Robinson v. State

• Citation: 702 A.2d 741,348 Md. 104
• Decision Date: 01 September 1996
• Docket Number: No. 106,106
• Parties: Kenneth Bernard ROBINSON v. STATE of Maryland. ,
• Court: Court of Appeals of Maryland

Page 104

348 Md. 104

702 A.2d 741

Kenneth Bernard ROBINSON v. STATE of Maryland.

No. 106, Sept. Term, 1996.

Court of Appeals of Maryland.

Nov. 19, 1997.

Joy L. Phillips, Asst. Public Defender (Stephen E. Harris, Public Defender, on brief), Baltimore, for Petitioner.

Rachel Marblestone Kamins, Asst. Atty. Gen. (J. Joseph Curran, Jr., Atty. Gen, on brief), Baltimore, for Respondent.

Argued before BELL, C.J., and ELDRIDGE, RODOWSKY, CHASANOW, KARWACKI ^*, RAKER and WILNER, JJ.

RAKER, Judge.

In this case, Petitioner Kenneth Robinson was found guilty by a jury of possession of cocaine in violation of Maryland Code (1957, 1996 Repl.Vol., 1997 Supp.) Article 27, § 287(a). ¹ Following his arrest, Robinson ingested a substance alleged to be cocaine, and therefore it was not available for chemical analysis. We resolve two issues presented in this case: (1) whether the State must introduce the results of a chemical analysis to prove beyond a reasonable doubt the composition of that substance; and (2) whether the trial court erred by allowing the introduction of lay opinion testimony that the disputed substance was in fact crack cocaine. We conclude that proof based on scientific analysis or expert testimony is not required to prove the nature of a controlled substance, and that the State may base a conviction for the possession of a controlled dangerous substance solely upon circumstantial evidence. The lay opinion testimony in this case, however, was inadmissible because that evidence was not competent for the purpose for which it was offered.

I.

On November 20, 1994, Trooper Donald Harrison of the Maryland State Police was patrolling Route 4, just north of Leonardtown, Maryland. At 11:30 p.m., Trooper Harrison stopped an automobile for exceeding the posted speed limit. Robinson was seated in the front passenger seat. As Trooper Harrison approached the automobile, he observed Robinson making "suspicious and furtive movements toward the floorboard of the vehicle." When the driver of the car was unable to produce either a driver's license or a registration card, Trooper Harrison ordered both the driver and Robinson out of the automobile. A subsequent "wanted check" revealed an outstanding parole retake warrant for Robinson. During a search of Robinson at the side of the road, the trooper seized a plastic container concealed in Robinson's sock. Inside the container was a transparent plastic baggie holding eight rocks that Trooper Harrison believed to be crack cocaine. The trooper arrested Robinson and transported him to the Leonardtown police barracks.

At the Leonardtown barracks, Robinson was handcuffed to the desk of Trooper Harrison. The trooper then placed the plastic baggie containing the suspected crack cocaine on his desk. Accommodating Robinson's request to use the bathroom, Trooper Harrison removed the handcuffs, allowing Robinson to be escorted to and from the bathroom by Trooper Mark Karwacki. Upon his return from the bathroom, Robinson suddenly ran away from Karwacki and hurled himself at Trooper Harrison. Pinning Trooper Harrison against a wall, Robinson initially punched and kicked Harrison. Moments later, Robinson began to repeatedly punch and kick Trooper Karwacki as well. During the fracas, Robinson seized the baggie containing the eight rocks and swallowed it. Shortly thereafter, Robinson was taken to St. Mary's Hospital, where he remained for several days. Neither the rocks nor the baggie were ever recovered.

As a result of this incident, Robinson was charged by criminal information with, inter alia, possession of cocaine in violation of Article 27, § 287(a), possession of cocaine with intent to distribute in violation of § 286(a), and two counts of common law battery. Robinson was subsequently tried before a jury in the Circuit Court for St. Mary's County. ² Since Robinson ingested the suspected cocaine, neither the substance itself nor a chemical analysis was introduced at trial. The State's proof as to the identity of the chemical composition of the suspected contraband was based primarily on the visual identification of the substance by Troopers Harrison and Karwacki.

Trooper Harrison testified that he got a "good look" at the baggie and its contents when it was on his desk. He described the substance he seized from Robinson as eight crystalline rocks with jagged edges, creamy-yellowish in color with each rock between an eighth of an inch and a quarter of an inch in length. ³ The prosecutor then asked Trooper Harrison to give his opinion as to the identity of the substance that he seized from Robinson. Defense counsel objected on the grounds that Harrison was not an expert in narcotics identification, and therefore was not qualified to identify the contraband based upon sight alone. The trial judge overruled the objection and Trooper Harrison testified that the suspected contraband seized from Robinson was, in his opinion, crack cocaine. ⁴

The State then called Trooper Karwacki to the witness stand. Karwacki testified that he had handled and observed the suspected contraband at the Leonardtown barracks. Specifically, he stated that he removed the transparent baggie from its plastic container and "could see the eight pieces clearly." After the State established Karwacki's credentials, ⁵ he was also permitted, over the objection of defense counsel, to offer his opinion that the substance seized from Robinson was crack cocaine. ⁶ The jury convicted Robinson of possession of crack cocaine and two counts of battery. The trial judge sentenced Robinson to eight years incarceration for the battery of Trooper Harrison, four years incarceration for the cocaine possession, to be served consecutive to the battery of Trooper Harrison, and eight years incarceration, suspended, for the battery of Trooper Karwacki.

