A recent Indiana Court of Appeals case confirms that you can be convicted of attempted stalking. Noah Pittman, according to his own appellant’s brief, has the ignominious distinction of being the only person in this state ever charged with that particular offense. His conviction was upheld on appeal.
The behavior that gave rise to Pittman’s arrest included: 1) calling the mother of his child repeatedly and threatening to kill her; 2) stealing his own mother’s gun; and 3) following the mother of his child to a health clinic and circling the parking lot on his bicycle. Pittman kept the gun in his backpack, but the mother of his child called the police when she heard through the grapevine he might be armed. When confronted by an officer, Pittman reportedly said he “there to scare his girlfriend.” The arresting officer observed that Pittman “chuckled and thought it was funny.”
Sentenced to six years in jail, Pittman is no longer laughing. On appeal he argued that according to the plain language of the Indiana statute, stalking can’t be charged as an attempt; it must be carried out to its completion in order to be criminal. Unintimidated by the apparent novelty of the facts, the Court of Appeals declined to find a problem with the decision to charge Pittman under the so-called general attempt statute, which provides, “A person attempts to commit a crime when, acting with the culpability required for commission of the crime, he engages in conduct that constitutes a substantial step toward commission of the crime.”
Indiana punishes attempted crimes the same as successfully completed ones. If you’re being charged with an attemped crime, there are a few defenses available that you need to explore. If you’re facing a criminal charge, call the Marc Lopez Law Firm at 317-632-3642. Or contact us by email.
