State v. Montano

2012 ND 59, 813 N.W.2d 612, 2012 N.D. LEXIS 52, 2012 WL 851661
CourtNorth Dakota Supreme Court
DecidedMarch 15, 2012
DocketNo. 20110281
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 2012 ND 59 (State v. Montano) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering North Dakota Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Montano, 2012 ND 59, 813 N.W.2d 612, 2012 N.D. LEXIS 52, 2012 WL 851661 (N.D. 2012).

Opinion

VANDE WALLE, Chief Justice.

[¶ 1] Gregorio Montano appealed from a criminal judgment entered after a jury [614]*614found him guilty of possession of marijuana with intent to deliver and delivery of marijuana. Montano contends we should reverse his convictions and remand this case for further proceedings because his constitutional rights to due process and a fair trial were violated when the district court failed to impose sanctions after the prosecutor made an inappropriate racial comment during rebuttal argument, and the evidence at trial was insufficient to sustain his convictions. We affirm.

I.

[¶ 2] The testimony at trial described the events that led to the criminal charges filed against Montano. Leeann Whitebull testified she spoke with Elva Nava about bringing marijuana to Minot from Texas in September 2010. On September 10, 2010, Montano and Nava arrived in Bismarck. Whitebull testified Montano and Nava brought approximately ten pounds of marijuana with them. Whitebull drove Monta-no and Nava to Minot where they stayed at her apartment. Whitebull returned to Bismarck. While in Bismarck, Whitebull met Eddie Monroe, an African American, who was working as a confidential informant. Whitebull told Monroe she knew where he could purchase marijuana, and Monroe agreed to purchase two pounds of marijuana.

[¶ 3] On September 13, 2010, Monroe, accompanied by several task force agents, drove from Bismarck to Minot to purchase the marijuana. Monroe told law enforcement that the price of the marijuana was $2,800, and law enforcement gave Monroe that amount after photocopying each of the bills. Upon arriving in Minot, Monroe went to a parking lot to meet a vehicle driven by Whitebull in which Montano, Nava, and Whitebull’s minor child were passengers. The parties drove to White-bull’s apartment. Monroe testified he entered the apartment and gave Whitebull $2,500. Monroe said Whitebull gave the money to Montano, who counted the money and put it in his pocket. Monroe testified he watched Montano go into a room and get the marijuana from under a mattress. Monroe said that Montano did most of the talking during the transaction. Whitebull testified that Monroe gave her the money, and she gave the money to Montano. Whitebull testified she was the “middle person,” and Montano had the marijuana. Whitebull testified the marijuana was in Montano’s bag, and she knew it was his bag because it had men’s clothing in it.

[¶ 4] Monroe left Whitebull’s apartment and met with the task force agents at a different location. Monroe gave the two pounds of marijuana to the agents and they searched Monroe’s person and vehicle, which is standard procedure after a controlled purchase of drugs. The agents found $300 in Monroe’s vehicle. Monroe admitted to the agents and testified at trial that he lied about the price of the marijuana because he wanted more money than law enforcement was already paying him as an informant. Monroe was not arrested, but his employment as a confidential informant was terminated. The agents stopped Whitebull for driving under suspension and arrested Whitebull, Montano, and Nava. The vehicle was impounded and an impound search was conducted. During the search, law enforcement found marijuana in the trunk and $400 of the marked bills in a purse that was identified as belonging to Whitebull.

[¶ 5] Law enforcement applied for and obtained a search warrant for Whitebull’s apartment. Nava, who had been released, was present when the warrant was executed. During the search, officers found $2,100 of the purchase money. One officer testified he found $2,100 of the purchase [615]*615money in a bag. The same officer said the evidence inventory and receipt form also stated $2,100 of the purchase money was found in a bag. A different report stated $1,600 of the purchase money was found in the bag, and Nava handed an officer $500 of the purchase money. One officer testified approximately five pounds of marijuana was located in a bag. The officers who found the money and marijuana testified that the bag contained what they identified as male clothing due to the nature and size of the clothes. The officers concluded that the bag belonged to Montano because he was staying at Whitebull’s apartment. Whitebull testified no other man had access to her apartment at that time.

[¶ 6] Montano was charged with possession with intent to deliver marijuana and delivery of marijuana. Whitebull was charged with the same offenses and pled guilty prior to Montano’s trial. A jury trial on Montano’s charges was held on May 9-10, 2011. During closing arguments, Montano’s attorney stated:

What else points to Mr. Montano’s guilt[ ]? Well we have Eddie Monroe. Mr. Monroe, the confidential informant, the narc. Mr. Monroe exemplifies what is exactly wrong with the system of using people like that to conduct controlled buys. I know we all had a good laugh when Agent Fontenot said that he wouldn’t answer my question because it was so ridiculous. But really, how many wrongs do we have to tolerate, as a society, to make a right? The ends justify the means. That’s a morally bankrupt argument. That’s a dead end argument. When you have a law enforcement agency that takes Mr. Monroe, not once, but twice a convicted felon, and not only did he get a break down in Wisconsin, as I recall the testimony, he had delivery of THC of less than 200 grams hanging over his head. That went away when he became an informant for the folks in Wisconsin.

Montano’s attorney further argued:

[The agent] admits that they use convicted felons, that they use people they cut deals with not to ... prosecute, that they use people that they talk with the states attorneys about, and the states attorneys will routinely accept their recommendations about charges. They pay people to become confidential informants. They use lies, deceit, and trickery.

During the State’s rebuttal argument, the following colloquy took place:

[THE STATE:] Another thing about Monroe. Gotta use a little logic here. The defense wants you to believe that there’s something wrong with the system, that they use people like that. What’s that mean? Black people?
[THE DEFENSE]: Objection. Your Honor, that is an unfair mischaracterization of my statement. I have no racial bias whatsoever.
THE COURT: Sustained.

The defense did not request a curative instruction or other remedy, and the district court did not take remedial action sua sponte. The jury returned guilty verdicts on both charges.

II.

[¶ 7] Montano argues the district court erred in failing to impose sanctions when the prosecutor made an inappropriate racial comment during rebuttal argument. Montano asserts his constitutional rights to due process and a fair trial were violated as a result and requests this Court to reverse his convictions.

[¶ 8] In reviewing Montano’s claim, we first determine if the prosecutor’s comment constitutes misconduct, and if so, we examine whether the misconduct [616]*616had a prejudicial effect. State v. Vondal, 2011 ND 186, ¶ 12, 803 N.W.2d 578. “To determine whether a prosecutor’s misconduct rises to a level of a due process violation, we decide if the conduct, in the context of the entire trial, was sufficiently prejudicial to violate a defendant’s due process rights.” Id. (quoting State v. Kruckenberg, 2008 ND 212, ¶ 20, 758 N.W.2d 427).

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Related

State v. Jasmann
2015 ND 101 (North Dakota Supreme Court, 2015)
State v. Evans
2013 ND 195 (North Dakota Supreme Court, 2013)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2012 ND 59, 813 N.W.2d 612, 2012 N.D. LEXIS 52, 2012 WL 851661, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-montano-nd-2012.