State v. James Burke Jarreau (Cross Appellant)

CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJune 22, 2016
Docket04-15-00313-CR
StatusPublished

This text of State v. James Burke Jarreau (Cross Appellant) (State v. James Burke Jarreau (Cross Appellant)) 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
State v. James Burke Jarreau (Cross Appellant), (Tex. Ct. App. 2016).

Opinion

Fourth Court of Appeals San Antonio, Texas MEMORANDUM OPINION No. 04-15-00313-CR

The STATE of Texas, Appellant

v.

James Burke JARREAU, Appellee

From the 216th Judicial District Court, Gillespie County, Texas Trial Court No. 5552 Honorable N. Keith Williams, Judge Presiding

Opinion by: Marialyn Barnard, Justice

Sitting: Karen Angelini, Justice Marialyn Barnard, Justice Luz Elena D. Chapa, Justice

Delivered and Filed: June 22, 2016

MOTION TO DISMISS FOR WANT OF JURISDICTION DENIED AS MOOT; AFFIRMED

This is an appeal from a trial court’s order granting appellee James Burke Jarreau’s motion

to quash the indictment. On appeal, the State of Texas contends the trial court erred in (1) granting

Jarreau’s motion to quash, and (2) denying the State’s motion to amend the indictment to provide

the requisite notice in response to the motion to quash. We deny as moot the State’s motion to

dismiss for want of jurisdiction Jarreau’s cross appeal and affirm the trial court’s order granting

the motion to quash. 04-15-00313-CR

BACKGROUND

The factual background is unnecessary to the disposition of this appeal. Accordingly, we

provide a brief procedural background for context.

The State obtained an indictment against Jarreau for delivery or offer of delivery of a

dangerous drug. Specifically, the indictment alleged Jarreau “did then and there intentionally or

knowingly deliver or offer to deliver to [M.J.] a dangerous drug, specifically 25B-NBOMe.” 1

Jarreau filed two motions to quash the indictment. In this first motion, he alleged the indictment

failed to provide adequate notice or define the term “dangerous drug.” Approximately a month

later, Jarreau filed a second motion to quash. In his second motion, which is the motion ruled upon

by the trial court, Jarreau complained the indictment is defective because it: (1) fails to allege why

25B-NBOMe is a dangerous drug under section 483.001(a) of the Texas Health and Safety Code

(“the Code”); (2) fails to state an offense — 25B-NBOMe did not bear and was not required to

bear the legends required by subsections (A) and (B) of section 483.001(2) of the Code; (3) fails

to allege which of the various statutory definitions of “dangerous drug” the State intends to rely

on in its prosecution, thereby failing to provide adequate notice; (4) fails to allege which of the

various statutory definitions of “dangerous drug” the State intends to rely on in its prosecution,

thereby failing to provide adequate notice; (5) alleges a delivery or offer to deliver, but does not

state whether the delivery in question was by actual or constructive transfer; (6) alleges Jarreau

delivered or offered to deliver a dangerous drug, but does not allege the manner and means of the

purported delivery or offer to deliver; (7) the statute underlying the indictment — section

483.042(a) of the Code, which makes delivery or an offer of delivery of a dangerous drug a

1 Effective September 1, 2015, the Legislature added 25B-NBOMe to penalty group 1A in the Texas Controlled Substances Act. Act of May 22, 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., ch. 64, § 2, 2015 Tex. Gen. Laws __ (current version at TEX. HEALTH & SAFETY CODE ANN. § 481.1021(a)(2)(B) (West Supp. 2015)).

-2- 04-15-00313-CR

criminal offense — is unconstitutionally vague, facially and as applied; and (8) alleges Jarreau

delivered or offered to deliver a dangerous drug, but does not allege he knew the thing delivered

was a dangerous drug or any kind of contraband.

After a hearing at which the parties presented their respective arguments, the trial court

took the matter under advisement. A subsequent hearing was scheduled. On the day of the hearing,

but before the trial court ruled on the motion to quash, the State filed a motion to amend the

indictment, seeking to include more specificity regarding the manner and means of delivery. At

the hearing, the trial court verbally denied the State’s motion to amend and thereafter, granted

Jarreau’s second motion to quash. At the State’s request, the trial court stated on the record it was

granting Jarreau’s motion because the indictment failed to allege:

• why 25B-NBOMe is a dangerous drug under section 483.001(a) of the Code;

• which of the various statutory definitions of “dangerous drug” the State intended to rely on;

• whether the delivery in question was by actual or constructive transfer; and

• the manner and means of the purported delivery or offer to deliver.

Thereafter, the trial court signed the order granting Jarreau’s motion to quash. The State

filed a notice of appeal. After the State filed its notice of appeal, Jarreau filed a cross notice of

appeal, seeking to affirm the trial court’s order on the grounds the trial court denied, expressly or

by implication. In response, the State filed a motion to strike Jarreau’s cross-appellant’s brief and

the points therein — which we interpret as a motion to dismiss for want of jurisdiction Jarreau’s

cross appeal — arguing this court lacks jurisdiction to consider those points. Jarreau filed a

response. After reviewing the motion and the response, we ordered the motion and response

carried with the appeal.

-3- 04-15-00313-CR

ANALYSIS

As noted above, the State contends the trial court erred in granting Jarreau’s motion to

quash and denying its motion to amend. We begin with the propriety of the trial court’s order

granting the motion to quash.

Motion to Quash

The State first argues the trial court erred in granting the motion to quash the indictment.

As noted above, the trial court granted the motion to quash on four separate grounds. The State

does not address each ground independently; rather, the State makes a general argument, asserting

the indictment was sufficient because it provided adequate notice of the charged offense and the

act upon which the State would rely at trial to prove Jarreau’s guilt.

Standard of Review

Prior to the decision in Guzman v. State, 955 S.W.2d 85 (Tex. Crim. App. 1997), the

standard used to review a trial court’s ruling on a motion to quash was abuse of discretion. State

v. Moff, 154 S.W.3d 599, 601 (Tex. Crim. App. 2004). Thereafter, however, a trial court’s ruling

on a motion to quash was subject to de novo review. See State v. Cooper, 420 S.W.3d 829, 831

(Tex. Crim. App. 2013) (citing Moff, 154 S.W.3d at 601); State v. Castorena, No. 04-14-00671-

CR, 2016 WL 234856, at *1 (Tex. App.—San Antonio Jan. 20, 2016, no pet.). After Guzman, the

court of criminal appeals determined that an appellate court should conduct a de novo review

because the sufficiency of a charging instrument is a question of law, and “when the resolution of

a question of law does not depend on the credibility and demeanor of a witness, then the trial court

is in no better position than the appellate court to make the determination.” Moff, 154 S.W.3d at

601; Castorena, 2016 WL 234856, at *1 (citing State v. Rosseau, 396 S.W.3d 550, 555 n.6 (Tex.

Crim. App. 2013); Moff, 154 S.W.3d at 601). Here, the trial court’s decision to quash the

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