State v. William Bucy ( 1998 )

IN THE COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS OF TENNESSEE
AT JACKSON
JULY 1998 SESSION
FILED
December 10, 1998
STATE OF TENNESSEE, ) No. 02C01-9709-CC-00363
) Cecil Crowson, Jr.
Appellee ) Appellate C ourt Clerk
) Henry County
vs. )
) Honorable Julian P. Guinn, Judge
WILLIAM DORRIS BUCY, II, )
) (Possession of marijuana with the
Appellant. ) intent to deliver or sell; possession of
) drug paraphernalia)
FOR THE APPELLANT: FOR THE APPELLEE:
MATTHEW M. MADDOX JOHN KNOX WALKUP
MADDOX, MADDOX, & MADDOX Attorney General & Reporter
P. O. Box 430
Huntingdon, TN 38344 MARVIN E. CLEMENTS
Assistant Attorney General
Criminal Justice Division
425 Fifth Ave. North
2d Floor, Cordell Hull Bldg.
Nashville, TN 37243-0493
ROBERT “GUS” RADFORD
District Attorney General
P. O. Box 686
Huntingdon, TN 38344
TODD ROSE
Assistant District Attorney General
P.O. Box 94
Paris, TN 38242
OPINION FILED: ____________________
AFFIRMED
JAMES CURWOOD WITT, JR.
JUDGE
OPINION
A jury in the Henry County Circuit Court convicted the defendant,
William Dorris Bucy, II, of possession of more than one-half ounce of marijuana with
the intent to manufacture, deliver, or sell, 1 and possession of drug paraphernalia.2
The trial court sentenced the defendant to one year for possession of marijuana, a
class E felony, and to a concurrent sentence of eleven months and twenty-nine
days for possession of drug paraphernalia, a class A misdemeanor. The trial court
ordered the defendant to serve six months of his sentence in the county jail and the
balance on intensive probation. In addition, the trial judge imposed fines of $5,000
and $750. In this appeal, the defendant contends that the trial court erred in
denying his motion to suppress the materials obtained through the use of invalid
search warrants and that the trial court abused its discretion in admitting various
irrelevant but prejudicial items into evidence. We affirm the defendant’s convictions.
I. Facts
The defendant does not challenge the sufficiency of the evidence;
however, in order to place the legal issues in context, we begin with a review of the
facts. On April 4, 1996 at 4:15 p.m., Gary Vandiver, an investigator for the Henry
County’s Sheriff Department, requested and received a warrant to search a
residence at 85 Puryear Crossland Road for explosives. He requested the warrant
based on information that the defendant had stolen explosives from the National
Guard.3 A number of other officers met Vandiver at the Bucy residence where the
defendant lived with his parents. Shortly thereafter, the defendant drove past and
the officers stopped his car and placed him under arrest. During the search of the
defendant’s bedroom, the officers discovered three plastic baggies containing a
1
Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-17-417 (a)(4)(g)(1) (1997).
2
Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-17-425 (1997).
3
According to the warrant, the magistrate granted the officer’s
request at 4:15 p.m. on April 9, 1996. Several officers who testified at the
suppression hearing, however, stated that the search began as early as 3:00
p.m.
2
combined total of sixteen grams of a leafy green substance and numerous other
items that could be related to the illegal use of drugs or to the drug trade. The
officers then secured the house and obtained a warrant that would allow them to
search for and seize the controlled substances and related drug paraphernalia.4 As
a result of the second search, the officers seized numerous items including a set of
electronic scales, several hemostats, three film canisters containing seeds, a plastic
bag with a white powder residue, a roach clip, rolling papers, a smoking pipe, a
“dugout,” a pocket hitter, a Crown Royal bag, small plastic bags, several
photographs, a 1992 edition of the Paris Post Intelligencer, and the sixteen grams
of a leafy substance which would prove to be marijuana. Virtually all of these items
were found in the defendant’s bedroom. The police also confiscated $166 in cash
that the defendant had on his person. Except for a single detonator cap on an end
table in the living room, no explosives or other items related to explosives were
found.