Robinson noted a timely appeal to the Court of Special Appeals. In an unreported opinion, the intermediate appellate court affirmed Robinson's convictions. ⁷ We then granted Robinson's petition for certiorari.

Before this Court, Robinson seeks to reverse his conviction for possession of cocaine on a number of grounds. Initially, he argues that proof of a controlled substance may be established only through chemical analysis. Robinson also contends that the testimony of Troopers Harrison and Karwacki was inadmissible because, after only a visual inspection of the alleged contraband, they could not rationally conclude that the substance was in fact crack cocaine. In contrast, the State argues that the trial court properly admitted the lay testimony of Troopers Harrison and Karwacki because their training and experience assisted the jury in determining whether the suspected cocaine was in fact a controlled substance. Thus, reasons the State, any infirmity in this visual identification by the troopers goes to the weight of that testimony, and not to its admissibility.

II.

Robinson argues in the first instance that proof of the chemical composition of the alleged controlled substance may be established solely by chemical analysis. We disagree. The result advocated by Robinson would deviate from a fundamental evidentiary principle: Circumstantial evidence is in no manner intrinsically inferior to direct evidence. ⁸ State v. Gray, 344 Md. 417, 424 n. 5, 687 A.2d 660, 664 n. 5, cert. granted, --- U.S. ----, 117 S.Ct. 2452, 138 L.Ed.2d 210 (1997); Mangum v. State, 342 Md. 392, 398-400, 676 A.2d 80, 82-84 (1996). " '[W]hether direct evidence or circumstantial evidence is more trustworthy and probative depends upon the particular facts of the case and no generalizations realistically can be made that one class of evidence is per se more reliable than is the other class of evidence.' " Hebron v. State, 331 Md. 219, 225, 627 A.2d 1029, 1032 (1993) (quoting State v. Gosby, 85 Wash.2d 758, 539 P.2d 680, 685 (1975)). In a given case, circumstantial evidence may be more persuasive than direct evidence. E.g., Janifer v. Jandebeur, 551 A.2d 1351, 1352 (D.C.1989) (citing Michalic v. Cleveland Tankers, Inc. 364 U.S. 325, 330, 81 S.Ct. 6, 11, 5 L.Ed.2d 20 (1960)). We note that the great weight of authority from other state and federal courts recognizes that circumstantial or indirect evidence may be sufficient, standing alone, to establish the nature of a controlled substance. United States v. Wright, 16 F.3d 1429, 1439 (6th Cir.), cert. denied, 512 U.S. 1243, 114 S.Ct. 2759, 129 L.Ed.2d 874 (1994); United States v. Kelly, 14 F.3d 1169, 1174 (7th Cir.1994); Griffin v. Spratt, 969 F.2d 16, 22 n. 2 (3rd Cir.1992); United States v. Walters, 904 F.2d 765, 770 (1st Cir.1990); United States v. Westbrook, 896 F.2d 330, 336 (8th Cir.1990); United States v. Sanchez DeFundora, 893 F.2d 1173, 1175 (10th Cir.), cert. denied, 495 U.S. 939, 110 S.Ct. 2190, 109 L.Ed.2d 518 (1990); United States v. Brown, 887 F.2d 537, 542 (5th Cir.1989); United States v. Harrell, 737 F.2d 971, 978 (11th Cir.1984), cert. denied, 470 U.S. 1027, 105 S.Ct. 1392, 84 L.Ed.2d 781 (1985); United States v. Dolan, 544 F.2d 1219, 1221 (4th Cir.1976); Urrutia v. State, 924 P.2d 965, 968 (Wyo.1996); In re Interest of C.T., 521 N.W.2d 754, 757-58 (Iowa 1994); Bernard v. United States, 575 A.2d 1191, 1193 (D.C.1990); State v. Lesac, 231 Neb. 718, 437 N.W.2d 517, 519 (1989); Chancey v. State, 256 Ga. 415, 349 S.E.2d 717, 725 (1986), cert. denied, 481 U.S. 1029, 107 S.Ct. 1954, 95 L.Ed.2d 527 (1987); In re Reismiller, 101 Wash.2d 291, 678 P.2d 323, 325 (1984); State v. Starr, 204 Mont. 210, 664 P.2d 893, 895-96 (1983); People v. Edwards, 198 Colo. 52, 598 P.2d 126, 128 (1979); Com. v. Myers, 452 Pa.Super. 299, 681 A.2d 1348, 1353 n. 5 (1996), cert. granted, 694 A.2d 620 (Pa.1997); State v. Anderson, 176 Wis.2d 196, 500 N.W.2d 328, 330-31 (App.1993); State v. Northrup, 16 Kan.App.2d 443, 825 P.2d 174, 177-78 (1992) (citing cases); Myrick v. Com., 13 Va.App. 333, 412 S.E.2d 176, 179-80 (1991); Swain v. State, 805 P.2d 684, 685-86 (Okla.Crim.App.19...