Hinojos-Mendoza v. People

169 P.3d 662, 2007 WL 2581700
CourtSupreme Court of Colorado
DecidedSeptember 10, 2007
DocketNo. 05SC881
StatusPublished
Cited by119 cases

This text of 169 P.3d 662 (Hinojos-Mendoza v. People) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Colorado primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hinojos-Mendoza v. People, 169 P.3d 662, 2007 WL 2581700 (Colo. 2007).

Opinions

Justice RICE

delivered the Opinion of the Court.

In this case we must decide the constitutionality of section 16-8-809(5), C.R.S. (2006),1 in light of the United States Supreme Court's decision in Crawford v. Washington, 541 U.S. 36, 124 S.Ct. 1354, 158 L.Ed.2d 177 (2004). The Petitioner, Oscar Hinojos-Men-doza, argued in the court of appeals that Crawford rendered section 16-3-809(5) facially unconstitutional, and that the statute is unconstitutional as applied to him. The court of appeals declined to address the facial and as-applied challenges because Hinojos-Mendoza did not raise them in the trial court, but did hold that the lab report in this case is nontestimonial hearsay under Crawford. People v. Hinojos-Mendoza, 140 P.3d 30, 37 (Colo.App.2005). The court of appeals further held that the trial court did not err in admitting the lab report without the testimony of its author. Id. at 88. We granted certiorari to review the court of appeals' decision.2 We now reverse in part and affirm in part on other grounds.

I. Factual and Procedural History

Hinojos-Mendoza was convicted of unlawful possession with intent to distribute a schedule II controlled substance, cocaine (more than one thousand grams),3 and sentenced to 16 years in the Department of Corrections. At Hinojos-Mendoza's trial, the People introduced into evidence a Colorado Bureau of Investigation lab report that identifies the substance found in Hinojos-Mendoza's vehicle to be cocaine. The lab report lists Hinojos-Mendoza's name under a section entitled "suspect(s)." The report describes the exhibit at issue as a "tan tape wrapped block containing 1004.5 grams of compressed white powder." Under the "results" section, the report states: "[alnalysis disclosed the presence of cocaine, schedule II."

The People introduced the lab report into evidence without calling as a witness the technician who prepared the report. Defense counsel objected to the admission of the report on general hearsay grounds. The trial court asked defense counsel whether prior to trial he had requested that the lab technician appear, and whether he was aware that pursuant to section 16-3-809(5) the lab report could be admitted into evidence without the testimony of the technician. Defense counsel stated he had not requested the lab technician's presence because he was unaware of the statute. The trial court conse[665]*665quently overruled the objection and admitted the report pursuant to section 16-3-809(5).

Subsequent to Hinojos-Mendoza's trial but while his direct appeal was pending, the United States Supreme Court decided Crawford v. Washington, 541 U.S. 36, 124 S.Ct. 1854, 158 L.Ed.2d 177 (2004). On appeal, Hinojos-Mendoza argued that section 16-3-309(5) is facially unconstitutional post-Crawford and unconstitutional as it was applied in his case. The court of appeals declined to address Hinojos-Mendoza's constitutional challenges to the statute because he had not raised those challenges in the trial court. Hinojos-Mendoza, 140 P.3d at 35. The court of appeals did hold, however, that the lab report is nontestimonial hearsay under Crawford. Id. at 37, 124 S.Ct. 1354. The court therefore held the trial court did not err in admitting the lab report. Id. at 38, 124 S.Ct. 1354. We granted certiorari, and now reverse in part and affirm in part on other grounds.

II. Analysis

The Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees every criminal defendant the right "to be confronted with the witnesses against him." The Sixth Amendment right to confrontation applies to state as well as federal prosecutions. Pointer v. Texas, 380 U.S. 400, 406, 85 S.Ct. 1065, 13 L.Ed.2d 923 (1965). The Colorado Constitution also provides that "the accused shall have the right ... to meet the witnesses against him face to face." Colo. Const. art. II, § 16. This right to confrontation is a fundamental constitutional right. People v. Fry, 92 P.3d 970, 975 (Colo.2004).

