Nature of the Case
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Facts
Store detective Tam observed D placing several cartons of cigarettes into a shopping cart. Tam then saw D place cigarettes into a large handbag. D left the store, with Hollie Suratt carrying the bag, without paying for the cigarettes. Tam approached Ds, identified himself, showed his badge, and said they were under citizen's arrest for shoplifting. A scuffle ensued, and D fled. While struggling with D, Tam instructed Marks, a clerk, to stop Suratt from leaving the area. Suratt tricked Marks into looking the other direction and then fled with the bag. Neither the bag nor the cigarettes were recovered. Suratt was charged with Robbery in the Second Degree and D was charged with one count of Robbery in the Second Degree and one count of Theft in the Fourth Degree. The court instructed the jury: All persons who are present and participate in the commission of a crime [are] responsible for the acts of each other done or made in furtherance of the crime. It is not necessary to prove that each one committed all of the acts of the crime. Each person who does one act which is an ingredient of the crime or immediately connected with it is as guilty as if he or she committed the whole crime with his or her own hands. Ds were convicted of Robbery in the Second Degree. This appeal follows.
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