People v. Miller
| Decision Date | 29 June 2018 |
| Docket Number | No. 1–15–2967,1–15–2967 |
| Citation | 426 Ill.Dec. 888,117 N.E.3d 305,2018 IL App (1st) 152967 |
| Parties | The PEOPLE of the State of Illinois, Plaintiff–Appellee, v. Delfonte MILLER, Defendant–Appellant. |
| Court | United States Appellate Court of Illinois |
¶ 1 Following a bench trial, defendant Delfonte Miller was found guilty of possession of a controlled substance and sentenced to one year in prison. On appeal, he contends that he was not proven guilty, beyond a reasonable doubt, of possession of a controlled substance when the arresting officer did not see "exactly" what was in his hand and the contraband was recovered from a trash pile. He also contends that his mittimus must be corrected to accurately reflect the offense of which he was convicted and challenges the assessment of certain fines and fees. We affirm Miller's conviction and correct his mittimus and fines and fees order.
¶ 2 On the afternoon of May 9, 2015, Chicago police officer Esnaf Husic observed Miller in an abandoned building. Miller was "crouched down" near the entrance to the back of the building by a set of stairs. Husic could see Miller because the door to the building was gone. Husic observed as Miller reached behind the stairs with his right hand. Miller was holding a small item, but Husic could not tell "exactly" what it was. At this point, Miller "simultaneously" stood up, looked in Husic's direction, and "took off running." When Miller's hand moved away from the stair area, it was empty. Husic pursued Miller, losing sight of him briefly, and eventually took him into custody. After securing Miller, Husic returned to the abandoned house. Two to three minutes had passed. Husic looked at the place where he saw Miller reach and observed nine Ziploc baggies containing a white powdery substance, which he suspected was heroin. He saw "garbage everywhere" and described the baggies as "just laying there." Husic collected the baggies, inventoried them, and sent them for processing.
¶ 3 The parties stipulated that the contents of seven of the nine baggies tested positive for the presence of heroin and weighed 3.4 grams.
¶ 4 According to Miller, he was in an abandoned house and ran away when he noticed police officers. He denied having drugs in his hand. Miller identified a photograph of the "door of the house" that he was in front of. Miller claimed that he was not at the back of the building; rather, he was in the gangway close to the front. Miller acknowledged that a photograph of the building showed that the back door was missing. Before seeing the police, he heard " ‘lights, lights,’ " which is a "street term" to let people know that the police are nearby and which prompted him to run.
¶ 5 The parties stipulated that Miller had two prior convictions for possession of a controlled substance and one prior conviction for residential burglary.
¶ 6 The trial court found Miller guilty of possession of a controlled substance and sentenced him to one year in prison.
¶ 7 On appeal, Miller first contends that he was not proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of possession of a controlled substance when Officer Husic did not see what he had in his hand and recovered the contraband from a pile of trash. In other words, Miller contends the State failed to prove that he actually possessed any contraband.
¶ 8 When reviewing a challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence, the relevant question is whether, after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the State, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. People v. Brown , 2013 IL 114196, ¶ 48, 377 Ill.Dec. 1, 1 N.E.3d 888. It is the responsibility of the trier of fact to resolve conflicts in the testimony, weigh the evidence, and draw reasonable inferences from the facts. People v. Bradford , 2016 IL 118674, ¶ 12, 401 Ill.Dec. 630, 50 N.E.3d 1112. A reviewing court will not substitute its judgment for that of the fact finder on questions involving the weight of the evidence or the credibility of the witnesses. Id. This court will reverse a defendant's conviction only where the evidence is so unreasonable, improbable, or unsatisfactory that a reasonable doubt of defendant's guilt remains. Id.
¶ 9 "To support a conviction for possession of a controlled substance, the State must prove that the defendant had knowledge of the presence of the narcotics and that the narcotics were in the defendant's immediate and exclusive control." People v. Tates , 2016 IL App (1st) 140619, ¶ 19, 406 Ill.Dec. 571, 61 N.E.3d 175. A defendant's possession can be either actual or constructive. Id. Actual possession is proved by testimony that the defendant exercised some form of dominion over the contraband, such as trying to conceal it or throw it away. People v. Love , 404 Ill. App. 3d 784, 788, 344 Ill.Dec. 729, 937 N.E.2d 752 (2010). "A defendant's lack of control of the premises will not preclude a finding of guilt if the circumstantial evidence supports an inference that the defendant intended to control the contraband inside." Tates , 2016 IL App (1st) 140619, ¶ 20, 406 Ill.Dec. 571, 61 N.E.3d 175. Knowledge and possession are factual issues, and we will not disturb the trier of fact's findings on these questions unless the evidence is so unbelievable or improbable that it creates a reasonable doubt as to the defendant's guilt. People v. Carodine , 374 Ill. App. 3d 16, 25, 311 Ill.Dec. 856, 869 N.E.2d 869 (2007).
