Chazz Harold Courtney, Appellant-Defendant v. State of Indiana, Appellee-Plaintiff (2026)

MEMORANDUM DECISION

[1] Chazz Harold Courtney appeals his two convictions for aggravated battery as level 3 felonies and claims the evidence was insufficient to sustain the convictions. We affirm.

Facts and Procedural History

[2] On March 25, 2024, at about 1:00 a.m., Robert Trump (“Robert”) drove himself, Andrew Lewis, and Haley Orman to a gas station. Roberts went up to the doors of the building, but the doors were locked. Robert returned to the car and began to pull out of the parking lot, and Courtney, who had arrived in a van driven by Nicole Shaffer, walked up to the car and called Roberts a “snitch” and a “bitch.” Transcript Volume II at 65. Robert knew Courtney but had recently “blocked” him. Id. at 80. Robert pulled out onto the street, started to drive away, turned around and drove back to the parking lot to see who was in the van with Courtney, and then drove away. Robert dropped off Lewis at his former girlfriend's house and then drove himself and Orman to Robert's residence where he lived with his mother Gale Trump (“Gale”) and Jason Heistand. Courtney told Shaffer that he wanted to find Robert, directed her to Robert's neighborhood, and had her “circle around the house a couple times.” Transcript Volume III at 196. As they passed Robert's residence, Courtney was “just like shaking” a gun and “shine[d] a flashlight ․ in the house.” Id. at 197. Courtney had Shaffer park up the street, and he exited the van. Meanwhile, a few minutes after arriving home, Robert was upstairs in his residence and saw a beam of light “go through [his] window,” and he looked outside and saw “the same van [he had] seen at the gas station” drive by the residence. Transcript Volume II at 85. Robert went outside, saw no one, and went back inside and upstairs.

[3] A short time later, Courtney knocked on the front door of Robert's residence. Gale was awakened by the knock and answered the door, and Courtney said that he wanted to talk to Robert. Gale asked Courtney who he was, and he told her that it was “[n]one of [her] fucking business.” Id. at 218. Gale told Courtney to leave. Robert “heard [his] mom outside having some words [and] raising her voice,” retrieved Gale's gun, and went to the front door. Id. at 85. Courtney “kept on wanting [Robert] to come out to the sidewalk,” and Robert “was like, well I'm right here ․ [i]f you want to talk to me you can talk to me when I'm right here.” Id. at 87. Heistand was awakened by the voices and heard Gale and Robert tell Courtney multiple times that he needed to leave the property. Heistand exited the residence, stood in front of Robert and Gale, and told Courtney to leave. Courtney “kept ․ aggressively moving closer,” and Robert “pulled the gun out and [ ] told him to get the fuck off [the] property.” Id. at 90. Courtney was “in [Heistand's] face,” id. at 92, and a distance of “[a]rm length” from Heistand and Gale, id. at 226, and Robert “swung [his] arm around [Heistand] to punch [Courtney] in the face.” Id. at 91. Courtney “stumbled back a little bit” and then “pulled out two guns [and] started shooting.” Id. at 92. Robert heard gunshots and saw that Heistand “fell and then [his] mom fell,” and “as soon as [his] mom fell [Robert] started shooting [his] gun.” Id. Courtney “let off a bunch of shots and then as he was running away he let off a few more.” Id. at 95-96. Courtney ran back to and entered the van and told Shaffer that “he'd seen em’ drop,” and Shaffer drove away. Transcript Volume III at 200. Robert called 911. Gale, Heistand, and Robert were taken to the hospital with gunshot injuries. Robert had been shot in the buttocks, Heistand had been shot six times including in the hip, stomach, and arm, and Gale had been shot six times including in the hip, abdomen, face, and shoulder. The police apprehended Courtney.

