Pedro Ernesto Umana v. State

447 S.W.3d 346, 2014 Tex. App. LEXIS 9487, 2014 WL 4199116
Court of Appeals of Texas·Decided August 26, 2014·No. 14-13-00168-CR·Published·Cited by 29 cases

Opinion

OPINION

MARTHA HILL JAMISON, Justice.

In this case, we review the voluntariness of a statement given by a defendant who was subsequently found incompetent to stand trial and then had his competency restored. A jury convicted appellant Pedro Ernesto Umana of aggravated sexual assault, sentenced him to prison for 50 years and assessed a fine of $10,000. Appellant raises three issues on appeal concerning the denial of his motion to suppress, the admission of evidence of the details of an extraneous offense during the punishment phase, and the sufficiency of the evidence to support the court costs assessed in the judgment. We affirm.

Background

The complainant and two friends were at her apartment when three people forced their way in with a handgun. The intruders were subsequently identified as appellant, his sister and her husband. Appellant held the complainant and her friends at gunpoint while the intruders ransacked the apartment. Appellant directed the complainant into her bedroom while holding her at gunpoint and sexually assaulted her. , '

The investigation led police to appellant. Approximately 16 hours after the robbery and assault, appellant waived his rights and gave a statement to police that was recorded on video. Three days later, a judge ordered a psychological review of the appellant, as appellant self-reported that he was hearing voices telling him to • do bad things and had a prior diagnosis of bipolar disease and schizophrenia. The appellant received medication while in custody.

Five months after the offense, appellant was evaluated for competency by Dr. Stephen McCary pursuant to court order. Dr. McCary found appellant incompetent to stand trial. Appellant was admitted to North Texas State Hospital for psychiatric treatment.

Fourth months later, Dr. Jennifer L. Russell evaluated appellant and found he was competent to stand trial. The trial court found appellant’s competency had been restored on November 20, 2011, and his trial began the following September.

Appellant filed a motion to suppress his video-taped statement on the grounds he was unable to voluntarily waive his rights because he was mentally ill. Following a hearing, the trial court denied appellant’s motion and the video-taped statement was admitted into evidence and played to the jury.

Motion to Suppress

In his first issue, appellant claims the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress his custodial statement because it was obtained in violation of his federal and state rights to due process of law and article 38.22 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. See U.S. Const, amend V, VI, *350 XIV; Tex. Const, art. 1, § 10; Tex.Code Crim. Proc. §§ 38.22, 38.23.

I. Pertinent Law

There are three theories by which a defendant may claim that his statement was involuntary and thus may not be used against him: (1) failure to comply with article 38.22; (2) failure to comply with Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966); or (3) violation of due process. Oursbourn v. State, 259 S.W.3d 159, 169-72 (Tex.Crim.App.2008). Under the second and third theories, a confession is involuntary “only when there is police overreaching.” Id. at 169. Absent police misconduct causally related to the confession, there is no deprivation of due process of law by a state actor and therefore no violation of the Due Process Clause. Id. at 170. Likewise, Miranda protects against government coercion to surrender Fifth Amendment rights. Id. Thus, due-process claims and Miranda claims of involuntariness involve an objective assessment of police behavior. Id. at 171.

Claims of involuntariness based on the defendant’s state of mind are “to be resolved by state laws governing the admission of evidence.” Id. at 171. That state law in Texas is article 38.22, the Texas Confession Statute. Id. Although claims of involuntariness under the Texas Confession Statute may be based on police overreaching, they may also be based on the defendant’s state of mind. Id. at 172. Whether or not a suspect voluntarily waived the rights set out in article 38.22 § 2(a) 1 or § (3)(a) 2 does not turn solely on the behavior of the police. Id. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has held that youth, intoxication, mental retardation, and other disabilities are usually not enough, by themselves, to render a statement inadmissible under Article 38.22, but they are factors for the factfinder to consider. Id. at 173.

II. Standard of Review

A bifurcated standard of review is applied to a trial court’s ruling on a motion to suppress evidence. See Guzman v. State, 955 S.W.2d 85, 89 (Tex.Crim.App.1997). An appellate court affords almost total deference to a trial court’s de *351 termination of historical facts supported by the record, especially when the trial court’s findings are based on an evaluation of credibility and demeanor. Id. The appellate court affords the same amount of deference to a trial court’s ruling on mixed questions of law and fact if the resolution of those questions turns on an evaluation of credibility and demeanor. Id. The court reviews de novo those questions not turning on credibility and demeanor. Id. At a suppression hearing, the trial court is the exclusive trier of fact and judge of the credibility of the witnesses. Mason v. State, 116 S.W.3d 248, 256 (Tex.App.Houston [14th Dist.] 2003, pet. refd). If the trial judge’s decision is correct under any theory of law applicable to the case, the decision will be sustained. State v. Ross, 32 S.W.3d 853, 855-56 (Tex.Crim.App.2000).

The State has the burden of showing, by a preponderance of the evidence, that a defendant knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily waived his rights. Leza v. State, 351 S.W.3d 344, 349 (Tex.Crim.App.2011). Voluntariness is determined by looking at the totality of the circumstances. See Griffin v. State, 765 S.W.2d 422, 427 (Tex.Crim.App.1989). The totality of the circumstances includes the accused’s experience, background, and conduct. Id. It also includes the characteristics of the accused. Davis v. State, 313 S.W.3d 317, 337 (Tex.Crim.App.2010) (quoting Schneckloth v. Bustamonte,

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Pedro Ernesto Umana v. State, 447 S.W.3d 346, 2014 Tex. App. LEXIS 9487, 2014 WL 4199116 (Tex. Ct. App. 2014).

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