Stewart v. State
| Decision Date | 18 November 2020 |
| Docket Number | No. CR-20-11,CR-20-11 |
| Citation | 611 S.W.3d 720,2020 Ark. App. 515 |
| Parties | Forrest R. STEWART, Appellant v. STATE of Arkansas, Appellee |
| Court | Arkansas Court of Appeals |
Thompson Law Firm, PLLC, Little Rock, by: Theodis N. Thompson, Jr. ; and Willard Proctor, Jr., P.A., by: Willard Proctor, Jr., Little Rock, for appellant.
Leslie Rutledge, Att'y Gen., by: Brad Newman, Ass't Att'y Gen., for appellee.
A Miller County jury convicted appellant Forrest Stewart of negligent homicide and sentenced him to serve twenty years in prison and to pay a $15,000 fine. On appeal, he argues that the circuit court (1) abused its discretion in allowing testimony about his prior bad acts; (2) abused its discretion in denying his motion for mistrial based on improper Rule 404(b) testimony; and (3) clearly erred in denying his motion to suppress seized blood samples. We affirm.
In the early morning hours of November 2, 2017, appellant was driving northbound on Highway 67 in Hope, Arkansas, when his vehicle traveled approximately seven feet into the southbound lane, hitting the southbound vehicle driven by James Crowe. Mr. Crowe was pronounced dead at the scene. Appellant was trapped in his vehicle and screaming for help. He was cussing, uncooperative, and combative before and after being removed from his vehicle. He was transported by ambulance and treated for multiple injuries at Wadley Regional Medical Center (Wadley), in Texarkana, Texas, which is located in Bowie County. He arrived at 8:00 a.m., blood was drawn at 8:10 a.m., and the first medication was administered at 8:17 a.m.
Arkansas state troopers Dale Young and Jamie Gravier traveled to Wadley to secure a blood sample from appellant because the accident involved a fatality.1 Trooper Young called Jeffrey Sams of the Miller County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to request assistance for a letter of preservation for the lab at Wadley until Texas law enforcement could assist in obtaining a search warrant. Trooper Gravier contacted Lance Hall of the Bowie County (Texas) Prosecuting Attorney's Office for assistance in obtaining an affidavit and warrant. Trooper Gravier met with Mr. Hall, who prepared the affidavit and the search warrant, and accompanied him to see a Texas judge, who signed the search warrant. Mr. Hall, along with Trooper Gravier, returned to Wadley, presented the search warrant to the lab, and retrieved previously drawn samples from the lab. Mr. Hall turned the samples over to Trooper Gravier, who turned them over to special agent J.D. Jones at the Arkansas State Police Headquarters in Hope. Trooper Gravier also retrieved Mr. Crowe's blood sample from the funeral home and delivered it to Special Agent Jones. The samples were submitted to the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory, and appellant's blood tested positive for methamphetamine.
On March 7, 2018, appellant was charged with negligent homicide, a Class B felony, arising out of the motor-vehicle accident in which Mr. Crowe was killed. The charge was later amended to add an alternative charge of misdemeanor negligent homicide. The circuit court granted appellant's request for an Act 3 mental evaluation on September 17, 2018. The examiner, Dr. Julia Wood, Ph.D., concluded that at the time of the evaluation, appellant did not lack the capacity to understand the proceedings against him or to effectively assist in his defense. In regard to appellant's mental capacity at the time of the alleged offense, the examiner concluded that appellant had a mental disease but not a mental defect under Ark. Code. Ann. § 5-2-301 (Supp. 2019) and did not lack the capacity to appreciate the criminality of his conduct or to conform his conduct to the requirements of the law. Appellant's mental-disease diagnosis included "Major Depressive Disorder, Recurrent, Severe" and "Meth/Alcohol/Cannabis Use Disorders, Severe."
Appellant filed a motion to suppress the blood collected from him at Wadley, which was denied in a letter order. Following a three-day jury trial in July 2019, appellant was convicted of negligent homicide, a Class B felony, and sentenced to twenty years’ imprisonment, along with a $15,000 fine. Appellant timely appealed.
