Gahl v. State

• Decision Date: 23 October 1986
• Docket Number: No. 05-85-01048-CR,05-85-01048-CR
• Citation: 721 S.W.2d 888
• Parties: Robert Allen GAHL, Appellant, v. The STATE of Texas, Appellee.
• Court: Texas Court of Appeals

Page 888

721 S.W.2d 888

Robert Allen GAHL, Appellant, v. The STATE of Texas, Appellee.

No. 05-85-01048-CR.

Court of Appeals of Texas Dallas.

Oct. 23, 1986.

Michael P. Gibson, Dallas, for appellant.

John Nation, Asst. Dist. Atty., Dallas, for appellee.

Before VANCE, DEVANY and CARVER ¹, JJ.

DEVANY, Justice.

Appellant, Robert Allen Gahl, was convicted of committing bribery in a trial before the court and sentenced to four years confinement. Appellant presents four points of error complaining that the indictment improperly joined offenses and did not give him adequate notice, that the audio and video tape recordings used by the state were inadmissible, and that the evidence is insufficient to support the conviction. Because we disagree with appellant's contentions, we affirm the judgment of conviction.

THE INSUFFICIENCY QUESTION

In his fourth point of error, appellant claims that the evidence is insufficient to support the conviction. The evidence reveals that at the time of the offense, appellant was the Chief Building Official for the City of Dallas. He was charged with accepting a check for $15,741.44 from Jerry Stewart in exchange for appellant's approval of Riverpointe, a multi-family condominium project. Jerry Stewart and Bryan Thruston were with STB Architects and Planners in Dallas, a business they co-owned. Because of the project's unique design, it presented several problems requiring interpretations of the building code.

Stewart contacted appellant initially to discuss some of the building code interpretations. Stewart and Thruston met with appellant on April 3, 1984 for the first time. Appellant came to the STB offices and discussed the building and land planning concept with Stewart and Thruston. The three men also took a tour of Glen Lakes, another project which Stewart and Thruston had designed, to compare that project with Riverpointe. Before returning to his office, appellant promised Stewart and Thruston he would review the building code in light of their proposal.

On April 6 appellant called Stewart and suggested another meeting on Saturday, April 7. On that Saturday afternoon appellant again met with Stewart at the STB offices. This time, however, appellant gave Stewart interpretations of the building code that would severely hamper construction of the Riverpointe project. For example, the individual condominium units had changes in level of a step or two and appellant threatened to count each level as a separate floor. This interpretation would increase the number of exits otherwise required by the building code, change the number of floors in the project from three to six, and create severe design problems for the project. Appellant also disagreed with Stewart on the placement of exits.

During the meeting, appellant mentioned that he had once helped an architect in another city, but had not gained anything for that help. Appellant observed that Stewart had a problem with the building code interpretations and that he, appellant, had a problem with some land in Arizona. Appellant suggested that STB help him with his Arizona property, either through a purchase or loan. Stewart responded that he was not interested in purchasing any land outside the City of Dallas.

Following this meeting, Stewart told his partner Thruston that he thought appellant "had his hand out," and asked Thruston to be present with him during any future meetings with appellant.

On Thursday, April 12, at 9:00 a.m., Stewart and Thruston drove to appellant's office for a further meeting. At the beginning of this meeting, appellant told them, "You didn't help me with my problem, and I'm not going to be able to help you with your problem." Stewart then asked appellant what code interpretation would bar approval of the project. The three men then began a discussion which was interrupted at 10:00 a.m. because appellant had to attend a staff meeting. Stewart and Thruston decided to wait in appellant's office. After appellant returned, Stewart asked him pointblank, "What do you want?" Appellant responded by suggesting that they go to lunch.

At some point over lunch, Stewart mentioned that they had received favorable interpretations on a similar project. Appellant laughed and said, "You tell me any city that you've got a favorable interpretation and I can call them and get it changed."

