Attempted robbery conviction reversed where victim had no ownership of or relationship to the targeted property. Appellant was convicted of, among other offenses, attempted robbery of Rider. On appeal, he argued that he could not be convicted of attempting to rob Rider, because the marijuana he was trying to steal belonged to Johnson. The appellate court agreed and reversed that count. The evidence established that appellant attempted to steal marijuana from Johnson, who was Rider’s roommate. Rider did not have actual possession of the marijuana, and Johnson stored it in a locked safe in his bedroom. There was no evidence that Rider had access to the safe, and, in fact didn’t have a key to the apartment, coming and going only when someone else was home. Rider and Johnson had been roommates for only a few months. Lacking any evidence that Rider owned, had access to or an obligation to protect the marijuana which appellant attempted to steal, the conviction for attempted robbery of Rider cannot be sustained.
Case Summaries