Siercks v. State

• Decision Date: 08 November 2013
• Docket Number: CR–12–0874.
• Citation: 154 So.3d 1085
• Parties: Robert Swan SIERCKS v. STATE of Alabama.
• Court: Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals

154 So.3d 1085

Robert Swan SIERCKS

v.STATE of Alabama.

CR–12–0874.

Court of Criminal Appeals of Alabama.

Nov. 8, 2013.

Jamie Morgan Stephens, Huntsville, for appellant.

Luther Strange, atty. gen., and Stephen N. Dodd, asst. atty. gen., for appellee.

Opinion

KELLUM, Judge.

Robert Swan Siercks was convicted of unlawful possession of a controlled substance, cocaine, see § 13A–12–212, Ala.Code 1975. He was sentenced, as a habitual offender with three prior felony convictions, to 15 years' imprisonment.

The evidence adduced at trial indicated the following. On November 18, 2011, around 3 p.m., Steven Graham, a patrol officer and field-training officer with the Huntsville Police Department, and Christopher Edwards, a rookie patrol officer with the Huntsville Police Department, were on patrol when Officer Graham saw a 1992 Oldsmobile automobile stopped at a traffic light at an intersection. The driver of the vehicle was not wearing a seatbelt. When the traffic light turned green, Officer Graham followed the vehicle, turned on his emergency lights, and executed a traffic stop. When the vehicle stopped, the officers got out of the patrol car and Officer Graham approached the driver's side of the vehicle, while Officer Edwards approached the passenger side. Siercks was driving the vehicle and a woman was in the front passenger seat.

Officer Graham asked Siercks for his driver's license, vehicle registration, and insurance information. Siercks informed Officer Graham that he had no identification with him. The female passenger also said that she had no identification with her. Officer Graham stated that he then asked Siercks to get out of the vehicle. According to Officer Graham, it is standard procedure to detain a vehicle occupant who has no identification until the occupant's identity can be determined. The female passenger was also asked to get out of the vehicle.

When Siercks opened the driver's side door and started to get out of the vehicle, Officer Graham saw “in plain view between the door and the driver's seat ... a small white rock of cocaine.” (R. 94.) Graham then conducted a patdown of Siercks, handcuffed Siercks, and put Siercks in the back of his patrol car. After Siercks was secured, Officer Graham pointed out to Officer Edwards the location of the white rock, confiscated the rock, and radioed for narcotics officers to come to the scene. Subsequently, Officer Graham conducted a field test on the white rock. Based on the results of the field test, Officer Graham arrested Siercks for possession of cocaine. Officer Graham also wrote Siercks a traffic ticket for failing to wear a seatbelt. Because no illegal narcotics were found on the passenger side of the vehicle, the female passenger was released. Officer Graham testified that he determined that the vehicle Siercks was driving was registered to a woman named Sally Hawkins, who lived at 3834 Melody Road, the same address where Siercks lived.

Although the rock was later submitted to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences (“DFS”) for testing, no evidence was presented regarding the results of that testing. However, Officer Graham testified that he had been a police officer since 2007 and that he had made some 500 drug arrests during his career, including approximately 200 arrests involving cocaine. Officer Graham said that in addition to his training at the police academy, he had attended a four-day training class involving drug detection generally¹ as well as a week-long training class dedicated to methamphetamine. Officer Graham stated that the Huntsville Police Department has a procedure for submitting confiscated narcotics to DFS and that, in none of the approximately 200 arrests for cocaine he had made in his career, did DFS return a report indicating that the substance was not cocaine. Based on his experience, Officer Graham said, it was immediately apparent to him that the white rock he found in the vehicle driven by Siercks was crack cocaine. Officer Graham also identified the rock he confiscated at trial, and the rock was introduced into evidence by the defense.

On cross-examination, Officer Graham stated that he did not notice Siercks or the female passenger make any strange movements as he was executing the traffic stop and that there was nothing that would have stopped Siercks from throwing the rock into the backseat before he stopped the vehicle. Officer Graham also said that when he patted Siercks down he did not find any narcotics on his person. Officer Graham stated that he did not question either Siercks or the female passenger about the rock of cocaine he found but that the narcotics officer who came to the scene “did all that.” (R. 116.)

Officer Edwards testified that he observed Officer Graham approach the driver's side of the vehicle, get Siercks out of the vehicle, and pat Siercks down. After Siercks was detained, Officer Edwards went to the driver's side of the vehicle and saw “[w]hat appeared to be a rock of crack cocaine ... next to the driver's seat in between the seat and the window.” (R. 130.) Officer Edwards admitted that the traffic stop of Siercks occurred only one week after he had graduated from the police academy, but he said that he had been trained in the police academy to identify narcotics, including crack cocaine. Officer Edwards said that, even as a rookie, he had no doubt that the substance in the vehicle was crack cocaine.

