Beck v. State

573 S.W.2d 786, 1978 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 1341
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Texas
DecidedNovember 1, 1978
Docket54978
StatusPublished
Cited by112 cases

This text of 573 S.W.2d 786 (Beck v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Beck v. State, 573 S.W.2d 786, 1978 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 1341 (Tex. 1978).

Opinions

OPINION

W. C. DAVIS, Judge.

This is an appeal from a conviction for murder. Punishment was assessed by the [788]*788jury at seventy years’ imprisonment. The sufficiency of the evidence is not challenged.

Appellant raises two grounds of error. First, he complains of the trial court permitting the District Attorney on cross examination to impeach one of his character witnesses with the question, “Have you heard that Dennis Beck was charged and tried of assault with intent to murder?” To which the witness answered, “Yes”. Appellant contends that the question was asked in bad faith because (1) the prosecutor was aware of the fact that the appellant had been acquitted of the offense inquired about, and (2) that of eight character witnesses called by appellant, the question was asked of only one of them. The character witness of whom the question was asked had testified that appellant’s general reputation in the community for being a peaceful and law abiding citizen was good.

There is no showing in the record that the prosecutor was aware that the appellant had been acquitted of the offense about which the witness was asked. It is well established that this court cannot accept as fact allegations or assertions in an appellant’s brief which are not supported by the record. See Holcomb v. State, 523 S.W.2d 661 (Tex.Cr.App.1975). However, if the prosecutor had been aware of the acquittal, such would not have made the question inadmissible. Torbert v. State, 166 Tex.Cr.R. 311, 313 S.W.2d 303 (1958). Appellant’s first ground of error is overruled.

Appellant’s second ground of error complains that the trial court abused its discretion in overruling his amended motion for new trial based upon allegations of jury misconduct. The only testimony adduced at the hearing on the amended motion for new trial was by one of the jurors, Judy Richardson, who was called by the appellant. The State did not call any witnesses. In connection with discussion by the jury of the parole law, Richardson testified as follows:

“Q. In addition, in the questionnaire that I mailed to you and that you returned to me, did you — were you further asked whether or not the jury discussed the length of time the Defendant would have to spend in the penitentiary before he was paroled, or released from confinement?
“A. Some of the people repeatedly brought this up, even when the Foreman asked them not to; they would quit and then it would be brought back up again at another time.
“Q. Would you say that it was brought up on one or two times, or on many occasions, during the jury deliberations?
“A. No, it was brought up several; it was brought up more than twice.
“Q. Did anyone in particular make specific references with regard to how long the Defendant would have to serve if imposed a certain length of sentence? “A. Well, Mr. Dudley was talking about the fact that he did know something, like if you were given a ninety-nine year sentence for the crime, you would have to serve like a third of it, and then I honestly don’t remember who, but somebody said — I remember something being said about, well, like a thirty or twenty year sentence, how long — it was said, mentioned how long — in that persons’ opinion how long the Defendant would have to serve his time.
“Q. Did they further state that if a person received a twenty or thirty year sentence that the Defendant could get out of jail in seven years, and then someone else responded and said, no, it will be less than that, like four or five years?
“A. Well, the way that came up, somebody said, well, they will have to serve at least seven or ten years, and somebody said, no, it was less, and somebody said no it’s more.
“Q. But somebody did make the statement then on a twenty or thirty sentence _?
“A. Yes, sir. Right.
“Q. —that he probably would not have to serve but maybe four or five years, is this correct?
“A. Yes, statements were made to that effect.”

[789]*789Richardson further testified that the subject of parole was brought up six or seven times; that the Foreman and other members of the jury admonished the others that they were not to consider parole; that she understood that parole was in the exclusive jurisdiction of the Board of Pardons and Paroles and she assumed that the others did.

Article 40.03, V.A.C.C.P., provides in part:

“New trials, in cases of felony, shall be granted the defendant for the following causes, u * * *
“(7) Where the jury, after having retired to deliberate upon a case, has received other evidence; .
“(8) Where, from the misconduct of the jury, the court is of the opinion that the defendant has not received a fair and impartial trial . . . ”

In Heredia v. State, 528 S.W.2d 847 (Tex. Cr.App.1975), in considering these two sections, we held that either principle, i. e., receipt of other evidence or misconduct of the jury could be relied upon, in the proper case, to require reversal for the jury’s discussion of the parole law during its deliberations. As to Section 7, we held:

“We adhere to those pronouncements in prior decisions that it is common knowledge that from time to time inmates of the Texas Department of Corrections are released on parole, (cases cited omitted) Consequently, the mere mention of this common knowledge would not constitute the receipt of other evidence, nor would a further discussion of it constitute receiving new evidence any more than discussion of any other matter of common knowledge by the jury.

“ . . .a misstatement of the law, by being incorrect, would constitute other evidence, since by being false it certainly could not be classified as ‘common knowledge’, (cases cited omitted) The receipt of such other evidence, even if nothing further be shown as would constitute misconduct requiring a new trial under Section 8, on a proper set of facts could require reversal under Section 7.”

As to the applicability of Section 8 of Article 40.03, supra, we held:

“Distinct from the receipt of new evidence, discussion of the parole law, although common knowledge, would in every case constitute jury misconduct since the parole law is not for the jury’s consideration. But not all such misconduct necessarily denies the defendant a fair and impartial trial, and it is that standard which determines whether a new trial is required for misconduct under Section 8 of Article 40.03, supra.”

Thus, a misstatement of the law was held in Sweed v. State, 538 S.W.2d 119 (Tex.Cr. App.1976) to constitute other testimony as defined in Subdivision 7 of Article 40.03, supra. In Martinez v. State, 533 S.W.2d 20

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Bluebook (online)
573 S.W.2d 786, 1978 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 1341, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/beck-v-state-texcrimapp-1978.