Paschal v. State

35 S.W.3d 80, 2000 Tex. App. LEXIS 7472, 2000 WL 1644924
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedNovember 3, 2000
Docket06-99-00074-CR
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 35 S.W.3d 80 (Paschal 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
Paschal v. State, 35 S.W.3d 80, 2000 Tex. App. LEXIS 7472, 2000 WL 1644924 (Tex. Ct. App. 2000).

Opinion

OPINION

Opinion by

Justice GRANT.

Keith Allen Paschal appeals from a jury conviction for aggravated assault against Willie Gellington by pushing Gellington from a second-story balcony. Paschal contends the trial court abused its discretion by admitting into evidence four notes written by him to his former girlfriend. He also contends the evidence is legally insufficient to support the verdict.

Admission of the Notes

Paschal contends the trial court abused its discretion by admitting into evidence four notes he wrote to Denise Mack, his former girlfriend. He contends that introduction of these notes violated several provisions of the Texas Rules of Evidence because the notes (1) were irrelevant to whether he committed the crime of aggravated assault against Gellington, in violation of Rules 401 and 402; (2) were more prejudicial than probative in violation of Rule 403; and (3) were evidence of other crimes or bad acts constituting impermissible character evidence in violation of Rule 404(b). Tex .R.Evtd. 401, 402, 403, and 404.

*82 The question of relevance of evidence should be left largely to the trial court relying on its own observations and experience, and will not be reversed absent abuse of discretion. Goff v. State, 931 S.W.2d 537, 553 (Tex.Crim.App.1996). We will not disturb a ruling that is within the zone of reasonable disagreement. Weatherred v. State, 15 S.W.3d 540, 542 (Tex.Crim.App.2000); Sandoval v. State, 17 S.W.3d 792, 795 (Tex.App. — Austin 2000, no pet. h.). Relevant evidence is evidence that has a tendency to make the existence of any fact of consequence to the determination of an action more or less probable than it would be without the evidence. Tex.R.Evid. 401; Montgomery v. State, 810 S.W.2d 372, 376 (Tex.Crim.App.1990); Long v. State, 10 S.W.3d 389, 396 (Tex.App. — Texarkana 2000, pet. ref'd). The Texas Rules of Evidence further provide that relevant evidence is generally admissible and irrelevant evidence is generally inadmissible. Tex.R.Evid. 402.

The admitted notes tend to show that Paschal harbored anger and resentment over his breakup with Mack and had a continuing jealous obsession with her. The four notes express such divergent ideas as hatred and disgust toward Mack, a desire to work things out with Mack, and hopes of vengeance on Mack. One note in particular expresses Paschal’s anger and jealousy that Mack may have been involved with another man (not the victim in this case). The State contends, and the trial court could reasonably have believed, the content of the notes is relevant to provide a motive for Paschal’s actions and to show his intent to cause Gellington serious bodily injury upon finding him in Mack’s apartment.

The notes were not too remote in time to be probative. To the contrary, the notes can provide a proper basis from which to draw conclusions as to Paschal’s state of mind. Although they were variously delivered from one to four months prior to the commission of the assault, they must be viewed in the context of Mack’s trial testimony that, despite her having asked him not to, Paschal continued to telephone her and appear uninvited at her home up until and on the day of the assault.

The trial judge was within the zone within which reasonable persons could disagree in finding that reasonable jurors could conclude the notes altered the probability that Paschal had a motive to assault Gellington and acted with intent to cause him serious bodily harm upon finding him in Mack’s apartment. Accordingly, we will not disturb the trial court’s finding of relevance; the notes were properly admitted under Rule 402.

Paschal next contends that introduction of the notes violated Rule 403 because they were more prejudicial than probative. Once a trial court has ruled that evidence is relevant, the opponent of the evidence is required to make a separate Rule 403 objection to raise unfair prejudice. Bell v. State, 938 S.W.2d 35, 49 (Tex.Crim.App.1996). In the absence of such an objection, the issue is not preserved for appeal. Id. Paschal’s only objection to the evidence at trial was based on relevance; he did not preserve this issue for our review.

Paschal finally contends in this point of error that the notes were evidence of other crimes or bad acts constituting impermissible character evidence in violation of Rule 404(b). We are bound by recent Court of Criminal Appeals case law holding that a relevancy objection is not sufficient to preserve Rule 404(b) error. Medina v. State, 7 S.W.3d 633, 634 (Tex.Crim.App.1999). 1 *83 We therefore find that Paschal did not preserve error on this issue.

Sufficiency of the Evidence

In his second point of error, Paschal asserts there was insufficient evidence to convict him of the crime of aggravated assault. Where the points of error do not specify whether appellant complains of factual or legal insufficiency, we consider both the wording of the points of error and the supporting argument to determine the intent of the party. See Anderson v. Gilbert, 897 S.W.2d 783, 784 (Tex.1995); Stephenson v. LeBoeuf, 16 S.W.3d 829, 844 (Tex.App. — Houston [14th Dist.] 2000, no pet. h.). While Paschal’s stated point of error is ambiguous, his argument thereunder focuses entirely on standards applicable only to legal sufficiency grounds. Nowhere in his brief does he request that this court review the factual sufficiency of the evidence, mention the standard of review applicable to factual sufficiency, or cite cases concerning factual sufficiency. By making a global sufficiency of the evidence point and citing only legal sufficiency standards, appellant attacks only the legal sufficiency of the evidence in his point of error number two. Chaloupka v. State, 20 S.W.3d 172, 173 (Tex.App. — Texarkana 2000, pet. ref'd).

In reviewing the evidence for legal sufficiency, we view all the evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict and determine whether any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979); Rojas v. State, 986 S.W.2d 241, 246-47 (Tex.Crim.App.1998). We do so whether the case was proven by direct or circumstantial evidence. Houston v. State,

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Bluebook (online)
35 S.W.3d 80, 2000 Tex. App. LEXIS 7472, 2000 WL 1644924, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/paschal-v-state-texapp-2000.