After both sides rested and the trial court instructed the jury on the applicable principles of law, the jury convicted Siercks of unlawful possession of cocaine as charged in the indictment. This appeal followed.

I.

On appeal, Siercks contends that the trial court erred in denying his motion for a judgment of acquittal made at the close of the State's case and his motion for a new trial because, he says, the evidence was insufficient to sustain his conviction. Specifically, Siercks argues, as he did at trial, that the State failed to prove: (1) that the substance seized from the vehicle was, in fact, cocaine; and (2) that he was in constructive possession of the cocaine.

“ ‘ “In determining the sufficiency of the evidence to sustain a conviction, a reviewing court must accept as true all evidence introduced by the State, accord the State all legitimate inferences therefrom, and consider all evidence in a light most favorable to the prosecution.” ’ Ballenger v. State, 720 So.2d 1033, 1034 (Ala.Crim.App.1998), quoting Faircloth v. State, 471 So.2d 485, 488 (Ala.Crim.App.1984), aff'd, 471 So.2d 493 (Ala.1985). ‘ “The test used in determining the sufficiency of evidence to sustain a conviction is whether, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, a rational finder of fact could have found the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.” ’ Nunn v. State, 697 So.2d 497, 498 (Ala.Crim.App.1997), quoting O'Neal v. State, 602 So.2d 462, 464 (Ala.Crim.App.1992). ‘ “When there is legal evidence from which the jury could, by fair inference, find the defendant guilty, the trial court should submit [the case] to the jury, and, in such a case, this court will not disturb the trial court's decision.” ’ Farrior v. State, 728 So.2d 691, 696 (Ala.Crim.App.1998), quoting Ward v. State, 557 So.2d 848, 850 (Ala.Crim.App.1990). ‘The role of appellate courts is not to say what the facts are. Our role ... is to judge whether the evidence is legally sufficient to allow submission of an issue for decision [by] the jury.’ Ex parte Bankston, 358 So.2d 1040, 1042 (Ala.1978).”

Gavin v. State, 891 So.2d 907, 974 (Ala.Crim.App.2003).

“In reviewing a conviction based on circumstantial evidence, this court must view that evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution. The test to be applied is whether the jury might reasonably find that the evidence excluded every reasonable hypothesis except that of guilt; not whether such evidence excludes every reasonable hypothesis but guilt, but whether a jury might reasonably so conclude. United States v. Black, 497 F.2d 1039 (5th Cir.1974) ; United States v. McGlamory, 441 F.2d 130 (5th Cir.1971) ; Clark v. United States, 293 F.2d 445 (5th Cir.1961).

“ ‘[W]e must keep in mind that the test to be applied is not simply whether in the opinion of the trial judge or the appellate court the evidence fails to exclude every reasonable hypothesis but that of guilt; but rather whether the jury might so conclude. Harper v. United States, 405 F.2d 185 (5th Cir.1969) ; Roberts v. United States, 416 F.2d 1216 (5th Cir.1969). The procedure for appellate review of the sufficiency of the evidence has been aptly set out in Odom v. United States, 377 F.2d 853, 855 (5th Cir.1967) :

“ ‘ “Our obligation, therefore, is to examine the record to determine whether there is any theory of the evidence from which the jury might have excluded every hypothesis except guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Rua v. United States, 5 Cir., 1963, 321 F.2d 140 ; Riggs v. United States, 5 Cir., 1960, 280 F.2d 949. In Judge Thornberry's words,

“ ‘ “ ‘ ... the standard utilized by this Court is not whether in our opinion the evidence and all reasonable inferences therefrom failed to exclude every hypothesis other than guilt, but rather whether there was evidence from which the jury might reasonably so conclude.’ Williamson v. United States, 5th Cir., 1966, 365 F.2d 12, 14. (Emphasis supplied).”“ ‘The sanctity of the jury function demands that this court never substitute its decision for that of the jury. Our obligation is [to] examine the welter of evidence to determine if there exists any reasonable theory from which the jury might have concluded that the defendant was guilty of the crime charged.’ McGlamory, 441 F.2d at 135 and 136.”

Cumbo v. State, 368 So.2d 871, 874–75 (Ala.Crim.App.1978).

A.

First, Siercks argues that the State failed to prove that the substance seized from the vehicle was cocaine. While recognizing that scientific testing is not necessarily required to establish the nature of a controlled...