State v. Roberts

142 S.W.3d 199, 2004 Mo. App. LEXIS 1243, 2004 WL 1925978
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedAugust 31, 2004
DocketNo. ED 83697
StatusPublished

This text of 142 S.W.3d 199 (State v. Roberts) 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. Roberts, 142 S.W.3d 199, 2004 Mo. App. LEXIS 1243, 2004 WL 1925978 (Mo. Ct. App. 2004).

Opinion

GARY M. GAERTNER, SR., Presiding Judge.

Appellant, Shurron Roberts (“defendant”), appeals from the judgment of the Circuit Court of the City of St. Louis following a jury trial finding him guilty of the sale of a controlled substance, cocaine base, section 195.211, RSMo 2000.1 Defendant was sentenced as a prior and persistent offender and a prior and persistent drug offender to fifteen years to be served in the Missouri Department of Corrections concurrently with defendant’s federal prison sentence from another conviction. We affirm.

On November 14, 2001, the Street Corner Apprehension Team (SCAT) of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department set up an undercover drug operation to find and apprehend cocaine dealers in the O’Fallon neighborhood in the City of St. Louis. Undercover SCAT Officer Ren-wick Bovell (“Officer”) posed as a potential drug buyer. Officer wore a body transmitter, a device that is used to record and transmit oral communications to other SCAT officers. Jermaine Canada (“Canada”), a narcotics middleman, led Officer to defendant’s location. Officer gave Canada a previously photocopied twenty dollar bill2 to purchase cocaine. Canada and defendant engaged in what appeared to be a hand-to-hand transaction. Canada returned to Officer’s car with an object that was later determined to be cocaine base. When defendant was arrested, he had in his possession the same twenty dollar bill that Officer had previously given Canada.

Defendant was charged with a class B felony of the sale of a controlled substance in violation of section 195.211. Defendant’s trial took place from July 28 to July 29, 2003. Defendant did not present any witnesses or evidence. Defendant made an oral motion for judgment of acquittal at the close of all evidence, which the trial court denied. On July 29, 2003, the jury found defendant guilty of the sale of a controlled substance. On October 9, 2003, defendant was sentenced to fifteen years’ imprisonment.

As the sufficiency of the evidence is in dispute, the facts will be discussed in greater detail in Point I.

In his first point on appeal, defendant asserts that the trial court erred when it denied his motion for judgment of [201]*201acquittal and convicted him of the sale of controlled substance.

Section 195.211.1 provides that “it is unlawful for any person to distribute, deliver, manufacture, [or] produce ... a controlled substance.” Subsection 12 of section 195.010 states that “distribute” is defined as “to deliver other than by administering or dispensing a controlled substance.” “Deliver” is defined in subsection 8 of section 195.010 as “the actual, constructive, or attempted transfer from one person to another of ... a controlled substance ... and includes a sale.” Subsection 38 of section 195.010 defines “sale” to include a “barter, exchange, or gift.”

When reviewing whether evidence is sufficient to support a criminal conviction, we accept all evidence and inferences favorable to the jury’s verdict and we disregard all contrary evidence and inferences. State v. Skaggs, 74 S.W.3d 282, 284 (Mo.App. E.D.2002). Our review is limited to a determination of whether there is sufficient evidence from which a reasonable juror could have found a defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Id. Great deference is given to a jury’s findings. Id.

The state must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that an accused committed each element of the crime for which he or she is charged. State v. Baker, 23 S.W.3d 702, 710 (Mo.App. E.D.2000). In cases where evidence of guilt is entirely circumstantial, the evidence must be consistent with the state’s theory of guilt while at the same time inconsistent with a theory of innocence. State v. Cobb, 820 S.W.2d 704, 709 (Mo.App. S.D.1991). However, the circumstantial evidence does not need to absolutely prove guilt nor does it need to demonstrate the impossibility of innocence. Id. If a defendant’s hypothesis of his or her innocence is merely possible or remote, but not reasonable, it will not warrant the granting of a motion for acquittal. State v. Horn, 111 S.W.2d 656, 659 (Mo.App. W.D.1989).

In the instant case, defendant was charged with the class B felony of the sale of a controlled substance in that he, acting with Canada, knowingly sold cocaine base, a controlled substance, to Officer, knowing that it was a controlled substance. Defendant contends that the state did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that defendant committed the crime for which he was charged because Officer did not search Canada before Canada’s encounter with defendant and because Officer did not see defendant give Canada the cocaine. We disagree.

A reasonable juror could infer that Officer did not search Canada before Canada’s encounter with defendant because this would have been fatal to the undercover drug operation. Although Officer did not see defendant give Canada the cocaine, we find that the circumstantial evidence in the record supports the trial court’s judgment entered on the jury’s verdict convicting defendant of selling a controlled substance.

On November 14, 2001 between 9:30 p.m. and 10:00 p.m., Officer was driving an unmarked police car when he saw Canada walking around a gas station.3 Officer approached Canada and asked him, “do you know where I can get a dub from?”4 Canada told him “yes” and entered into Officer’s car. Canada, acting as a narcotics middleman, directed Officer to several [202]*202places in the neighborhood, but no one provided Canada with cocaine. After each stop Canada would tell Officer, ‘Tve got another spot that we can go to.” This process went on for about twelve minutes.

Canada then directed Officer to the 1400 block of Cass Street. There, Officer gave Canada the previously photocopied twenty dollar bill to purchase cocaine. Canada left the car with the twenty dollar bill and walked to 1442 Cass, where defendant was sitting on the top step of a porch. Canada’s right hand was not clenched as he approached defendant. Officer stated, on State’s Exhibit 5, something to the effect that defendant had a “nice stash” and that defendant was unwrapping something from a big cellophane bag.

Before Canada stepped on the porch, he reached his right hand into his pocket. Canada and defendant engaged in what appeared to be a hand-to-hand transaction on the porch, during which Canada clenched his right fist. Canada returned to Officer’s car with his right fist still clenched. Canada handed Officer an object and told him it was “legit.” This object was later determined to be .07 grams of cocaine base. At this time, Officer gave the other SCAT officers a verbal signal to indicate that the drug transaction was complete.

Following these events, defendant was arrested and taken into custody. Sergeant Adrienne Bergh patted down defendant and found in his pocket the same twenty dollar bill that Officer had given Canada for the drug transaction. In his closing argument, defendant’s counsel argued that defendant may have had Officer’s twenty dollar bill because Canada got change from defendant or because Canada asked defendant to hold on to the money.

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Related

State v. Skaggs
74 S.W.3d 282 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2002)
State v. Cobb
820 S.W.2d 704 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1991)
State v. Shaw
14 S.W.3d 77 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1999)
State v. Baker
23 S.W.3d 702 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2000)
State v. Seddens
878 S.W.2d 89 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1994)
State v. Brasher
867 S.W.2d 565 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1993)
State v. Guidorzi
895 S.W.2d 225 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1995)
Letcher County Board of Education v. Bank of Whitesburg, Inc.
111 S.W.2d 656 (Court of Appeals of Kentucky (pre-1976), 1937)
State v. Winters
949 S.W.2d 264 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1997)

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Bluebook (online)
142 S.W.3d 199, 2004 Mo. App. LEXIS 1243, 2004 WL 1925978, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-roberts-moctapp-2004.