Parker v. State

223 S.W.3d 385, 2005 WL 66942
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedSeptember 14, 2005
Docket07-02-0354-CR
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 223 S.W.3d 385 (Parker 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
Parker v. State, 223 S.W.3d 385, 2005 WL 66942 (Tex. Ct. App. 2005).

Opinion

OPINION

PHIL JOHNSON, Chief Justice.

We withdraw our opinion dated October 26, 2004 and substitute this opinion in its place.

Appellant Christopher Chad Parker appeals from his conviction for possession of marijuana. He urges that the trial court erred in failing to suppress evidence of marijuana found by officers after the officers entered appellant’s house without a warrant. We affirm.

On April 2, 2001, officers from the Mu-leshoe Police Department and Bailey County sheriffs office went to appellant’s house to investigate a report that minors were drinking in the house. One officer looked into the residence through a window as a second officer knocked on the front door. A voice in the house said “It’s the police” and someone ran up the stairs to the second story of the house.

Appellant opened the door in response to the officer’s knock. When he did so, the officers smelled the odor of burned marijuana emanating from within the house. The officers informed appellant that they were at the residence to investigate a report of underage drinking, but that because of the odor of marijuana the officers intended to enter and secure the residence. Appellant attempted to close the door, but one officer stuck his foot in the doorway and again explained to appellant that the officers were going to secure the residence. Appellant then opened the door, the officers entered the house, secured it, located all of the occupants, and directed them to be seated in the living *387 room. During this time, additional officers arrived in response to a radio call from the original officers. As the on-scene supervisor was explaining the situation to appellant and appellant’s wife and asking for consent to search the house, another officer noticed a marijuana “joint” in plain view in an ashtray in the living room. There was also loose marijuana, in plain view, scattered on a pizza box. After the supervisor was notified of the marijuana, he obtained verbal consent from appellant to search the house. The only other contraband discovered during the search was a pipe found in an upstairs bedroom that smelled of burned marijuana.

Appellant filed a motion to suppress, alleging that the evidence of marijuana was obtained illegally since it was not discovered pursuant to a warrant, consent, or probable cause. After an evidentiary hearing, the trial court overruled appellant’s motion. No findings of fact or conclusions of law were filed. A jury convicted appellant and sentenced him to 180 days in jail and a $1,000.00 fine.

Appellant presents one issue by which he challenges the trial court’s failure to suppress evidence of marijuana discovered after what he terms the officers’ illegal entry into his home.

The standard of review in regard to trial court rulings on motions to suppress is a bifurcated standard. Appellate courts afford almost total deference to trial court determinations of historical facts and to decisions involving mixed questions of law and fact if the resolution of those questions depends on an evaluation of credibility and demeanor. In such circumstances, appellate courts review for an abuse of discretion. See Guzman v. State, 955 S.W.2d 85, 89 (Tex.Crim.App.1997). If the application of the law to facts is not dependent on an evaluation of credibility and demeanor, then our review is de novo. Id.

When the standard of review is for abuse of discretion, reviewing courts must uphold the trial court’s decision on any proper grounds, regardless of the basis expressed by the trial court for its ruling. See State v. Ross, 32 S.W.3d 853, 855-56 (Tex.Crim.App.2000). If no explicit findings of fact are made by the trial court, an appellate court assumes that the trial court made implicit findings which are supported by the record and which support the conclusion of the trial court. Id. at 855.

Appellant cites State v. Steelman, 93 S.W.3d 102 (Tex.Crim.App.2002), for the position that the smell of burned marijuana does not, by itself, present a sufficient basis for probable cause to enter a private residence and arrest an individual. Appellant contends that because the officers did not have a basis to enter his home to make a warrantless arrest, they did not have sufficient probable cause to enter his residence without a warrant and conduct a search of the residence.

In Steelman, the Abilene Police received a tip of drug dealing originating from the Steelman’s residence. Upon arrival at Steelman’s home, the police looked through a window but were unable to see any illegal activity. The officers then knocked on the door. When Steelman opened the door, the officers smelled the odor of burned marijuana. Steelman tried to close the door, but an officer placed his foot in the doorway and eventually forced his way into the residence. Once inside the residence, the officers arrested everyone within the home. Id. Up to this point, the officers did not have a warrant nor had they obtained consent to enter the residence.

At the conclusion of a pretrial suppression hearing, the trial court found that the *388 warrantless arrest of Steelman was illegal since the odor of marijuana, standing alone, did not provide sufficient probable cause to lead officers to believe that Steel-man had committed an offense in their presence. The trial court granted the motion to suppress pursuant to Tex.CRIM. PROC.Code Ann. § 14.01(b) (Vernon 1977), finding that the State had failed to prove that an offense had been committed in the officer’s presence. Id. at 106. The trial court held that once an officer arrests a person without a warrant or without observing an offense, any evidence obtained after the arrest must be suppressed. Id. at 105. The Court of Criminal Appeals upheld the decision of the trial court, stating that the odor of marijuana, standing alone, does not authorize a warrantless search or seizure of a home. Id. at 108.

The facts in appellant’s situation do not mirror those in Steelman. Appellant’s situation is more akin to the facts in Effler v. State, 115 S.W.3d 696 (Tex.App.-Eastland 2003, pet. ref'd). In Effler, the police, without a warrant, went to a trailer house in response to a report of unusual odors emanating from the trailer. Upon arriving at the trailer the officers detected odors which they identified as a type commonly present during the manufacture of methamphetamine. As the officers walked toward the trailer house, they heard the sound of someone running inside the trailer. A guest in the trailer house responded to the officers’ appearance at the door. In response to the officers’ request to enter the trailer, the guest indicated that he would seek permission for them to enter. The guest then turned and ran into the trailer. The officers followed and apprehended Effler as he was attempting to pour the contents of two one-gallon jugs down a sink.

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

Related

Michael Fred Wehrenberg v. State
385 S.W.3d 715 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2012)
Parker v. State
206 S.W.3d 593 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 2006)
Pair v. State
184 S.W.3d 329 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2006)
Frankie Dean Pair, Jr. v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2006

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
223 S.W.3d 385, 2005 WL 66942, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/parker-v-state-texapp-2005.