The grand jury indicted the defendant for possession of more than a
half ounce of marijuana with the intent to manufacture, deliver, or sell and for
possession of drug paraphernalia. Defense counsel moved to suppress the items
seized from the defendant’s bedroom contending that the first search warrant was
facially invalid because the affidavit does not identify the informant as either a
citizen or a confidential informant, the information in the affidavit is stale, the
affidavit on its face does not provide sufficient probable cause to believe that the
Bucy residence contained “explosives,” and the description of the property to be
seized is too general. At the suppression hearing, the defense and the state
stipulated that if the original warrant were invalid, the second warrant obtained as
a result of the search under the authority of the first warrant would also be invalid.5
The defendant also argued that the affidavit contained false statements. At the
4
The second warrant was issued April 9, 1996 at 6:05 p.m.
5
We agree. See Wong Sun v. United States, 371 U.S. 471, 485,
83 S. Ct. 407, 417 (1963); Williams v. State, 854 S.W.2d 102 (Tenn. Ct. App.
1992). Therefore, we need not discuss the second warrant in any detail.
3
conclusion of the hearing, the trial judge found that the state’s witnesses were
credible and logical and that the defense witnesses were lying. He concluded that
the officer did precisely what he should have done with the information he had at
his fingertips and overruled the defendant’s motion. The trial court made no specific
factual findings and drew no legal conclusions concerning the defendant’s
allegations of insufficiency of the affidavit.
At trial, several police officers testified for the state. The marijuana as
well as the other property seized in the raid was admitted into evidence. The
defense called two witnesses. A neighbor testified that the police had arrived at the
Bucy house before 2:00 p.m. on the day of the search, and Investigator Gary
Vandiver testified that according to the warrant, it was issued at 4:15 p.m. The jury
found the defendant guilty on both counts. After a sentencing hearing, the trial court
sentenced the defendant to serve an effective one-year sentence in split
confinement with six months in the county jail and the remainder on intensive
probation.
II. The Validity of the First Search Warrant
In this appeal the defendant contends that the property seized from
his home should have been suppressed. He argues that the original search warrant
was based upon an affidavit that was insufficient on its face to establish probable
cause, that the language in the warrant and the affidavit does not describe the
property to be seized with particularity, and that the affidavit contains false
information.
In determining this issue we are bound by certain well-established
rules governing appellate review in such cases. A magistrate’s decision to issue a
search warrant requires the exercise of judicial discretion and constitutes a judicial
act. Hampton v. State, 148 Tenn. 155, 252 S.W. 1107 (1923). Although the
magistrate’s judgment is entitled to great deference, State v. Melson, 638 S.W.2d
342, 357 (Tenn. 1982), an appellate court may invalidate a search warrant when the
4
content of the affidavit considered by the magistrate is insufficient, as a matter of
law, to satisfy the constitutional requirements of probable cause. State v.
Longstreet, 619 S.W.2d 97, 98-99 (Tenn. 1981). Affidavits given in support of
search warrants should be “looked at and read [by an appellate court] in a common
sense and practical manner.” Melson, 638 S.W.2d at 357. The affiant’s words
should be given their natural meaning and interpretation. State v. Smith, 477
S.W.2d 6, 8 (Tenn. 1972).
The affidavit must set forth on its face facts which establish probable
cause before a search warrant may issue. Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-6-104 (1997);
Tenn. R. Crim. P. 41(c). Judicial review of the existence of probable cause does not
include looking to other evidence known or possessed by the issuing magistrate or
the affiant. State v. Moon, 841 S.W.2d 336, 338 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1992); State
v. Jacumin, 778 S.W.2d 430, 432 (Tenn. 1989).
In this case, the defendant contends that the affidavit given in support
of the issuance of the search warrant was insufficient as a matter of law to satisfy
the probable cause requirement of article I, section 7 of the Tennessee Constitution.
The affidavit in question states:
Affiant recieved information from Christina Yoke that on
or about first week of March, 96 William Dorris Bucy, II,
also known as Billy Bucy, gave her three ziplock plastic
bags containing Dynamite. Bucy asked her to keep it
for him. Bucy told her that he stole this from the
National Guard and that he had stolen other things from
National Guard when he was [a] member about two
years ago. Christina Yoke kept Dynamite in her home
at 1885 Puryear Crossland Rd. On or about last week
of March Christina Yoke and Adam Kennedy took
Dynamite and left it off of Dumas Rd. Adam Kennedy
told Christina Yoke’s mother, Kelly Yoke, about this.