Appellant first argues that the circuit court abused its discretion when it allowed Dr. Wood's testimony about his prior bad acts that had no independent relevance. We review evidentiary rulings under an abuse-of-discretion standard, and we do not reverse absent a manifest abuse of that discretion and a showing of prejudice. Lacy v. State , 2020 Ark. App. 224, at 3–4, 599 S.W.3d 661, 664. Abuse of discretion is a high threshold that does not simply require error in the circuit court's decision but requires that the circuit court act improvidently, thoughtlessly, or without due consideration. Id.
Immediately after the State called Dr. Wood to the stand, appellant objected to her testifying on the basis that it could violate his constitutional rights going forward, arguing that his "mental ability to proceed has already been addressed and allowing her to testify would provide no other substantive value[.]" The State responded that at the time of the Act 3 evaluation, Dr. Wood disclosed that a report would be made and submitted to the court, that appellant was waiving any doctor-patient privilege, and that she could be called to testify in court. The State further argued that appellant made statements regarding the ultimate issue in the case and asked that Dr. Wood be allowed to testify regarding his statements about the accident and his activities prior to the accident. The circuit court overruled the objection.
When the State moved to introduce Dr. Wood's curriculum vitae and her report, appellant's counsel objected stating, The circuit court overruled the objections both times. Appellant's counsel made a relevance objection when Dr. Wood was asked whether appellant had indicated he had prior drug treatment, which was also overruled. The circuit court, however, stopped Dr. Wood from testifying regarding appellant's history of prior drug treatment that was provided to her in records she received. The circuit court also stopped Dr. Wood from reading portions of her report, specifically when she began to read that he had "been in trouble for drugs in the past." The circuit court subsequently ruled that her report could not be published to the jury. At the end of Dr. Wood's direct examination, appellant moved for a mistrial, which was denied.
Appellant now argues that the circuit court abused its discretion when it allowed Dr. Wood to testify about his prior bad acts, arguing that the testimony was not independently relevant and that it was not more probative than prejudicial under the Rule 403 balancing test. Specifically, appellant argues it was error for Dr. Wood to testify about appellant's drug use dating back to 1968, which he relayed to her during the interview, including that his drug of choice was marijuana but that he sometimes used meth and alcohol. As the State points out, appellant failed to object when this testimony was given. Appellant did not object on the basis of Rule 404 and did not mention Rule 403 or ask the circuit court to conduct a balancing test.
Rule 404(b) (2019) of the Arkansas Rules of Evidence provides:
Evidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts is not admissible to prove the character of a person in order to show that he acted in conformity therewith. It may, however, be admissible for other purposes, such as proof of motive, opportunity, intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, or absence of mistake or accident.
A circuit court has broad discretion in deciding evidentiary issues, and its decisions will not be reversed absent an abuse of that discretion. Rounsaville v. State , 2009 Ark. 479, 346 S.W.3d 289. Even evidence otherwise admissible under Rule 404(b) may be excluded if the danger of unfair prejudice substantially outweighs its probative value. See Ark. R. Evid. 403. The balancing of probative value against prejudice under Rule 403 is a matter left to the circuit court's sound discretion. Davis v. State , 368 Ark. 401, 246 S.W.3d 862 (2007). The appellate court also reviews decisions to admit evidence over a Rule 403 objection under an abuse-of-discretion standard. Id.
The requirement that a defendant in a criminal case make a specific objection at trial in order to preserve the argument on appeal is well established. Hewitt v. State , 317 Ark. 362, 365, 877 S.W.2d 926, 928 (1994). A specific objection is one that apprises the court of the particular error to which the party complains so that the circuit court can have the opportunity to correct the error. Id. It is also well settled that a party cannot change the basis of an argument on appeal. Id.
Although appellant bases his appellate argument primarily on Rule 404(b), he never made an argument to the circuit court based on that rule. Rather, appellant made an argument prior to Dr. Wood's testimony based on a potential violation of his constitutional rights but does not make a constitutional argument on appeal. Because appellant failed to make this argument below, it is not preserved for appeal. Id. ; see also Doll v. State , 2020 Ark. App. 153, 598 S.W.3d 47 ; Elliott v. State , 2012 Ark. App. 126, at 3, 389 S.W.3d 100, 103 ().
In addition, appellant argues that appellant's prior drug use dating back to 1968, along with his periods of sobriety, were not independently relevant. He also argues that the evidence was more prejudicial than under the Rule 403 balancing test. Appellant, however, did not object when Wood gave this testimony. Therefore, his argument is not preserved for appeal. Hewitt , supra.
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