Campbell v. State

• Decision Date: 27 May 2009
• Docket Number: No. 294, 2008.,294, 2008.
• Citation: 974 A.2d 156
• Parties: Charles CAMPBELL, Defendant Below, Appellant, v. STATE of Delaware, Plaintiff Below, Appellee.
• Court: United States State Supreme Court of Delaware

974 A.2d 156

Charles CAMPBELL, Defendant Below, Appellant, v. STATE of Delaware, Plaintiff Below, Appellee.

No. 294, 2008.

Supreme Court of Delaware.

Submitted: March 11, 2009.

Decided: May 27, 2009.

Court Below Superior Court of the State of Delaware, in and for New Castle County, Cr. ID No. 0611014878.

Upon appeal from the Superior Court. AFFIRMED.

Patrick J. Collins, Law Office of Patrick J. Collins, Wilmington, DE, for appellant.

James T. Wakley and Danielle J. Brennan (argued), Department of Justice, Wilmington, DE, for appellee.

Before STEELE, Chief Justice, HOLLAND and BERGER, Justices.

STEELE, Chief Justice:

In this appeal from the Superior Court, Charles Campbell seeks to reverse his convictions for Trafficking in Methamphetamine and Delivery of a Schedule II Controlled Substance. Campbell raises three issues on appeal: (1) whether the trial judge abused his discretion by admitting evidence related to a future drug deal and whether the jury instruction related to that evidence was proper; (2) whether the trial judge abused his discretion by permitting a downstream purchaser to identify the substance he received as methamphetamine; and (3) whether the trial judge abused his discretion by allowing the State to present rebuttal evidence. Because the judge acted within his discretion by: (1) admitting evidence of a common plan or scheme; (2) permitting a lay witness to render an opinion on a matter rationally based on his own perception; and (3) allowing the State to rebut testimony presented by the defense, we AFFIRM.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

In October 2006, the Delaware State Police (DSP) set up a wiretap on Raul Morales' phone as part of a drug investigation. DSP also placed a GPS tracker on Morales' car and set up surveillance on him. During the investigation, DSP determined that Charles Campbell was supplying methamphetamine to Morales who in turn sold it to two purchasers, Michael Kanich (a/k/a Hippie) and Billie Gillespie.¹ From the wiretap, DSP overheard Morales call Campbell to arrange the purchases. From the GPS tracker, DSP learned that Morales drove to Campbell's house at 1 Liberty Street in Port Penn and stayed for 15 to 20 minutes. From the surveillance they conducted, DSP saw Morales meet Kanich at the Grotto's Pizza on Pennsylvania Avenue in Wilmington to sell Kanich methamphetamine.²

Morales testified at trial that he purchased methamphetamine from Campbell four times in October 2006. Morales also testified that a fifth exchange was scheduled for the weekend of November 3, 2006. Morales testified that he called Campbell and asked to pick up the methamphetamine Friday night November 3, 2006, but Campbell refused because he had to wake up early the next morning for a trip with his wife. Morales testified that he then called his buyer Kanich to tell him that the purchase was cancelled.

That November 3rd weekend, DSP obtained a search warrant and searched Campbell's house while he was out of town. DSP executed other search warrants in connection with the drug investigation that weekend. DSP arrested Morales and Campbell. These arrests thwarted the potential November 3rd weekend transaction.

A Grand Jury indicted Campbell on four counts of Trafficking in Methamphetamine, 5 to 50 grams, and four companion counts of Delivery of Methamphetamine based on four separate occasions in October 2006. The first six counts alleged that Campbell was trafficking and delivering on unspecified dates before October 25, 2006. Counts seven and eight alleged that Campbell was trafficking and delivering on October 26, 2006. The State originally charged Morales as a codefendant, but dropped the charge because Morales testified against Campbell as part of a "plea agreement and the promise of a substantial assistance motion."

Campbell presented two motions in limine at his pretrial conference. First, Campbell objected to Kanich identifying the substance as methamphetamine and speculating about its weight. Campbell sought to exclude Kanich's testimony. The State wanted to introduce the testimony to prove that the substance was methamphetamine and that Campbell sold it to Morales who sold it to Kanich. The State argued that Kanich could identify the methamphetamine and its weight as a lay witness based on Wright v. State.³ The trial judge overruled Campbell's objection by stating: "this case is stronger than Wright." Kanich testified at trial that the substance he purchased from Morales was methamphetamine. Kanich described how methamphetamine affected him and how it affected him differently than cocaine. Kanich testified that until five or six years ago he used methamphetamine once or twice a month for about 15 to 20 years. Kanich and Morales worked together at Amtrak. Morales approached him to offer to sell him methamphetamine. Kanich testified that he bought methamphetamine from Morales twice. He testified that he had never met Campbell before.

