Espinoza v. State
| Decision Date | 27 December 2006 |
| Docket Number | No. 09A02-0603-CR-222.,09A02-0603-CR-222. |
| Parties | Juan Jose ESPINOZA, Appellant-Defendant, v. STATE of Indiana, Appellee-Plaintiff. |
| Court | Indiana Appellate Court |
James T. Knight, Logansport, IN, for Appellant.
Steve Carter, Attorney General of Indiana, Gary Damon Secrest, Deputy Attorney General, Indianapolis, IN, for Appellee.
Juan Jose Espinoza appeals his conviction for dealing in marijuana as a class C felony.1 Espinoza raises four issues, which we revise and restate as:
I. Whether the trial court abused its discretion by admitting the cocaine and marijuana over Espinoza's chain of custody objection;
II. Whether the evidence is sufficient to sustain Espinoza's conviction for dealing in marijuana as a class C felony;
III. Whether the trial court erred by denying Espinoza's motion for a directed verdict based upon entrapment;
IV. Whether the trial court abused its discretion in sentencing Espinoza; and
V. Whether Espinoza's four-year sentence is inappropriate in light of the nature of the offense and the character of the offender.
We affirm.2
The relevant facts follow. On January 20, 2005, Detective Larry Mote of the Indiana State Police received information from the DEA in the State of Washington regarding a package that was to be delivered in Logansport, Indiana ("Package"). A DEA agent in Yakima, Washington, placed the Package in another box and shipped the box by FedEx to Detective Mote at the Logansport Police Department. Detective Mote opened the box and found documentation from the Washington DEA and the Package addressed to "Jose L Solis" at "711 W Market St, Logansport, IN" from Florentina Solis. State's Exhibit 6; Transcript at 35. The Package was to be delivered by UPS on January 21, 2005, and the label described the goods being shipped as a shredder. State's Exhibit 6. Inside the Package, Detective Mote found a paper shredder box that contained seven "bricks" of marijuana and a bag of cocaine. Transcript at 47.
Detective Mote performed field tests that identified the substances as marijuana and cocaine and photographed the contents of the Package. A technician installed a transmitter in the Package that would alert the police when the Package was opened, and Detective Mote placed the marijuana and cocaine back into the Package and resealed it.
Detective Mote arranged for Officer Zeider to deliver the Package while dressed in a brown UPS uniform. Officer Zeider's uniform was equipped with a hidden camera. Officer Zeider delivered the Package to 711 W. Market Street in Logansport. Espinoza answered the door, and Officer Zeider said that he had a package for Jose. Espinoza said that Jose was not there, and Officer Zeider asked if Espinoza would sign for the package. Espinoza indicated that he would sign for the package "[f]or Jose." Transcript at 186. Espinoza signed for the Package using a false name. After Espinoza signed for the Package, Officer Zeider then asked if Espinoza wanted the Package inside the house, and Espinoza responded that he did. Officer Zeider left the package inside the doorway and left the residence.
Officer Zeider then walked to a neighboring McDonald's restaurant. A couple of minutes later, Espinoza left the house and also walked to the McDonald's restaurant. Espinoza ordered a sandwich and watched as Officer Zeider left the building. Officer Zeider got into Sergeant Klepinger's vehicle and left. Espinoza stood at a McDonald's window looking toward his house for a couple of minutes and then returned to his residence.
A couple of minutes after Espinoza returned to his residence, the transmitter in the Package gave a signal to the officers that the Package had been opened or tampered with. At this point, the officers entered the residence and arrested Espinoza. The Package was unopened but dented.3 After being advised of his Miranda rights in English and Spanish, Espinoza said that he was unaware of the marijuana in the package. However, at that point, the officers had not opened the Package and had not mentioned that marijuana was in the Package.
The State charged Espinoza with dealing in cocaine as a class A felony4 and dealing in marijuana as a class C felony. At Espinoza's jury trial, during the examination of Kristi Long, a chemist for the Indiana State Police, Espinoza repeatedly objected to Long's testimony and to admission of the marijuana (State's Exhibit 1), the cocaine (State's Exhibit 2), and Long's lab report (State's Exhibit 3) based upon "foundation" and "chain of custody." Transcript at 18, 21-24. The trial court noted a "continuing objection." Id. at 23. The lab report contained the weights of the marijuana and cocaine, but Long did not testify regarding the accuracy of the measuring devices used to weigh the marijuana or cocaine. Espinoza did not cross examine Long. During the examination of Detective Mote, the State moved to admit the lab report, and Espinoza again objected to the admission of the lab report based upon his "continuing objections" of "relevance," "chain of custody," "hearsay," and "what the document purports to show." Id. at 93. The trial court admitted the document over Espinoza's objection.
After the State rested, Espinoza moved for a directed verdict based in part upon the State's failure to prove that the scale used to weigh the substances was tested before and after its use. Espinoza's counsel stated, "I think the Court will also recall I've got a continuing objection to that evidence and as well had an objection with regard to the certificate of analysis with regard to its accuracy and I [cite] Wattley for that. . . ." Id. at 202. Espinoza also requested a directed verdict based upon the defense of entrapment. The trial court denied Espinoza's motion for a directed verdict.
