Criminal Law-Statutory Rape-Sufficiency of Evidence

Defendant appealed his conviction for statutory rape, challenging the sufficiency of the evidence proving the victim’s age.  

Where the victim testified that she was in her preteens when she had sex with defendant and her testimony indicated that the event occurred in the first half of the year before her 14th birthday, there was sufficient evidence for the jury to find beyond a reasonable doubt that defendant had sex within a minor under 14.  

Ransom, J., dissenting: “To find Guthrie guilty of Count IV, the jury was instructed it must find the alleged conduct occurred within the same date range as charged. Victim 2 turned 14 on May 30, 2017. Therefore, it is undisputed Victim 2 was 13 years old during the charged period. There was no testimony, however, to support a finding that Victim 2 was 13 years old at the time of the incident. Yet the principal opinion holds the state met its burden of proof by eliciting testimony from Victim 2 that the offense occurred when she was in her “preteens,” meaning when she was 12 years old or younger. I am not convinced the state should be permitted to satisfy its burden in this manner.”     

Judgment is affirmed.  

State v. Guthrie (MLW No. 84866/Case No. SC101373 – 12 pages) (Supreme Court of Missouri, Fischer, J.) Appealed from circuit court, Mississippi County, Horack, J. (Christian E. Lemberg, Columbia for appellant) (Abigail M. Meharg, Jefferson City for respondent)