State v. Urias

446 P.2d 18, 8 Ariz. App. 319, 1968 Ariz. App. LEXIS 532
CourtCourt of Appeals of Arizona
DecidedOctober 23, 1968
Docket1 CA-CR 159
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 446 P.2d 18 (State v. Urias) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Arizona primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Urias, 446 P.2d 18, 8 Ariz. App. 319, 1968 Ariz. App. LEXIS 532 (Ark. Ct. App. 1968).

Opinion

CAMERON, Chief Judge.

This is an appeal from a verdict and judgment of guilt to the crime of illegal possession of narcotics (§ 36-1002 A.R.S.). Defendant was sentenced to a term of not less than 2 years nor more than 3 years in the Arizona State Prison.

Defendant has presented six questions for review but we feel that only three questions must be answered in the determination of this matter:

1. In a trial for possession of narcotics must the State show that the amount in possession was a usable amount?
2. Did the court fail to instruct the jury as to the elements of the offense under the facts of the case?
3. Was certain prejudicial evidence erroneously admitted ?

The facts viewed in a light most favorable to upholding the verdict and judgment, State v. Zaragosa, 6 Ariz.App. 80, 430 P.2d 426 (1967); State v. Hunter, 102 Ariz. 472, 433 P.2d 22 (1967), indicate that about 9:30 p. m. on 12 January 1967 the defendant approached the rear of the premises at 1826 East Buckeye Road, Phoenix, Arizona. The defendant walked from one of the apartments on the premises towards a building which was characterized as abandoned. As the defendant neared the corner of the building he stooped down. After the defendant arose he took about three steps when he was told by Officer Hawley that he was a Police Officer and to “hold it right there”. At that time the officer observed a shiny object fall from the defendant’s left hand. The object fell from the defendant’s hand about two feet from his left foot. The officer picked up the object, a plastic packet, and conducted a “Marquis Reagent” test on a portion of the contents. After the reagent turned purple the officer informed Urias he was under arrest for illegal possession of heroin. After the arrest, Officer Plawley further searched the area and found another packet similar to the one dropped by the defendant in a hole by the corner of the building.

At the trial, Lucien Haag, a criminalist with the Police Crime Laboratory, was called on behalf of the State and identified the contents of the two packets as containing 533 and 582 milligrams, or a little over one-half gram each, of a substance containing 18% heroin.

WAS THIS A USABLE AMOUNT?

Our Supreme Court has stated:

“ * * * where the amount of a narcotic is so small as to require a chemical analysis to detect its presence, the quantity is sufficient if usable under the known practices of narcotic addicts. We hold that only in those cases where the amount is incapable of being put to any effective use will the evidence be insuf *321 ficient to support a conviction.” State v. Moreno, 92 Ariz. 116, 120, 374 P.2d 872, 875 (1962). See also State v. Ballesteros, 100 Ariz. 262, 413 P.2d 739 (1966).

The only evidence presented relating to the narcotic itself was the statement by the criminalist that there was approximately 533 milligrams and 582 milligrams of a substance containing 18% heroin by chemical analysis. There was no testimony concerning the usability of the narcotics. We fully realize that in Moreno, supra, a conviction for possession of only .2 of one milligram was sustained but there was testimony that this was, under the circumstances of that case, a usable amount. We feel that State v. Moreno, supra, requires positive evidence that the amount in possession is a usable amount. The District of Columbia Court of Appeals has adopted the rationale of State v. Moreno, supra, and concluded that:

“Part of the government’s prima facie case is to prove that a substance in defendant’s possession allegedly in violation of § 33-402 (a) is proscribed as a narcotic drug under the statutory scheme of narcotics control. If this substance cannot be sold, if it cannot be administered or dispensed, common sense dictates that it is not such a narcotic as contemplated by Congress to be a danger to society, the possession of which is proscribed.” Edelin v. United States, 227 A.2d 395, 398 (1967).

Of course, we recognize that there are instances where proof of usability would be superfluous, especially in a case where the amount of narcotics involved is of such a large quantity that its usability is patently obvious to everyone. But in this case we are not dealing with a large quantity, we are dealing with a little over 1,000 milligrams if you add the weights of Exhibits 3 and 4 together of which 18% was heroin by analysis. To us this is such a small amount as not to be within the realm of an uninformed layman’s knowledge of its usability. Thus, we feel that in line with State v. Moreno, supra, in order to sustain a conviction for possession of narcotics, there must be evidence as to the sufficiency of the narcotic to be usable under the known practice of narcotic addicts. The State should have presented evidence on usable amount and the jury should have been instructed on the necessity of this element of the offense.

PROPER INSTRUCTIONS

The appellant next contends that the instructions were also insufficient in that the court failed to instruct upon all the elements of the offense. The applicable portion of the instructions given by the trial court in this case reads as follows:

“Under the statutes of Arizona, narcotic drugs means, and includes heroin. Also, under Arizona statutes, it is illegal for any person to possess any narcotic drug, except upon the written prescription of a physician, osteopath, dentist, or veterinarian, licensed to practice in this state. Possession means, on one’s person or within one’s control.
“To constitute a crime, there must be a combination of an act forbidden by law, and an intent to do the act.
“Intent may be inferred from the defendant’s voluntary commission of an act forbidden by law, and it is not necessary to establish that the defendant knew his act was a violation of law.”

Compare this instruction with the applicable portion of the instruction approved by the Arizona Supreme Court in State v. Moreno, supra, 92 Ariz. at page 120, 374 P.2d at page 875:

“ ‘You are instructed that the elements of the crime charged, to-wit, unlawful possession of narcotics are these: One, the person charged must have been in possession of a substance; two, the substance must have been a narcotic drug; three, the substance must have been in such quantity and quality to be susceptible of use as a narcotic; four, the possessor must have knowledge of the possession of such substance * * *.
*322 “ 'If you believe from the evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant possessed a narcotic drug known as heroin, then you are instructed the weight or amount of the drug is immaterial so long as you find that there was sufficient amount of such drug as to be usable as a narcotic.’ (Emphasis Supplied)”

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Bluebook (online)
446 P.2d 18, 8 Ariz. App. 319, 1968 Ariz. App. LEXIS 532, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-urias-arizctapp-1968.