Kelly Yoke called Bucy, who demanded to know ware
[sic] Dynamite was, wanting it back. Out of fear Kelly
Yoke moved Dynamite to Murray Ky. On Apr. 9, 96,
Dep. Stan Pinson, Explosive Expert, located Dynamite
in Murray, Ky, making identification. Due to Bucy
making statements to Christina Yoke and Adam
Kennedy that he had more property belonging to Nat.
Guard it is believed that Bucy has more Explosives at
his residence. It is great interest in public safety that
5
the Explosives be located due to great danger to the
public.
A. Reliability of the Informant
First, we address the question of whether the affidavit identifies the
affiant’s source as a citizen-informant. When probable cause is supplied by an
affidavit and the informant is a professional informant drawn from the “criminal
milieu,” Tennessee requires the application of the two-pronged Aguilar-Spinelli test.6
State v. Cauley, 863 S.W.2d 411, 417 (Tenn. 1993); State v. Jacumin, 778 S.W.2d
430, 431 (Tenn. 1989). However, when the source of the information is a citizen
informant, the affidavit is not subject to the same standard of scrutiny. Melson, 638
S.W.2d at 354. In the case of citizen-informants, the reviewing court must
determine whether the issuing magistrate had a substantial basis for crediting the
hearsay. Id at 355. (Citations to other cases omitted). That is, within the four
corners of the affidavit, the internal content must intrinsically prove the truth of the
citizen’s word. Id. (citations omitted).
Generally a citizen-informant is one who volunteers information to the
authorities spontaneously and from a sense of civic responsibility or for reasons of
personal safety rather than for remuneration, revenge, or some other advantage.
State v. Smith, 867 S.W.2d 343, 347 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1993) (citing State v.
Paszek, 184 N.W.2d 836, 842-843 (Wis. 1971)). The affiant must include in the
affidavit statements from which the magistrate may determine whether the source
of the information qualifies as a citizen-informant. Smith, 867 S.W.2d at 348.
Whether the affidavit provides this information directly, by implication, or by
inference, is immaterial. Id. However, the status of the source must be apparent
before the less stringent Melson standard may be used to test the validity of the
warrant. Id.
6
See Aguilar v. Texas, 378 U.S. 108, 84 S. Ct. 1509 (1964) and
Spinelli v. United States, 393 U.S. 410, 89 S. Ct. 584 (1969).
6
In this instance, the affidavit does not directly state that the sources
of the officer’s information were citizen-informants. However, the affidavit discloses
other relevant facts. Christian (Christina) Yoke is the daughter of Kelly Yoke. At
that time, Ms. Yoke and her daughter lived together at an address located not far
from the Bucy residence. The words on the affidavit referring to a confidential
informant are crossed out. Moreover, from the facts that Christian Yoke reports,
one can infer that she was similar to an “innocent bystander” who observed some
suspicious actions and reported those actions to the police. Although the words
“citizen-informant” do not appear, a “common sense and practical reading” of the
affidavit demonstrates that Christian Yoke was, in fact, a citizen-informant and that
the affidavit is subject to the less rigorous Melson standard. See Smith, 867 S.W.2d
at 347. In addition, the affidavit reflects that the police corroborated some of Yoke’s
information by locating the dynamite in Murray, Kentucky. Therefore, we find that
the magistrate had a substantial basis upon which to conclude that the information
Christian Yoke provided was reliable. Melson, 638 S.W.2d at 355.
B. Staleness
Next, we consider whether the information provided by the informants
was too stale to constitute probable cause for the issuance of a search warrant.
The defendant contends that the information is five or six weeks old and too stale
to support probable cause. After carefully reviewing the facts and circumstance of
this case and considering the applicable law, we conclude that the age of the
information is of no importance in determining whether this particular affidavit
establishes probable cause to search the Bucy residence.
