State v. Glowczewski

168 S.W.3d 100, 2005 Mo. App. LEXIS 1102, 2005 WL 1787677
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedJuly 29, 2005
DocketNo. 26331
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 168 S.W.3d 100 (State v. Glowczewski) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Glowczewski, 168 S.W.3d 100, 2005 Mo. App. LEXIS 1102, 2005 WL 1787677 (Mo. Ct. App. 2005).

Opinion

JEFFREY W. BATES, Chief Judge.

Clarence Glowczewski (“Defendant”) was charged by information with committing the class C felony of possessing methamphetamine, a controlled substance, in violation of § 195.202.1 After a jury trial, Defendant was found guilty of possessing methamphetamine.2 In accordance with [102]*102the jury’s recommendation, the trial court sentenced Defendant to serve six months in the county jail. Execution of the sentence was suspended, and Defendant was placed on three years of supervised probation. This appeal followed.

In Defendant’s sole point relied on, he contends the trial court erred in denying his motions for judgment of acquittal because the State did not present sufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Defendant possessed methamphetamine. We affirm.

I. Standard of Review

The scope of our review is limited to assessing whether there is sufficient evidence from which a reasonable juror might have found the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. State v. Dulany, 781 S.W.2d 52, 55 (Mo. banc 1989). The mechanics of this review process were explained in State v. Grim, 854 S.W.2d 403 (Mo. banc 1993):

In considering whether the evidence is sufficient to support the jury’s verdict, we must look to the elements of the crime and consider each in turn. Under the Dulany standard, we are required to take the evidence in the light most favorable to the State and to grant the State all reasonable inferences from the evidence. We disregard contrary inferences, unless they are such a natural and logical extension of the evidence that a reasonable juror would be unable to disregard them. Taking the evidence in this light, we consider whether a reasonable juror could find each of the elements beyond a reasonable doubt.

Id. at 411. Evidentiary conflicts, the determination of witnesses’ credibility and the weight to be given their testimony are within the peculiar province of the jury. State v. Zimmerman, 886 S.W.2d 684, 691 (Mo.App.1994). It is not the function of an appellate court to substitute its judgment for that of the jury or to weigh the evidence presented. Id.; State v. Reed, 816 S.W.2d 919, 921 (Mo.App.1991).

In Defendant’s point relied on, he argues that the court erred in denying both of Defendant’s motions for judgment of acquittal. Defendant filed the first motion at the close of the State’s evidence and the second motion at the close of all the evidence. Since Defendant presented evidence in his own behalf after the State rested, however, he waived any claim of error relating to the denial of his motion for judgment of acquittal filed at the close of the State’s evidence. State v. Purlee, 839 S.W.2d 584, 587 (Mo. banc 1992). Thus, our task is to determine whether the trial judge should have sustained Defendant’s motion for judgment of acquittal that was filed at the close of all of the evidence. Id. The sufficiency of the evidence to support the verdict will be determined based on all of the evidence presented, including those portions of Defendant’s evidence that favor the State. See State v. Marvel, 756 S.W.2d 207, 209 (Mo.App.1988); State v. Campbell, 655 S.W.2d 96, 97 (Mo.App.1983); State v. Wood, 553 S.W.2d 333, 334 (Mo. App.1977).

II. Summary of the Evidence

Defendant owned an acre of land in Dent County, Missouri. A one-bedroom trailer house, in which Defendant lived alone, was located on the property. Defendant’s mother lived in another trailer house located approximately 100 to 200 [103]*103feet from Defendant’s trailer. On June 17, 2003, the Dent County Sheriffs Department obtained a warrant to search Defendant’s property to determine if methamphetamine was being manufactured there.

Six police officers executed the warrant shortly before 1:00 a.m. on June 18, 2003. Dent County Deputy Rodney Jackson (“Deputy Jackson”) was assigned to cover the rear of Defendant’s trailer when the warrant was executed. As Deputy Jackson exited his patrol vehicle, he shined his flashlight along the back of the trailer. Just as the light cleared the east end of the trailer, Deputy Jackson spotted Defendant, who appeared to be fleeing from the scene. Defendant stopped moving away from the trailer and raised his hands as soon as he was struck by the beam from Deputy Jackson’s flashlight. Defendant had his back to the trailer and was approximately 50 feet past its east end. Even though Defendant was carrying a flashlight and “it was pitch black out there,” the flashlight was turned off. Deputy Jackson did not find any methamphetamine on Defendant’s person.

Dent County Deputy Richard Piatt (“Deputy Piatt”) was assigned to cover the front of Defendant’s trailer while the warrant was being executed. As he got out of his vehicle, he observed a suspect run from the trailer towards a nearby creek. Deputy Piatt apprehended the suspect, who was later identified as Ricky Martin (“Ricky”).3 As Deputy Piatt brought Ricky back to the trailer, the officer found a pair of eyeglasses about 25 feet from the east end of Defendant’s trailer. The glasses were laying on a well-used trail leading from Defendant’s trailer to his mother’s trailer. Deputy Piatt later heard Defendant say that the eyeglasses belonged to him.

Deputies Piatt and Jackson returned to the trailer with Defendant and Ricky. When Defendant was asked who owned the trailer, he said his mother owned it. Deputy Piatt stayed with Defendant and Ricky while Deputy Jackson knocked on the front door of Defendant’s trailer. No one responded, so Deputy Jackson went inside. The trailer appeared dark from the outside, but the trailer’s interior was illuminated by a light. No one else was found in the residence. Once inside, Deputy Jackson could smell the “obnoxious” odor of camp fuel and iodine commonly encountered at meth labs. Deputy Jackson found tubing, red phosphorus, lye, mu-riatic acid, a camp fuel can, a coffee filter with white residue on it, and various jars and bottles. All of the aforementioned items, which are commonly used to manufacture methamphetamine, were located in plain sight on or around a coffee table beside the bed. On the bed, Deputy Jackson found an electric shaver case containing two used syringes, two new syringes, a deodorant can and a powder can. Later lab tests showed that coffee filter, jars and bottles all tested positive for methamphetamine.

After observing the items in the trailer, Deputy Jackson placed Defendant and Ricky under arrest and read them their Miranda rights.4 Defendant waived his right to counsel and agreed to be questioned. The following events then transpired:

Q. What did you ask [Defendant]?
A.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
168 S.W.3d 100, 2005 Mo. App. LEXIS 1102, 2005 WL 1787677, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-glowczewski-moctapp-2005.