¶ 10 Here, taking the evidence in the light most favorable to the State as we must ( Brown , 2013 IL 114196, ¶ 48, 377 Ill.Dec. 1, 1 N.E.3d 888 ), there was evidence from which a rational trier of fact could have found that Miller possessed the baggies of heroin based on Husic's testimony that (i) Miller had something in his hand as he reached behind the stairs, (ii) Miller did not have anything in his hand as he ran away, and (iii) nine baggies of suspect heroin were recovered from behind the stairs.
¶ 11 Miller argues that because Husic did not see "exactly" what he had in his hand, his conviction was based on the mere fact that he was observed in the vicinity of a trash-strewn area from which contraband was later recovered. But while Miller is correct that Husic did not see "exactly" what Miller was holding in his hand, Husic did observe Miller reach behind a set of stairs while holding something and then run away empty-handed. See Love , 404 Ill. App. 3d at 788, 344 Ill.Dec. 729, 937 N.E.2d 752 (). When Husic returned to the building two to three minutes later he observed nine baggies of suspect heroin. The fact that the building was abandoned was not fatal to the State's case when the evidence at trial established that Miller reached behind a set of stairs while holding something in his hand and baggies of heroin were later recovered from that area. See Tates , 2016 IL App (1st) 140619, ¶ 20, 406 Ill.Dec. 571, 61 N.E.3d 175 (). Possession is a factual issue, and this court will not disturb the trier of fact's finding on this issue unless the evidence is so unbelievable that it creates a reasonable doubt as to defendant's guilt ( Carodine , 374 Ill. App. 3d at 25, 311 Ill.Dec. 856, 869 N.E.2d 869 ). This is not one of those cases. Moreover, Miller's theory of the case would have required the trier of fact to accept that Miller happened to place his hand behind a staircase in an abandoned building in the same spot as the contraband, and leave behind an object, without knowing that the contraband was there. A trier of fact is not required to disregard the inferences that flow from the evidence or search out all possible explanations consistent with a defendant's innocence and raise them to a level of reasonable doubt. See In re Jonathon C.B. , 2011 IL 107750, ¶ 60, 354 Ill.Dec. 484, 958 N.E.2d 227. We therefore affirm Miller's conviction for possession of a controlled substance.
¶ 12 Miller next contends that his mittimus, which incorrectly lists his offense as manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance, must be corrected to reflect the offense of which he was convicted, i.e. , possession of a controlled substance. The State concedes the error, and it is obvious that the mittimus must be corrected to reflect the trial court's judgment. Accordingly, pursuant to Illinois Supreme Court Rule 615(b)(1), we direct the clerk of the court to correct the mittimus to reflect that Miller was convicted of possession of a controlled substance.
¶ 13 Miller finally challenges the imposition of certain fines and fees. Miller acknowledges that he failed to challenge the imposition of these fines and fees before the trial court. These issues are, therefore, forfeited. See People v. Smith , 2018 IL App (1st) 151402, ¶ 4, 420 Ill.Dec. 543, 97 N.E.3d 117 (citing People v. Hillier , 237 Ill. 2d 539, 544, 342 Ill.Dec. 1, 931 N.E.2d 1184 (2010) ). Miller requests that we review his claims under the plain error doctrine.
¶ 14 We disagree with Miller that his challenge to the fines and fees order is reviewable under plain error. Miller does not claim that the trial court failed to provide a fair process for determining his fines and fees. Therefore, his complained-of errors do not affect substantial rights and are not reviewable under the plain error doctrine. Smith , 2018 IL App (1st) 151402, ¶ 5, 420 Ill.Dec. 543, 97 N.E.3d 117. However, given that the State has not argued that Miller forfeited his challenge to the fines and fees order, we will address the merits of his claims. People v. Williams , 193 Ill. 2d 306, 347–48, 250 Ill.Dec. 692, 739 N.E.2d 455 (2000) (...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
People v. Jones
...bench trial, unless the evidence is so unbelievable that it creates a reasonable doubt as to the defendant's guilt. See People v. Miller , 2018 IL App (1st) 152967, ¶ 11, 426 Ill.Dec. 888, 117 N.E.3d 305. Possession of a firearm can be either actual or constructive. People v. Dismuke , 2017......