Second, Campbell argued that evidence of the fifth methamphetamine transaction that was scheduled for the weekend of November 3, 2006 and never took place was not admissible under Delaware Rule of Evidence 404(b). D.R.E. 404(b) prohibits evidence of "other crimes, wrongs or acts" by the defendant "to prove the character of a person in order to show action in conformity therewith."⁴ D.R.E. 404(b) permits evidence of "other crimes, wrongs or acts" "for other purposes, such as proof of motive, opportunity, intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity or absence of mistake or accident."⁵ The State argued that evidence of Campbell's plans for the future methamphetamine transaction was admissible "pursuant to the same scheme that has been manifested in the deal on [October 26] and in the prior deliveries." The trial judge denied Campbell's second motion in limine and held that "the evidence does not offend Rule 403 or 404(b). It's evidence of a plan or scheme which is clearly admissible under Rule 404(b)...." At trial, the trial judge instructed the jury, according to Campbell's requested instruction, that they could consider the evidence about the later planned drug transaction only as evidence of intent.

In its case in chief, the State offered GPS printouts that placed Morales' truck between 980 and 1099 Port Penn Road in Middletown on October 26, 2006. Campbell lived at 1 Liberty Street in Port Penn, Middletown. The State called Detective Ellingsworth to testify that DSP attached a GPS tracker to Morale's truck. The State called Detective Clemons to testify that 1099 Port Penn Road is where Liberty Street, Port Penn Road, and Route 9 intersect.

To corroborate the GPS evidence, the State called Morales. Morales testified that in late October he drove to Campbell's house to pick up more methamphetamine. Morales testified that he parked his truck in Campbell's driveway at 1 Liberty Street.

During Campbell's cross examination of Morales, he entered Defense Exhibit 2, a Google satellite map of the Port Penn area, into evidence. Campbell asked Morales if he remembered stopping at the area indicted on the map as 980 Port Penn Road. Morales said that he did not remember stopping there. On redirect, Morales testified that the only reason he would have stopped there would be to make a phone call. During his defense, Campbell testified that Morales did not come to his house on October 26.

In the State's rebuttal, the State called Detective Chorlton to rebut Defense Exhibit 2. Detective Chorlton testified that when he entered the GPS coordinates into MapQuest the resultant GPS coordinates corresponded to the intersection of Port Penn Road and Route 9. This intersection is in the vicinity of Campbell's house.

The jury convicted Campbell on one count each of Trafficking in Methamphetamine (count seven) and Delivery of Methamphetamine (count eight) based on the transaction that took place on October 26, 2006. They acquitted him on the other charges.

ANALYSIS

I. The Trial Judge Properly Admitted Evidence of a Future Drug Deal.

Campbell argues that the trial judge improperly admitted later bad acts evidence. Campbell claims that a "major focus of the trial" was evidence of a drug transaction that was planned to occur over the November 3, 2006 weekend. Campbell contends that the trial judge committed legal error in his application of the Getz analysis and D.R.E. 404(b). The trial judge admitted evidence of this uncharged, planned transaction because it was "evidence of a plan or scheme," under D.R.E. 404(b). We review for abuse of discretion a trial judge's admission of evidence that is relevant for some purpose other than to prove the defendant's propensity to commit crimes pursuant to D.R.E. 404(b).⁶

D.R.E. 404(b) forbids the State from introducing character evidence solely to prove that a defendant acted in conformance with his propensity to commit bad acts.⁷ In Getz, we established the following guidelines for the admissibility of evidence subject to D.R.E. 404(b):

(1) The evidence of other crimes must be material to an issue or ultimate fact in dispute in this case. If the State elects to present such evidence in its case-in-chief it must demonstrate the existence, or reasonable anticipation, of such a material issue. (2) The evidence of other crimes must be introduced for a purpose sanctioned by Rule 404(b) or any other purpose not inconsistent with the basic prohibition against evidence of bad character or criminal disposition. (3) The other crimes must be proved by evidence which is "plain, clear and conclusive." (4) The other crimes must not be too remote in time from the charged offense. (5) The court must balance the probative values of such evidence against its unfairly prejudicial effect, as required by D.R.E. 403. (6) Because such evidence is admitted for a limited purpose, the jury should be instructed concerning the purpose for its admission as required by D.R.E 105.⁸

Campbell asserts that the trial judge: (1) failed to completely address the...