The circumstances in this instance are rather unusual. The
information in this affidavit discloses that the defendant gave Christian Yoke the
three bags containing dynamite sometime during the first week of March, 1996. At
the same time, the defendant disclosed that he had stolen the explosives and
“other things” from the National Guard two years earlier. According to the affidavit,
7
the defendant told Yoke that he still had some of those “other things” at his
residence. After retrieving the dynamite from the place where Yoke’s mother had
taken the dynamite, the officer applied for and received the warrant to search for
“explosives” at approximately 4:00 p.m. on April 9, 1996.
Information that is five or six weeks old may or may not be too stale
to support probable cause depending upon the circumstances of the case. State
v. Starks, 658 S.W.2d 544 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1983). Staleness must be
determined on a case by case basis. State v. Meeks, 876 S.W.2d 121 (Tenn. Crim.
App. 1993). When the illegal activity described is ongoing, courts have generally
held that the affidavit does not become stale with the passage of time. State v.
Thomas, 818 S.W.2d 350 357 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1991). The issuing magistrate
must consider “whether the criminal activity under investigation was an isolated
event or of a protracted and continuous nature, the nature of the property sought,
and the opportunity those involved would have had to dispose of incriminating
evidence.” Meeks, 876 S.W.2d at 124. Household or personal items are generally
not quickly disposed of and the time period may be longer in those instances. State
v. Baron, 659 S.W.2d 811, 814 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1983). Weapons and clothing are
also likely to be retained for some time after a crime. State v. Florence Smith and
Oscar E. Smith, No. 01C01-9103-CC-00076, slip op. at 4 (Tenn. Crim. App.,
Nashville, Oct. 10, 1991). Highly incriminating or consumable items of personal
property are less likely to remain in one place as that which is innocuous or not
consumable. Smith, slip op. at 3-4 (citing 2, W. LaFave, Search and Seizure, Sec.
3.7(a) (2nd Ed. 1987)). Search warrants based on information that is out of date
may be invalid. State v. Starks, 658 S.W.2d 544, 546 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1983)
(information that was more than two months old when warrant was issued was too
remote to establish probable cause); State v. Norman Curtis, Keith Chambers, Gina
Chambers, and Shelly Bragg, No. 01C01-9607-CC-00313 (Tenn. Crim. App.,
Nashville, Dec. 1, 1997)(information received one and one-half years and six
months prior to date of affidavit is stale).
8
Unlike most other cases, the informant in this instance does not allege
that she saw the objects of the proposed search in the defendant’s residence more
than a month before the issuance of the warrant.7 She claims that the defendant
gave her for safekeeping the property that ultimately became the basis of the
search. The defendant also told her that he had “other things” stolen from the
Guard at home. Nothing in the affidavit specifies the nature of these items;
moreover, the search warrant does not permit the officers to search for these “other
things.” Under these circumstances, the claim of untimeliness does not negate the
presence of probable cause.
C. Probable Cause
Probable cause for search and seizure purposes means a reasonable
ground of suspicion, supported by circumstances sufficiently strong in themselves,
to warrant a cautious person to believe that the evidence is in the place to be
searched. Lea v. State, 181 Tenn. 378, 382, 181 S.W.2d 351, 352 (1944).
Tennessee law requires that “in determining whether or not probable cause
supported the issuance of a search warrant only the information contained within
the four corners of the affidavit may be considered.” State v. Dennis Keith and
Timothy Collins, --- S.W.2d ---, No. 02SO1-9604-CC-00035, slip op. at 21 (Tenn.,
Jackson, Sept. 28, 1998) (emphasis added). Recently our supreme court stated:
7
See, e.g., State v. Thomas, 818 S.W.2d 350 (Tenn. Crim. App.
1991) (informant saw a large quantity of cocaine on the premises during the past
ten days); State v. Baron, 659 S.W.2d 811, (Tenn. Crim. App. 1983) (information
about household or personal items not stale after six months); State v. Bush, 626
S.W.2d 470 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1981) (informant’s observation that defendant
was in possession of illegal liquor six days earlier not stale); State v. Ricky C.
