDUM DECISION

Case Summary

[1] Aaron Hope appeals his conviction for Level 3 felony aggravated battery,¹ arguing the State presented insufficient evidence to support it. We affirm.

Facts and Procedural History

[2] Joe Henton had a recording studio in his home in Osceola where he worked as a music producer recording and editing music and videos for clients. He met Hope in 2022. Henton recorded some of Hope's songs, and later they started working on a music video.

[3] On March 13, 2024, Hope had a recording session booked with Henton. Hope and his wife, Mia, arrived at Henton's house between 6:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. During the session, Henton and Hope got into a verbal argument. Hope pulled a knife out of his pocket and slashed Henton's head and arm. When Henton tried to grab the knife, it severely cut his left hand and thumb. Henton got away, ran to a neighbor's house, and asked her to call the police. Hope and Mia left in Hope's car. Henton returned to his house and called 9-1-1.

[4] Police were dispatched to the scene and found Henton on the front step bleeding and injured. They learned a suspect named “Aaron Hope” had fled in a black Cadillac. Using an electronic license plate reader system, police located the Cadillac around eight miles from Henton's house around 8:30 a.m. Police executed a traffic stop and found Hope and Mia inside the car. Police detained and interviewed Hope. Hope told the investigating detective he and Henton got into a fight and Henton struck him in the mouth.

[5] Meanwhile, Henton was taken to the hospital and treated for his injuries. He had a stab wound on his head; a gash on his arm down to the bone; and other superficial cuts. His left thumb was almost severed from his hand. He received stitches for the head and arm wounds. The left hand injury required surgery and physical therapy. As a result of his injuries, Henton suffered permanent scarring on his head and arm, and he lost functionality in his left hand.

[6] The State charged Hope with Level 3 felony aggravated battery and Level 5 felony battery resulting in serious bodily injury.² Henton testified at trial, and a jury found Hope guilty of both counts. The trial court entered judgment of conviction on aggravated battery only and sentenced Hope to twelve years, with ten years served in the Indiana Department of Correction followed by two years as a direct commitment to community corrections.

Sufficient evidence supports Hope's conviction.

[7] A sufficiency-of-the-evidence claim warrants a “deferential standard of review in which we ‘neither reweigh the evidence nor judge witness credibility[.]’ ” Hancz-Barron v. State, 235 N.E.3d 1237, 1244 (Ind. 2024) (quoting Brantley v. State, 91 N.E.3d 566, 570 (Ind. 2018), cert. denied). Instead, we respect the factfinder's exclusive province to weigh conflicting evidence, Phipps v. State, 90 N.E.3d 1190, 1195 (Ind. 2018), and consider only the probative evidence and reasonable inferences that support the judgment of the trier of fact, Hall v. State, 177 N.E.3d 1183, 1191 (Ind. 2021). We will affirm the conviction unless no reasonable factfinder could find the elements of the crime proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Teising v. State, 226 N.E.3d 780, 783 (Ind. 2024). It is “not necessary that the evidence ‘overcome every reasonable hypothesis of innocence.’ ” Sallee v. State, 51 N.E.3d 130, 133 (Ind. 2016) (quoting Moore v. State, 652 N.E.2d 53, 55 (Ind. 1995)).

[8] To convict Hope of Level 3 felony aggravated battery as charged, the State was required to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Hope knowingly inflicted injury on Henton that caused serious permanent disfigurement, specifically, multiple cuts and lacerations requiring stitches. I.C. § 35-42-2-1.5(1); Appellant's App. Vol. 2 at 5 (charging information).

[9] Henton testified at trial that during a music recording session, he and Hope got into an argument. Hope then drew a knife and used it to slash Henton's head, arm, and hand. Henton's head and arm wounds required stitches and left permanent scars. Henton's thumb was nearly severed from his hand. That injury required surgery and resulted in lost hand functionality. He described the hand injury as leaving him with “the hand strength of ․ a two-year-old[.]” Tr. Vol. 2 at 89. This was sufficient evidence to establish the elements of aggravated battery as charged. See Cornelious v. State, 988 N.E.2d 280, 283 (Ind. Ct. App. 2013) (sufficient evidence supported defendant's conviction for aggravated battery causing serious permanent disfigurement where defendant cut victim with a knife during a fight and inflicted injuries to victim's hand, nose, face, neck, and arm requiring stitches and leaving permanent scars), trans. denied.

[10] Still, Hope notes Henton was the only witness who testified to the events that day, and Hope told the police during his interrogation that Henton struck him first. Therefore, Hope argues the State failed to meet its burden of proof. “A conviction can be sustained on only the uncorroborated testimony of a single witness, even when that witness is the victim.” Bailey v. State, 979 N.E.2d 133, 135 (Ind. 2012). And to the extent Hope and Henton's version of events differed, it was within the jury's province to weigh the conflicting evidence and determine witness credibility. See Hall, 177 N.E.3d at 1191. On appeal, we cannot reweigh the evidence.

Conclusion

[11] Sufficient evidence supports Hope's conviction.

[12] Affirmed.

FOOTNOTES

1.   Ind. Code § 35-42-2-1.5(1) (2014).

2.   I.C. § 35-42-2-1(g)(1) (2023).

Kenworthy, Judge.

Bradford, J., and Pyle, J., concur.