[4] On March 26, 2024, the State charged Courtney with attempted murder as level 1 felonies under Counts I through III, aggravated battery as level 3 felonies under Counts IV and V,¹ battery by means of a deadly weapon as a level 5 felony under Count VI, and criminal recklessness as a level 5 felony under Count VII. The court held a jury trial in October 2025. The jury heard testimony from Robert, Orman, Gale, Heistand, evidence technician Daniel Walker, forensic examiner Kimberly Gregory, and Courtney among others. Robert testified that he saw Heistand fall, then he saw his mother fall, and “that's when [he] started shooting [his] gun.” Transcript Volume II at 92. He testified that Heistand was struck first and then his mother. When asked, “[a]re you one hundred percent certain that [Courtney] fired his guns first,” Robert answered “[y]es.” Id. at 93. Orman testified that Gale, Heistand, and Robert told Courtney to leave multiple times and that Courtney “kept on saying [Robert] was a snitch.” Id. at 157. When asked “[a]re you certain that Robert didn't start shooting until after [Courtney] fired shots,” Orman answered, “I'm a hundred percent sure.” Id. at 158. She testified that Robert “did not start shooting until after [Courtney] started shooting and seeing his mom fall on the ground.” Id. Walker testified that he collected nine “9 millimeter shell casings,” five “380 shell casings,” and ten “10 millimeter shell casings.” Transcript Volume III at 49. He indicated that he collected a “Glock 10 millimeter” in Robert's residence. Id. at 50. Police found a “9 millimeter” in the van and a “Bersa 380” on Courtney's person. Id. at 71, 76.

[5] Courtney testified that he went to Robert's residence “[t]o talk with him about what the issue was.” Transcript Volume IV at 8. He said that “a green laser beam came out of the second story building, aiming at the vehicle and [he] looked to where it was coming from and [he] seen it was Robert.” Id. at 9-10. He testified that Gale answered the door, he told her that he wanted to talk to Robert, she told him to leave, Heistand and Robert eventually exited the building, Robert pointed a gun at him, he turned to leave and said that Robert was a snitch, and “that's when they all became very angry and rushed off the porch at me.” Id. at 13. Courtney testified: “I said I had proof on my phone and that's when I was punched by [Heistand]. And Robert, shots were goin’ off so I pulled my gun ․ I stumbled, pulled my guns out and let off some shots as I was running.” Id. at 14. On cross-examination, when asked “all of the shooting that happened that night was by you and Robert, correct,” Courtney replied affirmatively, and when asked “[y]ou emptied your guns, right,” he answered “[y]es sir.” Id. at 28. When asked, “[w]ere you trying to hit [ ] Gale Trump, Jason Heistand, and Robert Trump when you shot,” Courtney answered “[n]o sir,” and when asked, “[w]ell you certainly did, you hit them with most of your shots, didn't you,” he replied “[y]es sir.” Id. at 29. He testified, “I was shooting in the area that I heard the gunshots comin’ from” and “I wasn't aiming at anybody in particular.” Id. In closing, the prosecutor argued, “Courtney fired fourteen shots. Nine from his 9 millimeter handgun. And five from his 380 caliber handgun. He was quite accurate. He hit Gale and [Heistand] five or six times and also hit Robert.” Id. at 46. The jury found Courtney not guilty on Counts I through III and guilty on Counts IV through VII.

Discussion

[6] Courtney challenges his convictions for aggravated battery, asserting that the evidence was insufficient to show that he inflicted the injuries on the victims. He argues “[t]here was no dispute that both [he] and [Robert] fired weapons at the scene” and “[t]he State never established, however, which of the two shooters’ bullets caused the wounds to [Gale] and [Heistand].” Appellant's Brief at 12. He asserts the State “presented no forensic evidence linking Courtney's weapons to the wounds on [Gale] or [Heistand].” Id. at 13. He argues that the State acknowledged that he fired fourteen shots, “9 shots from the 9mm and 5 shots from the 380,” “4 of the bullets were accounted for, but 10 bullets were not accounted for,”² Gale and Heistand testified that they had each been shot six times, and “[t]his means that at least 2 of the wounds the victims suffered did not come from Courtney's firearms.” Id. at 13-14.