Conatser, No. 01C01-9602-CC-00050 (Tenn. Crim. App., Nashville, Mar. 27,
1997) (ten-day old information indicating the defendant was keeping cocaine on
the premises not stale); State v. Florence Smith and Oscar E. Smith, No. 01C01-
9103-CC-00076 (Tenn. Crim. App., Nashville, Oct. 10, 1991)(warrant issued
twelve days after murder not stale as items to be searched were weapons,
clothing, and papers likely to be retained by the offender), perm. app. denied
(Tenn. 1992).
9
In Tennessee, a finding of probable cause
supporting issuance of a search warrant must be based
upon evidence included in a written and sworn affidavit.
Indeed, an affidavit containing allegations from which
the magistrate can determine whether probable cause
exists is an indispensable prerequisite to the issuance
of a search warrant in this State. The affidavit must set
forth facts upon which a neutral and detached
magistrate, reading the affidavit in a common sense
and practical manner, can find probable cause for the
issuance of a search warrant. To ensure that the
magistrate exercises independent judgment, the
affidavit must contain more than mere conclusory
allegations by the affiant.
State v. Johnny M. Henning, --- S.W.2d ---, No. 02S01-9701-CC00065, slip op. at
7 (Tenn., Jackson, June 22, 1998) (citations omitted).
The affidavit states that the defendant asked the informant to keep
three plastic bags containing dynamite for him. He told her that he had stolen the
dynamite from the National Guard two years earlier. The defendant also told her
that he had stolen “other things” from the Guard and according to the affidavit,
made statements to Yoke and another person that he had more property belonging
to the Guard at his residence. The natural meaning of the language and a common
sense, practical reading of the affidavit as a whole confirms that the defendant had
possession of dynamite and indicates, not only that he had stolen items from the
National Guard, but also that he still had at least some of these at his residence.
The confirmed possession of dynamite, a specific form of explosive material,
suggests that the “other things” may have included other forms of explosive
materials. Although at the suppression hearing Vandiver conceded that Christian
Yoke never told him that Bucy had more explosives at his residence, the actual
possession of stolen dynamite and the admissions about having other stolen
property, while not overwhelming, are sufficient to establish probable cause.
D. A General Warrant
The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution and article
I, section 7 of the Tennessee Constitution require that items to be seized pursuant
to a search warrant must be “particularly described.” Henning, slip op. at 7. Both
10
state and federal constitutions proscribe general warrants in order to control
governmental intrusion upon a citizen’s privacy and property rights and to limit the
discretion of the officers conducting the search. Henning, slip op. at 10 (citing
Marron v. United States, 275 U.S. 192, 48 S. Ct. 74 (1927)).
A description is considered sufficient if the executing officers can
identify with reasonable certainty the things which they are authorized to seize.
Meeks, 876 S.W.2d at 126 (quoting from W. LaFave and J. Israel, Criminal
Procedure, § 3.4(f) (2d ed. 1992)). To satisfy the particularity requirement, a
reviewing court should take into account the nature of the items involved. Meeks,
876 S.W.2d at 126. If the purpose is to seize
any property of a specified character which, by reason
of its character, and of the place where and the
circumstances under which it may be found, if found at
all, would be illicit, a description, save as to such
character, place and circumstances, would be
unnecessary and ordinarily impossible.
Lea v. State, 181 Tenn. 378, 382, 181 S.W.2d 351, 352 (1944). If, however, the
item to be seized can ordinarily be found among other lawfully possessed objects
of the same general classification or description, then the description requires
greater care. Meeks, 876 S.W.2d at 126.
In this instance, the search warrant and the affidavit use the word
“explosives” to describe the property to be seized. Although the criminal code does
not define “explosives,” Tennessee Code Annotated section 68-105-102(a) defines
explosives as “any chemical compound or other substance or mechanical system
intended for the purpose of producing an explosion, or that contains oxidizing and
combustible units or other ingredients in such proportions or quantities that ignition
by detonation may produce an explosion capable of causing injury to persons or
damage to property.” Tenn. Code Ann. § 68-105-102(a) (1996). Possession of
explosives or explosive components is generally an unlawful act, although there are
statutory defenses to some such offenses. See Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 39-14-702, 39-
11
17-1302 (1997). The warrant commanded a search for explosives that were
possessed “contrary to the laws of the State of Tennessee.”