The jury found Espinoza guilty of dealing in marijuana as a class C felony but not guilty of dealing in cocaine as a class A felony. At sentencing, the trial court sentenced Espinoza to the presumptive sentence of four years in the Indiana Department of Correction.
The first issue is whether the trial court abused its discretion by admitting the cocaine and marijuana over Espinoza's chain of custody objection. We review the trial court's ruling on the admission of evidence for an abuse of discretion. Noojin v. State, 730 N.E.2d 672, 676 (Ind.2000). We reverse only where the decision is clearly against the logic and effect of the facts and circumstances. Joyner v. State, 678 N.E.2d 386, 390 (Ind.1997), reh'g denied. According to Espinoza, the trial court abused its discretion by admitting the marijuana (State's Exhibit 1) and cocaine (State's Exhibit 2) because the State failed to present an adequate chain of custody for the items.
An adequate foundation establishing a continuous chain of custody is established if the State accounts for the evidence at each stage from its acquisition, to its testing, and to its introduction at trial. Wrinkles v. State, 690 N.E.2d 1156, 1161 (Ind.1997), reh'g denied, cert. denied, 525 U.S. 861, 119 S.Ct. 148, 142 L.Ed.2d 121 (1998). "Under the chain of custody doctrine, an adequate foundation is laid when the continuous whereabouts of an exhibit is shown from the time it came into the possession of the police." Cockrell v. State, 743 N.E.2d 799, 808 (Ind.Ct.App. 2001).
To establish a proper chain of custody, the State must give reasonable assurances that the evidence remained in an undisturbed condition. Troxell v. State, 778 N.E.2d 811, 814 (Ind.2002). However, the State need not establish a perfect chain of custody, and once the State "strongly suggests" the exact whereabouts of the evidence, any gaps go to the weight of the evidence and not to admissibility. Id. Moreover, there is a presumption of regularity in the handling of evidence by officers, and there is a presumption that officers exercise due care in handling their duties. Id. To mount a successful challenge to the chain of custody, one must present evidence that does more than raise a mere possibility that the evidence may have been tampered with. Id.
Espinoza appears to argue that the State failed to establish an adequate chain of custody because the State did not present evidence showing the continuous whereabouts of the drugs from the time the drugs came into the custody of law enforcement in the State of Washington until Detective Mote received the Package. Espinoza argues that the State should have presented evidence from a law enforcement officer regarding how the cocaine and marijuana first came into the custody of law enforcement. Espinoza makes no argument concerning the chain of custody of the drugs from the time Detective Mote received them until the time of their admission at trial.
Detective Mote testified that he received information from the DEA in the State of Washington regarding a package that was to be delivered in Logansport, Indiana. The DEA agent asked if Detective Mote "would be interested in conducting this investigation or did they just want to end it out there." Transcript at 43. Detective Mote responded that he wanted to conduct an investigation "on this end." Id. The DEA agent in Yakima, Washington, placed the Package in another box and shipped the box by FedEx to Detective Mote at the Logansport Police Department. Detective Mote opened the box and found documentation from the DEA office and a Package addressed to "Jose L Solis" at "711 W Market St, Logansport, IN" from Florentina Solis. State's Exhibit 6; Transcript at 35, 45. The Package was to be delivered by UPS on January 21, 2005, and the label described the goods being shipped as a shredder. State's Exhibit 6. Inside the Package, Detective Mote found a paper shredder box that contained seven "bricks" of marijuana and a bag of cocaine. Transcript at 47.
Although no evidence was presented regarding how the Package came into the possession of...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Davis v. State, 03A05–1111–CR–639.
...it “accounts for the evidence at each stage from its acquisition, to its testing, and to its introduction at trial.” Espinoza v. State, 859 N.E.2d 375, 382 (Ind.Ct.App.2006). However, the State need not establish a perfect chain of custody, and minor gaps go to the weight of the evidence an......
-
Turner v. State, 79A04-0704-CR-210.
...admitted the evidence even though the State had not elicited testimony about the calibration of the scale. See Espinoza v. State, 859 N.E.2d 375, 383-85 (Ind.Ct.App.2006). Notwithstanding the above, Turner maintains that his circumstances should be treated differently because the prosecutor......
-
Griesemer v. State
...where officer initiated conversation regarding whether “Ferge would be interested in fellatio for payment”); cf. Espinoza v. State, 859 N.E.2d 375, 385–86 (Ind.Ct.App.2006) (where police intercepted package containing marijuana and cocaine that was addressed for delivery via UPS to Espinoza......
-
Hester v. State, 82A01–1411–CR–515.
...Hester's case was in the secure evidence room and did not leave until the mistake was discovered and resolved. See Espinoza v. State, 859 N.E.2d 375, 382 (Ind.Ct.App.2006) (“An adequate foundation establishing a continuous chain of custody is established if the State accounts for the eviden......