Lemmons v. State

133 S.W.3d 751, 2004 WL 254277
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMarch 25, 2004
Docket2-02-346-CR
StatusPublished
Cited by67 cases

This text of 133 S.W.3d 751 (Lemmons 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
Lemmons v. State, 133 S.W.3d 751, 2004 WL 254277 (Tex. Ct. App. 2004).

Opinion

OPINION

TERRIE LIVINGSTON, Justice.

Timothy Wayne Lemmons appeals from his deferred adjudication on his plea of guilty to the offense of possession of cocaine with the intent to deliver and his sentence of ten years’ probation. In two points, appellant complains that the trial court erred by denying appellant’s motion to suppress illegally seized evidence and that appellant’s plea of guilty was not freely and voluntarily given because of the trial court’s erroneous admonishment as to the range of punishment. We affirm.

FACTS

On or about 10:30 p.m. on July 17, 2001, Officer Richard Hernandez, an Arlington police officer, was parked on Harriett Street. He saw a four-door Cadillac car make a right turn without a signal. The officer made a U-tum and drove off down a nearby street so that he could catch up to the Cadillac. When the Cadillac passed in front of Officer Hernandez, he followed the car and turned on his overhead lights to initiate a traffic stop. When Officer Hernandez turned on his lights, the Cadillac pulled into a private driveway.

When the officer went up to the driver’s side door, he could see that appellant had been driving the car. After he began speaking to appellant through the window, he noticed a plastic baggie sticking out from the right side of appellant’s body in the area where the seat belt buckles. Officer Hernandez asked appellant to step out of the car. When appellant did, the officer noticed that the baggie contained a white substance that looked like crack cocaine. After backup arrived, the officer went to appellant’s car, illuminated the baggie with his flashlight, and determined that the baggie contained crack cocaine. At that point, Officer Hernandez seized the baggie and arrested appellant for possession.

At trial, appellant filed a motion to suppress illegally seized evidence from the traffic stop. In it, he alleged that the traffic stop was an illegal detention, effected without a warrant and without probable cause. The trial court conducted a hear *755 ing on the motion and denied it in a written order. Appellant entered an open plea of guilty. The trial court deferred adjudication of his guilt and sentenced appellant to ten years’ probation.

MOTION TO SUPPRESS

In appellant’s first point, he complains that the trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress evidence. Specifically, he contends that the traffic stop was illegal because reasonable suspicion did not exist to justify the stop or the detention of appellant’s car.

Standard of Review

We review a trial court’s denial of a motion to suppress for abuse of discretion. Carmouche v. State, 10 S.W.3d 323, 327 (Tex.Crim.App.2000); Oles v. State, 993 S.W.2d 103, 106 (Tex.Crim.App.1999). There is an abuse of discretion when the ruling was so clearly wrong as to be outside that zone within which reasonable persons might disagree. Cantu v. State, 842 S.W.2d 667, 682 (Tex.Crim.App.1992), cert. denied, 509 U.S. 926, 113 S.Ct. 3046, 125 L.Ed.2d 731 (1993). We afford almost total deference to a trial court’s determination of the historical facts that the record supports, especially when the trial court’s fact findings are based upon an evaluation of credibility and demeanor. State v. Ross, 32 S.W.3d 853, 856 (Tex.Crim.App. 2000). We afford the same amount of deference to the trial court’s rulings on mixed questions of law and fact, if the resolution of those questions turns on an evaluation of credibility and demeanor. Carmouche, 10 S.W.3d at 332; Guzman v. State, 955 S.W.2d 85, 89 (Tex.Crim.App. 1997). We review de novo the trial court’s application of law to those facts in the determination of reasonable suspicion and probable cause. Carmouche, 10 S.W.3d at 327; Guzman, 955 S.W.2d at 89.

When the trial court does not make explicit findings of historical facts, we view the evidence in the light most favorable to the trial court’s ruling and assume that the trial court made implicit findings of fact supporting its ruling, if those findings are supported by the record. Carmouche, 10 S.W.3d at 327-28. In determining whether a trial court’s decision is supported by the record, we generally consider only evidence adduced at the suppression hearing because the ruling was based on it rather than evidence that may have been introduced later. Rachal v. State, 917 S.W.2d 799, 809 (Tex.Crim. App.), cert. denied, 519 U.S. 1043, 117 S.Ct. 614, 136 L.Ed.2d 539 (1996); James v. State, 102 S.W.3d 162, 170 (Tex.App.Fort Worth 2003, pet. ref d).

Discussion

Appellant argues that the record does not support the trial court’s finding that appellant committed a traffic offense. Appellant contends that Officer Hernandez had a “hunch” about appellant’s car and used the traffic stop as a pretext for the stop. Appellant claims that the stop was based upon “mere” suspicion rather than “reasonable” suspicion.

The State argues that Officer Hernandez validly stopped appellant for committing a traffic offense. It contends that a law enforcement officer may validly stop and detain a person for a traffic violation and that failure to signal a turn constitutes a traffic offense. See Tex. Transp. Code Ann. § 545.104 (Vernon 1999); Krug v. State, 86 S.W.3d 764, 767 (Tex.App.-El Paso 2002, pet. ref d) (holding that police officer had probable cause to conduct traffic stop where defendant failed to signal a right-hand turn when he turned his vehicle from a public road onto a private driveway). We agree with the State.

*756 We begin with the officer’s testimony that he initially stopped and temporarily detained appellant for the traffic offense of failing to signal a turn. See Tex. Transp. Code Ann. § 545.104. Officer Hernandez testified that he saw appellant make a right turn without using a turn signal.

A police officer has the authority to stop and temporarily detain a driver who has violated a traffic law. Armitage v. State, 637 S.W.2d 936, 939 (Tex.Crim.App. 1982); Santos v. State, 822 S.W.2d 338, 341 (Tex.App.-Houston [1st Dist.] 1992, pet. refd). Under the Texas Transportation Code, the operator of a vehicle must use a lamp signal to indicate an intention to turn, change lanes, or start from a parked position. Tex. TRAnsp. Code Ann. §§ 545.104(a), 545.106.

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Bluebook (online)
133 S.W.3d 751, 2004 WL 254277, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lemmons-v-state-texapp-2004.