In Meeks, the court concluded that “cash money, pocket books, fire
arms, jewelry, checkbook and clothing items stolen from Gillian robbery” did not
describe the items to be seized with sufficient particularity except for the checkbook
which was clearly identifiable. 876 S.W.2d at 127. This court has held that the
phrase “stolen property and drugs” was insufficient to meet constitutional
requirements. State v. Johnson, 854 S.W.2d 897, 900 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1993).
The words “controlled drugs,” however, may be sufficient to convey the meaning
that the drugs are of a dangerous and unlawful nature and to exclude those of an
innocent nature such as aspirin. State v. Lewis, 641 S.W.2d 517, 519 (Tenn. Crim.
App. 1982).
The warrant in this case describes the property to be seized as
“explosives contrary to the laws of the State of Tennessee.” In Johnson, this court
found that the phrase “stolen property and drugs” constituted a general warrant,
Johnson, 854 S.W.2d at 900, but the court acknowledged that warrant references
to “drugs” have been upheld “because other portions of the warrant refer to the
drugs as illegal.” Id. In the present case, the warrant references “explosives” that
are held “contrary to the laws of the State of Tennessee.” We find that the
description of the property as “explosives” in essence referred to contraband and
meets the constitutional requirement that the property to be seized be “particularly
described.”8
E. False Statements
8
Similarly, in Lea v. State, 181 Tenn. 378, 181 S.W.2d 351 (1944),
our supreme court held that “intoxicating liquors in violation of the law “was
sufficient even though it did not specifically negate those liquors that could be
lawfully possessed such as beer, ale, and wine. The phrase “forged t-shirts” was
found sufficient in State v. Ferguson, 703 S.W.2d 179, 180 (Tenn. Crim. App.
1985).
12
The defendant complains that the search warrant affidavit contained
false or misleading statements; however, we conclude that the defense has failed
to establish that the affidavit contains any false statements at all.9 The trial judge,
as the trier of fact, weighed the testimony, determined the credibility of the
witnesses and resolved the inconsistencies in the evidence in favor of the state.
The trial court found that the Yokes’ testimony was not credible and that the Yokes
were willing to perjure themselves to help the defendant.10 Because a trial court’s
determination at a suppression hearing is presumptively correct on appeal, State
v. Stephenson, 878 S.W.2d 530, 544 (Tenn. 1994), the findings are binding upon
this court unless the evidence contained in the record preponderates against them.
Stephenson, 878 S.W.2d at 544; State v. Aucoin, 756 S.W.2d 705, 710 (Tenn.
Crim. App. 1988). The trial court’s determination that the affidavit contained no
false or misleading information will not be disturbed on appeal.
II. The Second Warrant
When the invalid warrant was executed, the officers discovered
contraband consisting of marijuana and other drug-related materials. A second
warrant permitting the officers to seize the unlawful materials was then issued.
The parties agreed that had the first warrant been invalid, the second warrant would
also be invalid as “fruit of the poisoned tree.” The defendant has made no attack
on the second warrant except the attack on the first warrant as a predicate for the
second warrant. Having determined that the first warrant was valid, we find that the
9
If a search warrant is valid on its face, it may be impeached only if
the defense establishes that the affidavit contains (1) a false statement, either
material or immaterial to probable cause, made with the intent to deceive the
court, or (2) a false statement essential to probable cause that was recklessly
made. State v. Little, 560 S.W.2d 403, 407 (Tenn. 1978).
10
At the suppression hearing, Christian Yoke testified that she did not
know where the defendant had obtained the dynamite. She said that she just
assumed that he had stolen it from the National Guard about two years ago.
She also denied telling the officer that the defendant said he had stolen other
property from the National Guard. Kelly Yoke, Christian’s mother, testified that
she was the one who had placed the dynamite on Dumas Road and that Bucy
had never indicated that he wanted the explosives back. Gary Vandiver, on the
other hand, testified that the Yokes gave him the information contained in the
affidavit.
13
discoveries made pursuant to its execution supplied probable cause for the
issuance of the second warrant which authorized the seizure of the marijuana and
other drug paraphernalia.
