Solis v. State

492 S.W.2d 561, 1973 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 2282
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Texas
DecidedFebruary 28, 1973
Docket45798
StatusPublished
Cited by17 cases

This text of 492 S.W.2d 561 (Solis v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Solis v. State, 492 S.W.2d 561, 1973 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 2282 (Tex. 1973).

Opinion

OPINION

ONION, Presiding Judge.

This appeal arises out of a murder conviction where the punishment was assessed by the jury at life imprisonment.

The record reflects that on June 20, 1970, at 3002 Pitluk Street in San Antonio, Christina Solis was shot three times by her husband, the appellant, while her hands were being held behind her back by his stepbrother, Joe De Los Santos, Jr. Following the shooting the appellant and De Los Santos ran outside and got in a car and drove to Mexico. The appellant was arrested some six months later in the State of California.

Testifying in his own behalf appellant admitted shooting his wife, but claimed he was alone with his wife at the time and she had just advised him she had just had sexual intercourse with another man.

Initially, appellant claims he did not have “fair notice of the venire for his case.”

On February 12, 1971, the court overruled a motion for a special venire in this *563 case where the State sought the death penalty. See Article 34.01, Vernon’s Ann.C. C.P.

On March 15, 1971, appellant’s counsel acknowledged to the trial court that a list of the jury panel for the week of the trial containing some 740 names had been timely provided as required by Article 34.04, V.A.C.C.P., while candidly admitting he had made no effort to investigate the background of the jury panel for the week. Appellant’s counsel orally asked for a 48 hour postponement in order that he might investigate the background of the members of the jury panel for the case which had been taken from the jury panel for the week. The motion for postponement was denied and the four-day interrogation of the jury panel, one at a time, separate and apart from the others, was commenced.

We find no merit, under the circumstances, in appellant’s contention he did not have “fair notice.”

Next, appellant contends the jury selection method was improper citing Witherspoon v. Illinois, 391 U.S. 510, 88 S.Ct. 1770, 20 L.Ed.2d 776. Witherspoon, of course, has no application where the death penalty is not imposed. Bumper v. North Carolina, 391 U.S. 543, 88 S.Ct. 1788, 20 L.Ed.2d 797; Hinkle v. State, 442 S.W.2d 728 (Tex.Cr.App.1969); Parks v. State, 437 S.W.2d 554 (Tex.Cr.App.1969).

If it be appellant’s contention that the jury selection methods used resulted in a prosecution prone jury to decide the issue of guilt then attention is called to Parks v. State, supra, and Bradley v. State, 450 S.W.2d 847 (Tex.Cr.App.1970) which, relying upon Bumper and Witherspoon, were decided adversely to appellant’s contention.

The appellant here has not offered any more data than available in those cases to demonstrate that jurors not opposed to the death penalty tend to favor the prosecution in the determination of guilt. See also Morales v. State, 458 S.W.2d 56 (Tex.Cr.App.1970); Woodard v. State, 463 S.W.2d 197 (Tex.Cr.App.1971).

Appellant’s next ground of error complains that his conviction “resulted, at least in part, from inadmissible sworn and unsworn testimony and from the prosecution’s lack of good faith.” The appellant complains about several instances which occurred during the trial. The brief weaves these instances together in such a manner it is clear the ground of error is multifarious and not in compliance with Article 40.09, Sec. 9, V.A.C.C.P. Much of the brief concerning the ground of error relates to a claim of conflict between testimony of State and defense witnesses. There was no dispute that appellant shot and killed his wife. The conflict in the testimony was resolved by the jury who was the trier of the facts, the judge of the credibility of the witnesses and weight to be given to the testimony. Appellant also contends the testimony of Deputy Sheriff Bob Beckmann that he went to California and took the appellant into custody over six months after the alleged offense was inadmissible.

Evidence of flight is admissible. Although the flight of an accused is not grounds for a presumption of guilt it is still a circumstance from which an inference of guilt may be drawn. Ysasaga v. State, 444 S.W.2d 305 (Tex.Cr.App.1969).

The fact that an accused is out of state when apprehended a long period of time after the commission of the crime is admissible to show flight. Sebastian v. State, 41 Tex.Cr.R. 248, 53 S.W. 875 (1899).

Appellant further complains of the admission of testimony by Elodia Garcia that shortly after the shooting Rosa Bravo told her that the appellant had shot the deceased three times in the face.

The witness Garcia, a next door neighbor of the deceased, testified that within seconds after she heard shots that Rosa *564 Bravo and other girls came screaming to her house, that Rosa was excited and crying and related the complained of testimony.

After a hearing in the jury’s absence the court ruled the same was admissible as part of the “res gestae.” We agree.

Further, Rosa Bravo, the deceased’s sister, was an eye witness to the shooting and saw three shots fired. Appellant in his testimony admitted the shooting and the medical examiner testified as to the location of the three bullet wounds and the cause of death. We can perceive no error in the admission of such testimony.

The appellant also contends that the prosecution’s lack of good faith is reflected by the attempt to interject an extraneous offense. On cross-examination, appellant admitted he fled to Mexico and California after the alleged offense but denied having been in Lubbock after the alleged offense. The prosecutor then asked:

“Q Well, whey you got arrested out in California were you driving a car?
“A That’s right.
“Q Where did you get the car ?
“A I refuse to answer on the grounds that I will incriminate myself, the Fifth Amendment.
“Q I am sorry?
“A I refuse to answer on the grounds I may incriminate myself.”

At this point appellant’s counsel requested the jury be removed and moved for a mistrial in their absence. The prosecutor acknowledged that he had information that the car in which appellant was arrested in California had been stolen in Lubbock, and urged the same was admissible in light of a case he had earlier shown the court. The court overruled the mistrial motion, sustained the objection to any further questioning along this line, but refused to instruct the jury to disregard for fear of overemphasizing “the particular point.”

No further evidence was offered before the jury.

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Bluebook (online)
492 S.W.2d 561, 1973 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 2282, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/solis-v-state-texcrimapp-1973.