Maurice Gasaway v. Commonwealth of Kentucky

Court of Appeals of Kentucky·Decided September 9, 2021·No. 2020 CA 000031·Unknown

Opinion

RENDERED: SEPTEMBER 10, 2021; 10:00 A.M.

NOT TO BE PUBLISHED

Commonwealth of Kentucky

Court of Appeals

NO. 2020-CA-0031-MR

MAURICE GASAWAY APPELLANT

APPEAL FROM HARDIN CIRCUIT COURT v. HONORABLE KEN M. HOWARD, JUDGE ACTION NO. 18-CR-00927

COMMONWEALTH OF KENTUCKY APPELLEE

OPINION

AFFIRMING

** ** ** ** **

BEFORE: DIXON, GOODWINE, AND TAYLOR, JUDGES. TAYLOR, JUDGE: Maurice Gasaway brings this appeal from August 30, 2019, judgments of the Hardin Circuit Court upon jury verdicts finding Gasaway guilty of possession of marijuana and possession of a controlled substance, heroin, and sentencing him to thirty-days’ incarceration and to three-years’ imprisonment to be served consecutively. We affirm.

BACKGROUND

The facts underlying Gasaway’s arrest and subsequent indictment are as follows. On the morning of August 30, 2018, Gasaway was working for his employer, Knight’s Mechanical, located in Hardin County, Kentucky. Gasaway and two other employees were working in the sheet metal shop at Knight’s Mechanical. One of Gasaway’s co-workers, Austin McClanahan, was walking across the shop when he noticed a plastic bag about the size of a fingernail on the floor. Just as McClanahan picked up the plastic bag, his supervisor, Josh Bush, walked up behind McClanahan. Bush instructed McClanahan to take the plastic bag to Bush’s office. McClanahan complied, went into Bush’s office, and placed the bag on Bush’s desk. Bush covered the small plastic bag with a sheet of paper. Suspecting the plastic bag contained drugs, Bush called his supervisor. Bush’s supervisor then contacted his supervisor, Jeremy Knight, and informed him of the situation.

After lunch, Knight went to Bush’s office. Knight looked at the plastic bag and then reviewed security video footage from that morning of the area where the bag was found. Knight believed the video footage revealed that the plastic bag fell from Gasaway’s pocket when he removed his cell phone. After reviewing the video footage, Knight gave the plastic bag to another employee,

Brian Tharpe. Tharpe contacted Detective Robert Dover of the Greater Hardin County Narcotics Task Force.

The following day, Detective Dover came to Knight’s Mechanical.

Tharpe gave the plastic bag to Detective Dover, and he conducted a field test on the substance. The substance tested positive for heroin. Tharpe then showed Detective Dover the video footage from the previous morning. Detective Dover, likewise, believed that the video depicted Gasaway dropping the plastic bag while he was retrieving a cellphone from his pocket. Thereafter, Detective Dover and two other police officers on the scene approached Gasaway. The officers explained to Gasaway they were there because of the heroin. Gasaway was handcuffed, given his Miranda rights, and escorted outside. Once outside, Gasaway realized that two parole officers1 were also present and became belligerent. Gasaway was then placed in the back of a police cruiser.

A search of Gasaway’s person did not yield anything illegal but the police officers did discover a key fob in Gasaway’s pocket. The key fob unlocked the truck Gasaway drove to work which was parked nearby in the company parking lot. Detective Dover ran the license plate on the truck and discovered it

1 Maurice Gasaway was on parole as the result of a previous drug-related offense for trafficking in a controlled substance, first degree, cocaine, and for possession of a handgun by a convicted felon.

was registered to a Michelle Gasaway at the same address as Gasaway. Gasaway denied a request for consent to search the truck; nevertheless, a search ensued.

Detective Dover found a plastic bag that contained two separate plastic bags of marijuana in the console of the truck. There was also a plastic bag containing a pill with a “Superman” insignia printed on it. The pill was believed to be ecstasy but was later tested and determined to be methamphetamine. Additionally, Detective Dover discovered a few marijuana roaches in a cupholder ashtray and marijuana shake around the ashtray. The search also yielded an object known as a “Whizzanator,” which drug users frequently utilize to thwart drug detection in urinalysis testing. Gasaway asked Detective Dover if he was going to jail. Detective Dover responded in the affirmative and further explained that Gasaway was facing charges for possession of methamphetamine, ecstasy, and heroin. Gasaway responded, “I’m not worried about the weed or ecstasy, and you damn sure didn’t find no three grams of heroin. And in Louisville, that’s just a citation.” Commonwealth’s Brief at 5.

On September 20, 2018, Gasaway was indicted by a Hardin County Grand Jury upon Possession of a Controlled Substance, First Degree, Heroin (Kentucky Revised Statutes (KRS) 218A.1415), Possession of a Controlled Substance, Second Degree, Schedule I Non-Narcotic, Ecstasy (KRS 218A.1416), and Possession of Marijuana (KRS 218A.1422). By Supplemental Indictment

dated March 28, 2019, Gasaway was also indicted upon one count of Possession of a Controlled Substance, First Degree, Methamphetamine (KRS 218A.1415).2 Gasaway filed a motion to suppress the evidence seized from his vehicle. The trial court conducted an evidentiary hearing, and by order entered April 25, 2019, the trial court denied Gasaway’s motion to suppress. A jury trial ensued. By Trial Verdict and Judgment entered May 14, 2019, the trial court announced a hung jury as to the possession of heroin charge, not guilty upon the possession of methamphetamine charge, and guilty upon the possession of marijuana charge. The possession of methamphetamine charge was dismissed with prejudice. However, the trial court did not sentence Gasaway upon the guilty verdict for possession of marijuana at this time.

The Commonwealth elected to retry Gasaway upon the possession of heroin charge. Following the retrial, the jury found Gasaway guilty upon the possession of heroin charge. By Judgment and Order Imposing Sentence entered August 30, 2019, Gasaway was sentenced to three-years’ imprisonment upon the possession of heroin charge. By separate order, also entered August 30, 2019, the trial court additionally sentenced Gasaway to thirty-days’ incarceration upon the

2 After laboratory testing revealed that the pill containing the “Superman” insignia was methamphetamine rather than ecstasy, the Commonwealth of Kentucky made a motion to dismiss the charge of possession of a controlled substance, second degree, schedule I nonnarcotic , ecstasy, which the trial court granted. Thereafter, a Supplemental Indictment was returned charging Gasaway with possession of a controlled substance, first degree, methamphetamine.

possession of marijuana charge. The sentences were ordered to be served consecutively. This appeal follows.

Gasaway raises four issues in this appeal. First, he contends the trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress the evidence seized from his vehicle after his arrest in violation of the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution and Section Ten of the Kentucky Constitution. More particularly, Gasaway asserts that officers lacked probable cause to search his vehicle and that his status as a parolee did not subject him to unlimited warrantless searches. Second, Gasaway asserts that the prosecutor presented an improper hypothetical regarding reasonable doubt during voir dire at the trial. Third, he argues the trial court erred by allowing the introduction of evidence of his possession of methamphetamine and marijuana that was addressed in the first trial. Finally, Gasaway argues that the trial court erred by allowing opinion testimony of the video that showed the heroin package falling out of Gasaway’s pocket that resulted in his arrest. We shall examine each issue in the order raised.

STANDARD OF REVIEW

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