III. Relevancy of Evidence
The defendant challenges the relevancy of various items that the trial
court admitted into evidence over his objections. The items include a plastic bag
with a white powder residue, a 1992 edition of the Paris Post Intelligencer, business
cards, a hunting and fishing license, and a plastic bag with some leafy material in
it. The police seized all of this evidence during the search at the Bucy residence.
Rule 401 of the Tennessee Rules of Evidence defines relevant
evidence as “evidence having any tendency to make the existence of any fact that
is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable
than it would be without the evidence.” Relevant evidence is admissible unless it
is prohibited by constitution, rule, or court decision, and irrelevant evidence is
inadmissible. Tenn. R. Evid. 402. However, relevant evidence may be excluded if
its probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice,
confusion of the issues, or misleading the jury. Tenn. R. Evid. 402.
In this case, the state was required to prove that the defendant
possessed the marijuana with the intent to manufacture, sell, or deliver, Tenn. Code
Ann. § 39-17-417(a)(4), (g)(1) (1997), and that he possessed drug paraphernalia
with the intent to introduce a controlled substance into the human body. Tenn.
Code Ann. § 39-17-425(a)(1) (1997). We find that the plastic bags, the hunting and
fishing license, and the business cards were properly admitted. The newspaper
article and the bags with the unidentified white residue and leafy material should
have been excluded.
14
The numerous small plastic bags, which the state’s witnesses testified
are often used to package a controlled substance, were relevant to the question of
the defendant’s intent to sell or deliver marijuana. The fact that these baggies were
found in proximity to electronic scales, seeds for the propagation of marijuana, and
a larger bag containing sixteen grams of marijuana make the plastic bags
particularly relevant. The trial court did not err in admitting them into evidence.
The hunting and fishing license and the business cards were of some
probative value to demonstrate that the bedroom in which the incriminating
materials were found belonged to the defendant. However, even if the license and
the cards were of no probative value, we cannot see how the admission of such
innocuous evidence could have been prejudicial to the defendant. See Tenn. R.
App. P. 36(a).
The 1992 edition of the Paris Post Intelligencer reported at length on
the destruction of a large crop of marijuana in Henry County. The article concerned
events unconnected with the defendant that occurred approximately four years prior
to his arrest for these offenses and addressed no issue relevant to the case. The
state argues that article demonstrated the defendant’s long-standing interest in the
drug trade. We find that, in this instance, the unfair prejudicial effect of the rather
sensational article substantially outweighs its minimal probative value. Tenn. R.
Evid. 403.
The admission of the small plastic bags containing the unidentified
materials is not as easily resolved. The bag containing the white powder residue
is of particular concern because it is evidence of another crime and subject to the
requirements of Rule 404(b). The rule requires a jury-out hearing and specific
determinations by the trial judge. The record indicates that the trial court did not
15
fulfill these requirements.11 Without a hearing and appropriate findings, the bag with
the white powder residue was inadmissible. Moreover, the fact that the material in
neither bag was identified as containing a controlled substance greatly reduces the
probative value of the evidence.12 Pursuant to Rule 403, both bags should have
been excluded because their probative value was substantially outweighed by the
danger of unfair prejudice.
Although the trial judge should not have admitted the 1992 newspaper
article and the two bags containing unidentified material, the defendant is not
necessarily entitled to relief. The Tennessee Rules of Appellate Procedure provide
that a final judgment shall not be set aside “unless, considering the whole record,
error involving a substantial right more probably than not affected the judgment or
would result in prejudice to the judicial process.” Tenn. R. App. P. 36(a). Given the
strength of the state’s case against the defendant, the admission of the newspaper
article and the two plastic bags could not have affected the jury’s verdict.
Conclusion
The judgment of the trial court is affirmed.
________________________________
JAMES CURWOOD WITT, JR., Judge
CONCUR:
______________________________
JOE G. RILEY, Judge
______________________________
ROBERT W. WEDEMEYER, Special Judge
11
The trial judge summarily denied the defendant’s motion in limine
because it was filed on the day of trial, and when the defense objected to the
admission of the bag with the white powder on the grounds of relevancy, the
court overruled the objection stating, “Let’s hear what the man has got to say.”
12
Scott Wyrick, the officer who seized the bags, testified that the
residue of white powder was too small to be tested.
16