State Missouri v. Douglas Nicholson

Douglas Nicholson appeals his conviction for felonious escape from custody, § 575.200, RSMo 1986, and his sentence as a prior and persistent offender, §§ 558.016 and 557.063.4, RSMo 1986. Mr. Nicholson contends on appeal that (I) the amended information charging him with felonious escape from custody is fatally defective because the charging instrument does not allege that when Mr. Nicholson escaped he was in custody after an arrest for a felony, an essential element of § 575.200, and (II) there is insufficient evidence proving that Mr. Nicholson was in the custody of a police officer, an essential element of § 575.200. 1 The judgment is reversed. The evidence at trial established the following facts. On June 18, 1990, Officer Cathy Dodd, Columbia Police Department, after reviewing a laboratory test result from the Missouri Highway Patrol, determined that probable cause existed to arrest Mr. Nicholson for a felony. Officer Dodd attempted to locate Mr. Nicholson by leaving a message at the home of an acquaintance of Mr. Nicholson that Officer Dodd had items belonging to Mr. Nicholson and that Mr. Nicholson could contact Officer Dodd at the Columbia Police Department to retrieve the items.