People v. Jones

575 N.E.2d 561, 215 Ill. App. 3d 652, 159 Ill. Dec. 63, 1991 Ill. App. LEXIS 1136
Appellate Court of Illinois·Decided June 27, 1991·No. 3-90-0238·Published·Cited by 23 cases

Opinion

JUSTICE BARRY

delivered the opinion of the court:

Defendant, Luther C. Jones, Jr., was charged with unlawful possession with intent to deliver more than 15 grams of a substance containing cocaine. He was found guilty after a bench trial of the lesser offense of possession with intent to deliver between 1 and 15 grams of a substance containing cocaine. Defendant was subsequently sentenced to serve an extended term of 30 years in prison. In this appeal, defendant raises four issues: (1) whether the State’s evidence was sufficient on the question of defendant’s intent to deliver; (2) whether the State’s evidence was sufficient on the question of defendant’s possession; (3) whether defendant was denied his right to a speedy trial; and (4) whether the court erroneously denied defendant’s motion to quash his arrest. We affirm.

The State’s evidence established that on November 12, 1988, Officer Mike Johnson of the Peoria police department radioed that he was arresting Clarence Sanders in the Warner Homes area on suspicion of drug trafficking. Officers Marshall Dunnigan and Craig Hightower were working the area on foot at the time and heard Johnson’s broadcast. When they reached Johnson, Dunnigan noticed two black men acting in a suspicious manner near the comer of one of the buildings. Dunnigan walked toward the men. They ducked inside and began pounding on doors demanding to be let in. Their requests went unheeded, and they proceeded up the stairs to the third level, where Dunnigan observed them stop at a window in the hallway and throw out several small plastic packets. From his point of observation, Dunnigan also saw defendant dropping a larger bag. Dunnigan ran up to them and ordered them to stop. He grabbed them both, but they broke and ran as Dunnigan loosened his grip on one to retrieve his radio to call for back-up.

Dunnigan went back downstairs and picked up 15 small packets and a larger baggie containing more of the packets that he found on the ground below the window from which defendant and his partner had thrown them. With help from back-up officers, defendant and co-defendant Michael Jones were apprehended and taken to the police station for booking. Defendant volunteered that he lived in Chicago and had just driven from Oakland, California, to Peoria. The material in the small packets field-tested positive for cocaine and the two defendants were charged as aforesaid.

Defendant was taken to the Peoria County jail, where Officer Leanne Kruse inventoried defendant’s property before placing him in a cell. Defendant had six cents in his pocket and $1,000 in his underwear. The money was counted, placed in an envelope and transported back to the city police station for safekeeping in a property locker, but all or part of it had disappeared by the time defendant was tried in November 1989.

At trial, in addition to the testimony of the officers, the State introduced forensic testimony to establish that of the 50 small packets found in the larger bag, 49 tested positive for cocaine. The cocaine in those 49 packets weighed 14.7 grams. The material in each of the 15 small packets tested positive for cocaine and weighed 4.8 grams. Expert testimony further established that the small packets, each containing approximately one-quarter gram of cocaine, are called “quarter bags” and sell on the street for about $25 apiece. The witness testified that they are usually purchased by users one bag at a time. After the State’s case in chief, the defense rested without presenting any evidence.

The trial court ruled that the State had failed to prove defendant’s actual possession of or accountability for the 15 small packets. According to the court, defendant’s possession had been established only with respect to the larger bag. Therefore, since the material in the larger bag weighed 14.7 grams, defendant could not be convicted of the Class X offense as charged. The court found defendant guilty, as aforesaid, of the lesser-included Class 1 felony offense based on a quantity of cocaine weighing less than 15 grams.

We first address defendant’s argument that the State’s evidence failed to prove his knowing possession of the bag containing the 50 small packets of cocaine. Defendant suggests that he may have been merely helping Michael Jones dispose of material over which defendant had never previously exercised dominion or control.

As the State correctly responds, defendant’s theory of innocence need not have been accepted by the trial court, and on review, it is not our job to second-guess the trier of fact, but to determine whether any reasonable trier of fact could have found the elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. (People v. Collins (1985), 106 Ill. 2d 237, 478 N.E.2d 267.) Based on the appropriate standard, we do not hesitate to affirm the trial court’s conclusion that the element of possession with respect to the bag containing 14.7 grams of cocaine was proved. Officer Dunnigan testified unequivocally that he saw defendant throw the larger bag out of the window after he and codefendant Michael Jones tossed out several smaller packets. The circumstances leading up to their attempts to discard the drugs — i.e., running away from the approaching officer and trying to gain entry into apartments in an apparently random manner — evinced defendant’s knowledge of wrongdoing. A rational trier of fact could well infer from these circumstances that defendant had knowledgeable possession of the larger bag of drugs, as well as the actual possession witnessed by Officer Dunnigan, prior to tossing the bag out the window. See People v. Griffin (1974), 18 Ill. App. 3d 873, 310 N.E.2d 746 (conviction for possession of heroin in cigarette package discarded by defendant sustained upon challenge to knowledgeable possession); People v. Coleman (1980), 91 Ill. App. 3d 646, 415 N.E.2d 553 (defendant’s conviction for possession of package of marijuana discarded by defendant through bedroom window sustained on defendant’s challenge based on conflicts in testimony as to defendant’s residence).

Defendant next argues that, since there was no evidence that he had made any deliveries of cocaine, the State’s proof of intent to deliver is insufficient. The law of Illinois supports the State’s position to the contrary. A reasonable inference of intent to deliver arises from possession of a quantity of drugs greater than that which might be used for personal consumption. (People v. Romero (1989), 189 Ill. App. 3d 749, 546 N.E.2d 7, 11, citing People v. Schaefer (1985), 133 Ill. App. 3d 697, 479 N.E.2d 428.) The inference may be enhanced by factors such as how the drugs are packaged and defendant’s possession of large amounts of cash.

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People v. Jones, 575 N.E.2d 561, 215 Ill. App. 3d 652, 159 Ill. Dec. 63, 1991 Ill. App. LEXIS 1136 (Ill. Ct. App. 1991).

575 N.E.2d 561 (People v. Jones) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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