Brewer v. State

126 S.W.3d 295, 2004 Tex. App. LEXIS 404, 2003 WL 23163261
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJanuary 14, 2004
Docket09-02-208 CR
StatusPublished
Cited by28 cases

This text of 126 S.W.3d 295 (Brewer v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Brewer v. State, 126 S.W.3d 295, 2004 Tex. App. LEXIS 404, 2003 WL 23163261 (Tex. Ct. App. 2004).

Opinions

OPINION

STEVE McKEITHEN, Chief Justice.

John Nevil Brewer was charged with the capital murder of Stephen Wayne Sas-ser by shooting him with a firearm in the course of committing or attempting to commit a robbery. A jury found him guilty of capital murder. As the State did not seek the death penalty, Brewer was automatically sentenced by the trial court to life imprisonment. Tex. Pen.Code Ann. § 12.31(a) (Vernon 2003). Timely notice of appeal was filed.

Brewer contends that the evidence was legally and factually insufficient to support the jury’s finding of guilt, both as to the capital murder and the underlying offense of robbery, and also contends error by the trial court in failing to grant his motion for new trial based upon an alleged failure of the state to provide him information as required by Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963). For the reasons stated-below, we affirm the murder conviction, reverse and render as to the underlying robbery conviction, and remand for the assessment of punishment only.

[297]*297Legal and Factual Sufficiency — Capital Murder in the Course of Robbery

A legal sufficiency review requires the reviewing court to view the relevant evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict and determine whether any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime charged beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979); Johnson v. State, 23 S.W.3d 1, 7 (Tex.Crim.App.2000); Williams v. State, 937 S.W.2d 479, 482 (Tex.Ciim.App.1996). The appellate court in such review acts as a final due process safeguard ensuring the rationality of the fact finder. Alvarado v. State, 912 S.W.2d 199, 207 (Tex.Crim.App.1995). In reviewing factual sufficiency, the reviewing court asks whether a review of all the evidence demonstrates that the proof of guilt is obviously so weak as to undermine confidence in the trier of fact’s determination, or, if taken alone, the proof of guilt is greatly outweighed by contrary proof. Johnson, 23 S.W.3d at 11. See also Bustamante v. State, 106 S.W.3d 738, 740 (Tex.Crim.App.2003); Zuliani v. State, 97 S.W.3d 589, 593-94 (Tex.Crim.App.2003). Although in a factual sufficiency review the reviewing court is authorized to disagree with the jury’s determination even if probative evidence exists which supports the verdict, a reviewing court must give due deference to the jury’s determination concerning the weight and credibility of the evidence, and will reverse the jury’s determination only to arrest the occurrence of a manifest injustice. Swearingen v. State, 101 S.W.3d 89, 97 (Tex.Crim.App.2003).

In capital murder committed during the course of a robbery, see Tex. Pen.Code Ann. § 19.03(a) (Vernon 2003), the legal and factual sufficiency standards apply to both the charged and underlying offense. Matamoros v. State, 901 S.W.2d 470, 474 (Tex.Crim.App.1995); Drew v. State, 76 S.W.3d 436, 444-47 (Tex.App.Houston [14th Dist.] pet. ref'd), cert. denied, 537 U.S. 1047, 123 S.Ct. 601, 154 L.Ed.2d 520 (2002). To establish the “murder” element of the charged offense, the State must prove the defendant intentionally or knowingly caused the death of an individual. Rey v. State, 897 S.W.2d 333, 340 n. 7 (Tex.Crim.App.1995); Tex. Pen.Code Ann. § 19.02(a) (Vernon 2003). To establish capital murder committed during the course of robbery, the State must prove, inter alia, in addition to the murder, that the defendant possessed the specific intent to obtain or maintain control of the victim’s property either before or during the commission of the murder. Maldonado v. State, 998 S.W.2d 239, 243 (Tex.Crim.App.1999); Zapata v. State, 15 S.W.3d 661, 664 (Tex.App.-Beaumont 2000, no pet.). Proof of a completed theft is not required. Bustamante, 106 S.W.3d at 740; Maldonado, 998 S.W.2d at 243.

Under the above standards, all evidence, including circumstantial evidence, is considered. Nguyen v. State, 54 S.W.3d 49, 52 (Tex.App.-Texarkana 2001, pet. ref'd). “Circumstantial evidence” is direct proof of secondary facts which, by logical inference, demonstrates the ultimate fact to be proven. Cowan v. State, 840 S.W.2d 435, 438 n. 10 (Tex.Crim.App.1992). In the law of evidence, an inference is a fact or proposition drawn from an admitted or otherwise proven fact. It is a logical consequence flowing from a proven fact. Marshall Field Stores, Inc. v. Gardiner, 859 S.W.2d 391, 400 (Tex.App.-Houston [1st Dist.] 1993, writ dism’d w.o.j.)(op. on reh’g). If circumstantial evidence provides no more than a suspicion, the jury is not entitled to reach a speculative conclusion. Id. at 401.

We review the evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict:

[298]*298On May 28, 2000, around 8:00 a.m., Bryant Matthews arrived at his father’s house in the Bear Creek area of San Jacin-to County. Matthews’s father was the fire chief of the Bear Creek Fire Department, and the two of them planned to spend the day repainting the fire hydrants in their district. Around 8:30 a.m., Matthews and his father drove down Shell Oil Road. At that time, Matthews saw a vehicle parked about 75 yards off the road near a dirt mound where people normally wouldn’t drive. He did not have a very good view of the vehicle and did not approach it at that time. After completing his work for the day, at approximately 7:00 p.m., Matthews was driving alone past that same area and noticed the vehicle was still there. He pulled over and walked towards the car. Inside he observed a male subject, apparently dead, slumped over towards the driver’s side, with a large amount of blood on his head and upper body. Using his two-way radio, he contacted the San Jacinto County sheriffs office. The doors and trunk of the vehicle were closed, and the only tire tracks visible were those made by the vehicle at the scene. Matthews did not check around the vehicle, and remained at the scene until the officers arrived. He did not recognize the victim. No one else was at the scene prior to the sheriffs arrival.

San Jacinto County Deputy Sheriff Pepper Ray Sterner was the first officer to arrive. He saw a green Pontiac Sunfire, parked about 120-150 feet in a remote, wooded area. Inside the vehicle, on the passenger side, he saw what appeared to be a white male, slumped over to the right, towards the windows. The victim was described as “discolored” and “bloated.”

The police investigator estimated the body had been there one or two days in the warm temperatures. The victim had a shotgun wound to the left neck area, shot from a very close range. This wound was determined by the Harris County Medical Examiner to be the cause of death.

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Bluebook (online)
126 S.W.3d 295, 2004 Tex. App. LEXIS 404, 2003 WL 23163261, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/brewer-v-state-texapp-2004.