During lunch, appellant also delved into the particulars of his land project in Arizona. Appellant commented that he had bought land in Arizona to develop but was not able to carry the debt. While appellant spoke, Stewart recorded figures on a waiter's check. Appellant wanted Stewart and Thruston to take care of the debt on his land in Arizona, make the interest payment, and assist him in purchasing a house from Richard Minkoff, a Dallas builder. The house appellant wanted to purchase sold for $110,000; the debt on the Arizona land was $180,000, with an interest payment soon to be due for $15,000. The gross fee that Stewart and Thruston would earn from the Riverpointe project would be $64,000. At the close of the meeting, appellant commented that he wanted this transaction to be a "win-win" situation. Stewart told appellant that he would think about his proposal and get back to him.

After the meeting, Stewart contacted City of Dallas officials, and on Friday, April 13, met with City Manager Charles Anderson and representatives of the Dallas Police Department and the District Attorney's Office. As a result of this meeting, Stewart went back to his office and called appellant to set up a meeting for Saturday, April 14. The April 14 meeting and a later meeting on April 16 were monitored and recorded by representatives of the Dallas Police Department and an assistant district attorney.

The tapes of these meetings were played at trial. During the first meeting, appellant told Stewart and Thruston that he had reviewed his position on the units and was not going to change his interpretations, at least for the Riverpointe project. Stewart then asked, "Are you saying we don't have a problem?" Appellant responded:

I'm saying you do have a problem. But what I'm saying is that ... the reason I brought this thing up about my land in Arizona is that I think you do have a problem and ... I try to be a win-win person. Okay? And if I say, "Okay, guys, you got a problem; I think you have a nice project; I'm going to loosen the rule up even more," you guys have won, in that win-win situation. I won't say that I lost, but I haven't won anything.

Appellant then began talking about his land deal in Arizona, a venture he had once hoped would earn $5,000,000 for himself. Apparently, the venture had not fared as well as he had anticipated. Thus, it appears that he had an interest in involving Stewart and Thruston:

I thought I was getting pretty far down the road with this thing (the land project in Arizona) and I ain't there yet. And, ... what I've done with this thing is I said "Well, maybe these guys, maybe these guys can help me." And, ... I decided to get out of it really nothing more than really what I've got in it and throw away my million dollar dream, ... which is the ... thing which I've asked you to help me with and, ... I guess that would give me a reason to look very closely at your project and see if there isn't a way that I can interpret this thing, so that with the sprinklering of the four-story units, or what-ever that go across to the garage, and nothing else, that you could go ahead and that your basic scheme, which you patented, could go forward in the City of Dallas. I ... think I have found a way to stretch the word so that ... I could come out with an interpretation, which I would write down and which would be the official interpretation.

It appears from further testimony that this interpretation had its price:

I think I'd be being a really nice guy by doing that because I think ... I've stretched words quite a ways. I guess ... if we could both win ... and if you're as good as I think you are, at making things happen, I think the thing I'm suggesting that you get yourself tied into, that you don't want any part of at this point--you absolutely want no part of it at all ..., I think that that thing could end up making you a substantial amount of money ... and I just think you're better at doing this than I am.

It is apparent from the tapes that appellant knew that Stewart and Thruston had no great desire to help him and that appellant was "shoving it down your throat." At this point, Stewart and Thruston responded that they felt they had no problems with the project before they learned of appellant's new code interpretations on the Riverpointe project. Appellant then stated what he would do for them on the Riverpointe design:

I would write an interpretation ... to my staff saying, "This is the way we're going to interpret it," and ... I would sign it and you can put it with your patent.

Thereafter, appellant suggested that Stewart and Thruston might trade one of their lots in the Glen Lakes Development for appellant's land in Arizona. The parties then spent some time discussing the particulars of appellant's Arizona land project.

Appellant then discussed proposed code interpretations with Stewart and Thruston. It is obvious from the tapes that if Stewart and Thruston helped appellant with his land problems, appellant would draft a favorable interpretation. Appellant further stated:

I think I am saying to you ... is that ... I'm willing to be creative about the way the ordinance is interpreted so that your creative project can go forward.... I'd like to ... get something out of that creativity.... I think that if you go forward and do this, that you will probably win on both your dream and my dream.... you're going into this with your ... hands tied behind your back, I'm afraid and it's true. And I don't think you're going to love me a lot, as time goes on. I don't think you love me a lot right now, to tell you the truth.

Ap...