[7] The State maintains it presented sufficient evidence to show that Courtney shot and injured Gale and Heistand. It argues that, “even assuming that none of the bullets that shot Gale or [Heistand] overlapped or were otherwise recovered at the scene, under Courtney's logic, some of the bullets that shot [Heistand] and Gale must have been fired by Courtney, because only 10 casings were found at the scene that matched [Robert's] firearm” and that it “did not have to prove that Courtney was the only one whose bullets happened to hit Gale and [Heistand]; rather, it only had to prove that he knowingly inflicted injury on them that created a substantial risk of death.” Appellee's Brief at 10-11.

[8] When reviewing claims of insufficiency of the evidence, we do not reweigh the evidence or judge the credibility of witnesses. Jordan v. State, 656 N.E.2d 816, 817 (Ind. 1995), reh'g denied. We look to the evidence and the reasonable inferences therefrom that support the verdict. Id. We will affirm the conviction if there exists evidence of probative value from which a reasonable jury could find the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Id. Ind. Code § 35-42-2-1.5 provides that a person “who knowingly or intentionally inflicts injury on a person that creates a substantial risk of death or causes ․ protracted loss or impairment of the function of a bodily member or organ ․ commits aggravated battery, a Level 3 felony.”

[9] Courtney does not dispute that he had an altercation with Robert and his family and that he fired fourteen shots from two guns toward the family. Rather, he asserts the evidence does not show that the shots which he fired were the ones that struck Gale and Heistand. Robert testified that he punched Courtney and that Courtney stumbled back, pulled out two guns, and started shooting. Robert's testimony revealed that, when the shooting started, Gale and Heistand were positioned between him and Courtney. Robert also testified that he first saw Heistand fall to the ground, that he then saw his mother Gale fall to the ground, and that he did not shoot at Courtney until after Courtney had shot Heistand and Gale. Heistand and Gale both testified that they were shot six times. Robert and Orman testified that they were one hundred percent certain that Courtney fired first. Robert also indicated that he would not have been able to shoot toward Courtney if Gale and Heistand were still standing between them. When Courtney was asked on cross-examination, “[w]ell you certainly ․ hit them with most of your shots,” he answered affirmatively. Transcript Volume IV at 29. While the evidence may not link a specific bullet fired from Courtney's firearms to a bullet which struck and injured Gale or Heistand, the jury could reasonably infer from the testimony and evidence that some of the shots fired by Courtney struck and inflicted injuries on Gale and Heistand that created a substantial risk of death or caused impairment of the function of a bodily member or organ.

[10] Based upon the record, we conclude the State presented evidence of probative value from which a reasonable jury could determine that Courtney committed the counts of aggravated battery as level 3 felonies as charged.

[11] For the foregoing reasons, we affirm Courtney's convictions.

[12] Affirmed.

FOOTNOTES

1.   Count IV alleged that Courtney “did knowingly or intentionally inflict injury on Gale Trump that creates a substantial risk of death or causes protracted loss or impairment of the function of a bodily member or organ,” and Count V alleged that he “did knowingly or intentionally inflict injury on Jason Heistand that creates a substantial risk of death or causes protracted loss or impairment of the function of a bodily member or organ.” Appellant's Appendix Volume II at 21.

2.   With regard to the four “bullets ․ accounted for,” Courtney cites to testimony of Walker and Gregory and states that “[o]ne bullet traveled through the window of the Trump residence,” “[o]ne bullet traveled through the window of a neighboring unit,” “[o]ne bullet was recovered from [Robert's] buttocks,” and “[a] fragment of one bullet was recovered from the yard at the scene.” Appellant's Brief at 13-14.

Brown, Judge.

Bailey, J., and Weissmann, J., concur.