Highwarden v. State

846 S.W.2d 479, 1993 WL 1335
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedApril 7, 1993
DocketA14-92-00469-CR
StatusPublished
Cited by22 cases

This text of 846 S.W.2d 479 (Highwarden 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
Highwarden v. State, 846 S.W.2d 479, 1993 WL 1335 (Tex. Ct. App. 1993).

Opinion

OPINION

J. CURTISS BROWN, Chief Justice.

The appellant was charged by information with the offense of driving while intoxicated. After the trial court overruled her motion to suppress evidence, the appellant entered a plea of nolo contendere. The trial court assessed punishment at 180 days confinement, probated for two years, and a $400 fine. The appellant raises five points of error arguing the trial court erred by overruling her motion to suppress. We affirm.

The appellant alleges the evidence was insufficient to support the trial court’s findings of reasonable suspicion to detain, and probable cause to arrest. The burden of proof in suppression hearings is set out in Russell v. State, 717 S.W.2d 7, 9 (Tex.Crim.App.1986). 1 The Russell opinion states that a movant in a motion to suppress alleging lack of probable cause must initially produce evidence that a warrant-less arrest or seizure occurred. Id. By doing so, the burden shifts to the State to show that a warrant existed. Id. If the State produces evidence that a warrant existed, then the burden shifts back to the defendant to show the invalidity of the arrest or seizure. Id. If the State cannot prove that a warrant existed, it must prove the reasonableness of the arrest or seizure. Id. at 10.

The appellant argues that requiring the defendant to produce evidence showing that a warrantless arrest occurred places an unconstitutional burden on the defendant. She argues that the presumption of proper police conduct, implicit in placing the initial burden on the defendant, ignores the government’s burden of proving a knowing and voluntary waiver of the defendant’s constitutional rights under Tex. Const. art. I, § 9 and U.S. Const. amend. IV. The appellant suggests that Heitman v. State, 815 S.W.2d 681 (Tex.Crim.App.1991) provides this court with an opportunity to re-allocate the burden of proof in suppression hearings. The Heitman decl *481 sion states that Texas courts are no longer bound by interpretations of the United States Constitution when interpreting Tex. Const. art. I, § 9. Heitman at 690. While the decisions of the United States Supreme Court represent the minimum protections states must afford their citizens, states are free to provide additional protections. Id. In addressing the same argument, the First Court of Appeals stated:

As an intermediate court, we are réluc-tant to reject an opinion of the Court of Criminal Appeals by weighing it against a later opinion of the same court that does not deal with the same issue. Bus-sell remains the law in this state until it is expressly overruled.

Johnson v. State, 834 S.W.2d 121, 124 (Tex.App.-Houston [1st Dist.] 1992, pet. pending). We agree with this reasoning and refuse to depart from Russell.

We therefore consider whether the trial court properly denied the motion to suppress under Russell v. State. The standard of review is whether the trial court clearly abused its discretion by denying the motion. Maddox v. State, 682 S.W.2d 563, 564 (Tex.Crim.App.1985). The appellant had the initial burden of producing evidence that she was arrested without a warrant. The appellant attempted to meet this burden by circumstantial evidence. She called Officer Mory, the arresting officer, and Officer Treat, the officer who conducted the intoxilyzer test, as witnesses. The appellant’s trial counsel never asked either officer if the appellant was arrested pursuant to a warrant. He asked both officers if they had ever met the appellant, heard or been told anything about the appellant, or read anything about the appellant before the arrest. The officers answered no to each of these questions. In response to other questions by the appellant’s attorney, Officer Mory agreed he initially stopped the appellant for speeding. He clocked her with his radar gun as traveling fifty-eight miles per hour in a thirty-five miles per hour zone. After detaining the appellant, he asked her some questions and she told him she had had a few drinks. Officer Mory then conducted field sobriety tests. The appellant failed these tests, so he arrested her for driving while intoxicated. In response to questions by the prosecutor during cross-examination, Officer Mory testified that he formed the opinion the appellant was intoxicated when she failed the field tests. Based on this opinion, he arrested her.

We find that the appellant never established that she was arrested without a warrant. 2 The appellant could have met this minimal burden by simply asking the officers if they had a warrant for the arrest. Since the appellant did not meet the initial burden, the State never had a burden to prove probable cause. Russell v. State, 717 S.W.2d at 9; Johnson v. State 834 S.W.2d at 124; Jamail v. State, 731 S.W.2d 708, 710 (Tex.App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 1987), aff'd, 787 S.W.2d 380 (Tex.Crim.App.1990).

Even if the burden did shift to the State, we find the evidence was sufficient to support the trial court’s findings of reasonable suspicion and probable cause. The appellant argues that the mere conclusion that the appellant was speeding was insufficient to establish reasonable suspicion for the initial detention. Similarly, she argues that the mere conclusion that she failed unspecified field sobriety tests is insufficient to support the trial court’s finding of probable cause for the arrest. To support these arguments, the appellant cites us to numerous cases holding that mere conclusions, unsupported by articulable facts, are insufficient to prove probable cause. See United States v. Leon, 468 U.S. 897, 915, 104 S.Ct. 3405, 3416, 82 L.Ed.2d 677 (1984); Gordon v. State, 801 S.W.2d 899, 913 (Tex.Crim.App.1990); Rumsey v. State, 675 S.W.2d 517, 519 (Tex.Crim.App.1984); To lentino v. State, 638 S.W.2d 499, 501 (Tex.Crim.App.1982).

*482 Each of these cases stands for the proposition that mere suspicion, inarticula-ble hunches, and good faith are insufficient to support a finding of probable cause.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

McDonnel, Thomas Elton
Texas Supreme Court, 2015
McDonnel, Thomas Elton
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2015
Henry, Bobby
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2015
Silva, Daniel Lopez
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2015
Terry Eugene Glenn, Sr. v. State
475 S.W.3d 530 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2015)
Richards v. State
150 S.W.3d 762 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2004)
Richards, Wesley Lanier v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2004
Morin, Emelio David v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2002
Badgett v. State
7 S.W.3d 645 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1999)
Crivello v. State
4 S.W.3d 792 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1999)
McClain v. State
984 S.W.2d 700 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1999)
Sims v. State
980 S.W.2d 538 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1998)
Telshow v. State
964 S.W.2d 303 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1998)
Hogan v. State
954 S.W.2d 875 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1997)
Texas Department of Public Safety v. Rodriguez
953 S.W.2d 362 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1997)
Blondett v. State
921 S.W.2d 469 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1996)
Price v. State
890 S.W.2d 478 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1994)
Highwarden v. State
871 S.W.2d 726 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 1994)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
846 S.W.2d 479, 1993 WL 1335, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/highwarden-v-state-texapp-1993.