The lab report at issue in this case was admitted into evidence without the testimony of the lab technician who prepared the report, pursuant to section 16-3-309(5), which states in relevant part:

Any report or copy thereof ... of the criminalistiecs laboratory shall be received in evidence in any court ... in the same manner and with the same force and effect as if the employee or technician of the criminalisties laboratory who accomplished the requested analysis, comparison, or identification had testified in person. Any party may request that such employee or technician testify in person at a criminal trial on behalf of the state before a jury or to the court, by notifying the witness and other party at least ten days before the date of such criminal trial.

In 2008, we upheld the facial constitutionality of section 16-3-809(5), concluding that the statute does not violate the right to confrontation guaranteed by the United States and Colorado Constitutions. People v. Mojica-Simental, 73 P.3d 15 (Colo.2003). We explained in Mojica-Simental that while the right to confront one's accusers is a fundamental constitutional right, it is not without limit. Id. at 20. We held that reasonable preconditions on the exercise of a fundamental right do not abridge that right. Id. We concluded that the burden placed on the defendant by section 16-38-809(5)-to request the presence of the person who prepared the report prior to trial-was minimal and did not render the statute facially unconstitutional. Id.

In 2004, the United States Supreme Court altered its Confrontation Clause jurisprudence in Crawford. The Court held that admission of testimonial statements absent the unavailability of the declarant and a prior opportunity for cross-examination by the defendant violates a defendant's Sixth Amendment right to confrontation. 541 U.S. at 68, 124 S.Ct. 1354; People v. Vigil, 127 P.3d 916, 921 (Colo.2006). We subsequently adopted the Crawford test as the appropriate inquiry for the admission of testimonial hearsay under Colorado's Confrontation Clause. Compan v. People, 121 P.3d 876, 884 (Colo.2005); Fry, 92 P.3d at 976.

Hinojos-Mendoza urges us to reconsider the facial constitutionality .of section 16-3-309(5) in light of the Supreme Court's decision in Crawford. Hinojos-Mendoza argues that lab reports are testimonial under Crawford, and therefore that section 16-3-809(5) is facially unconstitutional. Hinojos-Mendo-za also argues that section 16-3-809(5) is unconstitutional as applied to him. Although the court of appeals did not address these constitutional challenges to the statute, it ruled that the lab report in this case is nontestimonial and therefore Crawford did [666]*666not require its exclusion. Hinojos-Mendoza, 140 P.3d at 37. We therefore begin our analysis by reviewing the court of appeals' holding that the lab report is nontestimonial, and we reverse.

A. Laboratory Report is Testimonial

One of the many difficult questions that courts have had to grapple with in the wake of Crawford is whether laboratory reports, such as the one at issue in this case, qualify as "testimonial" statements subject to Crawford's.

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

Related

Peo v. Burkard
Colorado Court of Appeals, 2025
BIDDLE v. D'ILLIO
D. New Jersey, 2024
v. Ambrose
2020 COA 112 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2020)
Cardman v. People
2019 CO 73 (Supreme Court of Colorado, 2019)
Phillips v. People
2019 CO 72 (Supreme Court of Colorado, 2019)
v. Ramirez
2019 COA 16 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2019)
Peo in Interest of A.C.E-D
2018 COA 157 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2018)
In re M.B
2018 Ohio 3311 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2018)
10 — Crimes — Forgery
2018 COA 89 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2018)
People v. Sabell
2018 COA 85 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2018)
STATE VS. DIST. CT. (BAKER (JEFFREY))
2018 NV 13 (Nevada Supreme Court, 2018)
State v. Eighth Judicial Dist. Court of Nev.
412 P.3d 18 (Nevada Supreme Court, 2018)
People v. Folsom
431 P.3d 652 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2017)
Fuentes-Espinoza v. People
2017 CO 98 (Supreme Court of Colorado, 2017)
People v. Kadell
2017 COA 124 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2017)
People v. Ramos
417 P.3d 902 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2017)
State v. Wilson
2017 Ohio 5724 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2017)
People v. Cardman
2017 COA 87 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2017)
People in re L.C
2017 COA 82 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2017)
People v. Heisler
2017 COA 58 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2017)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
169 P.3d 662, 2007 WL 2581700, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hinojos-mendoza-v-people-colo-2007.