Ex Parte Byrias Roberson

455 S.W.3d 257, 2015 WL 148476
Court of Appeals of Texas·Decided January 12, 2015·No. NO. 02-13-00582-CR·Published·Cited by 14 cases

Opinions

OPINION

ANNE GARDNER, JUSTICE

Appellant Byrias Roberson appeals the denial of his pretrial application for writ of habeas corpus. Appellant contends the State goaded him into moving for a mistrial during his first trial and, therefore, any retrial would violate his protections against double jeopardy. We affirm.

[259] Background

In appellant’s first trial for resisting arrest, the record shows that after the parties made their strikes, the jury was selected, the jury was sworn, the trial court excused the remaining veniremembers, the trial court gave instructions to the six jurors, the State read the indictment, appellant pled not guilty, and the trial court excused the jury despite the fact it was only about 3:00 p.m. and instructed the jurors to return the next morning. The record then resumes with the notation, “(Open court, defendant present, no jury),” and the prosecutor announced that the State’s investigator, Donnie Cavinder, had “mistakenly” spoken to one of the jurors. The prosecutor stated that it was Cavin-der, not a juror, who brought the matter to her attention. Cavinder was sworn in and testified that he left the courtroom before the jury was seated to run some equipment upstairs and, as he was coming back down, saw a person whom he believed to be Veniremember Fifteen. Cavinder explained that Veniremember Fifteen had already been released, so he decided to talk to her because she had commented during voir dire that she knew of him. Cavinder said the woman then corrected him by saying Veniremember Fifteen was someone else, and then it came up that the woman to whom he was speaking was the one who went to a game warden school. Cavinder said he then saw her badge by her right side and realized she was a juror. Cavinder denied discussing anything about the case. Although given an opportunity to cross-examine Cavinder, appellant declined. Ostensibly because the jurors had been excused, the trial court was not able to speak to the juror in question that day.

When the case resumed the next morning, the trial court questioned Venire-member Eight, who had become the third juror (Juror Number Three). She testified Cavinder just asked about her experience as a game warden. She added she thought Cavinder also made a comment to the effect, “You were struck, but then we got you on.” She said she responded indifferently and told him she was going to leave. Juror Number Three continued, “[W]e stopped the conversation right there because he didn’t realize that at [that] point I was a juror, a selected juror, I guess.” Juror Number Three said she was wearing her juror badge on her purse.

Appellant thereafter moved for a mistrial. Appellant argued that regardless of what was actually said, he was left with no choice but to ask for a mistrial because the problem was that Cavinder said “we” got you on, and Juror Number Three was left with the impression that appellant did not want her on the panel whereas the State did. Appellant further stated, “[Wje’re certainly not casting dispersions [sic] qn Mr. Cavinder.” When granting the mistrial, the trial judge said, “And I’m not casting fault on Investigator Cavinder at all. I understand that was an honest mistake. I completely believe that he believed he was speaking to [Veniremember Fifteen].”

A review of the record shows Venire-member Fifteen had indicated during voir dire that although she didn’t know Cavin-der, she knew of him. The voir dire also shows Juror Number Three disclosed she went to a game warden academy. The record does not reflect when Cavinder left the courtroom.

Thereafter, appellant filed an application for writ of habeas corpus. Appellant contended the prosecution goaded him into requesting a mistrial. The State filed a bench brief in which it conceded Cavin-der’s conversation with Juror Number Three was inappropriate but asserted Ca-vinder’s blunder was insufficient under the relevant standard to meet appellant’s bur[260] den of showing the State intended to provoke him into moving for a mistrial.

At the hearing on appellant’s application for writ of habeas corpus, which occurred approximately fifty days after the trial court granted the mistrial, appellant’s wife testified that she was present when the previous jury was selected, and she maintained Cavinder did not leave the courtroom until the jurors left the courtroom. Her recollection was the other venire-members left the courtroom ten to fifteen minutes before the jurors themselves left. She estimated five to ten minutes after the jurors left the courtroom, the prosecutor and Cavinder came back into the courtroom to alert the court about the conversation. Appellant again argued the State intended to goad him into moving for a mistrial. The State again argued Cavin-der’s conduct was the result of a mistake. The trial court denied appellant’s application.

The parties do not dispute jeopardy attached at the first trial. Jeopardy attaches at the time the jury is empaneled and sworn. State v. Blackshere, 344 S.W.3d 400, 404 (Tex.Crim.App.2011). The parties also do not dispute the State was responsible for its investigator’s actions. The investigative team’s knowledge is imputed to the prosecutor. Ex parte Adams, 768 S.W.2d 281, 291-92 (Tex.Crim.App.1989).

Standard of Review

“Only where the governmental conduct in question is intended to ‘goad’ the defendant into moving for a mistrial may a defendant raise the bar of double jeopardy to a second trial after having succeeded in aborting the first on his own motion.” Oregon v. Kennedy, 456 U.S. 667, 676, 102 S.Ct. 2083, 2089, 72 L.Ed.2d 416 (1982); Ex parte Bennett, 245 S.W.3d 616, 618-19 (Tex.App. — Fort Worth 2008, pet. ref'd). “Under both the federal and state constitutions, retrial is barred only if the prosecutor intentionally caused a mistrial.” Bennett, 245 S.W.3d at 619. When reviewing a trial court’s decision to grant or deny habeas relief, appellate courts consider the evidence in the light most favorable to the trial court’s ruling and should uphold the ruling absent an abuse of discretion. Id. at 618. The Court of Criminal Appeals has set out a nonexclusive list of objective factors to assist the trial court when assessing the prosecutor’s or its agent’s state of mind: (1) Was the misconduct an attempt to abort a trial that was going badly for the State? Put another way, at the time the prosecutor acted, did it reasonably appear that the defendant would likely obtain an acquittal? (2) Was the misconduct repeated despite the trial court’s admonitions? (3) Did the prosecutor provide a reasonable, “good faith” explanation for the conduct? (4) Was the conduct “clearly erroneous”? (5) Was there a legally or factually plausible basis for the conduct despite its impropriety? (6) Were the prosecutor’s actions leading up to the mistrial consistent with inadvertence, lack of judgment, or negligence, or were they intentional?1 See Ex parte Wheeler, 203 S.W.3d 317, 323-24 (Tex.Crim.App.2006).

Discussion and Application

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Ex Parte Byrias Roberson, 455 S.W.3d 257, 2015 WL 148476 (Tex. Ct. App. 2015).

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