Taylor Marshall v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)

Indiana Court of Appeals·Decided May 6, 2020·No. 19A-CR-2471·Published

Opinion

MEMORANDUM DECISION Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D), this Memorandum Decision shall not be FILED

regarded as precedent or cited before any May 06 2020, 8:27 am

court except for the purpose of establishing CLERK Indiana Supreme Court

the defense of res judicata, collateral Court of Appeals and Tax Court

estoppel, or the law of the case.

ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE Kimberly A. Jackson Curtis T. Hill, Jr. Indianapolis, Indiana Attorney General of Indiana J.T. Whitehead

Deputy Attorney General

Indianapolis, Indiana

IN THE

COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA

Taylor Marshall, May 6, 2020 Appellant-Defendant, Court of Appeals Case No.

19A-CR-2471

v. Appeal from the Fayette Circuit Court

State of Indiana, The Honorable Appellee-Plaintiff. Hubert Branstetter, Jr., Judge Trial Court Cause No.

21C01-1610-F3-771

Barteau, Senior Judge.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 19A-CR-2471 | May 6, 2020 Page 1 of 20

Statement of the Case

[1] Taylor Marshall appeals the trial court’s order revoking her probation and

ordering her to serve the entirety of her previously-suspended sentence. We affirm.

Issues

[2] Marshall raises three issues for our review, which we restate and expand as

follows:

I. Whether the trial court committed fundamental error in admitting certain hearsay evidence;

II. Whether Marshall’s right to due process was violated when the trial court admitted certain hearsay evidence;

III. Whether sufficient evidence supports the trial court’s finding that Marshall violated the terms of her probation; and

IV. Whether the trial court abused its discretion by ordering Marshall to serve the entirety of her previously-suspended sentence in the Indiana Department of Correction (DOC).

Facts and Procedural History [3] On October 26, 2016, the State charged Marshall with dealing in a narcotic

drug and conspiracy to commit dealing in a narcotic drug, both as Level 3 felonies. On February 13, 2017, under terms of a plea agreement, Marshall agreed to plead guilty to dealing in a look-a-like substance as a Level 5 felony, and, in exchange, the conspiracy charge would be dismissed. The trial court accepted the plea agreement and entered judgment of conviction consistent with the terms of the plea agreement on March 24, 2017. Marshall was sentenced to six years executed in the DOC to be served in the Purposeful Incarceration program.

[4] On October 5, 2018, Marshall filed a motion to amend the sentencing order to remove the purposeful incarceration requirement because she had been placed on a long waiting list for that program and could not participate in other programs while on the waiting list. On November 21, 2018, the State and Marshall entered into an Agreed Sentence Modification, and Marshall’s sentence was subsequently modified. She was immediately released from incarceration to the House of Ruth program, and the three years remaining on her original six-year sentence was ordered served on probation, with the completion of the House of Ruth program a condition of probation.

[5] Marshall performed well in the House of Ruth program, completing an eighteen-month program in six months. However, on July 23, 2019, Marshall overdosed on drugs and had to be resuscitated at Reid Hospital with the drug Narcan. The following day, Marshall’s probation officer, Charles Whallon, filed a Petition for Probation Violation Hearing, alleging that, when Marshall overdosed, she violated Rule #10 of the terms of her probation, which stated that “The defendant shall not use alcohol or illegal drugs[.]” Appellant’s App. Vol. II, p. 58.

[6] At some point, Officer Whallon learned from “other officers” that, on September 14, 2019, Marshall had visited the police department and requested that the police search her vehicle because Marshall believed that “bugs” or listening devices had been planted inside. Tr. pp. 11-12.

[7] Marshall met with Officer Whallon at least four times after she overdosed. At each meeting, she admitted that she continued to use methamphetamine. In response to the admissions, Officer Whallon arranged for Marshall to attend in- patient drug treatment at a facility in Richmond, Indiana, but Marshall failed to show for the first appointment that was set for September 16, 2019. Marshall did appear at the facility on September 20, 2019, for an intake appointment, but she left the facility after refusing to sign required paperwork.

[8] Marshall’s probation revocation hearing took place on September 23, 2019. On that day, prior to the start of the hearing, a sheriff’s deputy contacted Officer Whallon to tell him that Marshall was at a certain address and that she was behaving as if she were under the influence of drugs. Officer Whallon went to the address provided by the deputy and met with Marshall. He noticed that her behavior was “erratic” and “delusion[al].” Id. at 12. She told Officer Whallon that she had used drugs fifteen hours earlier. Based on the admission, probation officer Lindsey Tandy conducted a drug screen of Marshall just prior to the start of the revocation hearing. Marshall tested positive for methamphetamine, amphetamines, MDMA, and fentanyl. The results of the drug screen were initial results that had not yet been sent to a laboratory for confirmatory testing.

[9] At the revocation hearing, the trial court allowed over Marshall’s objection Officer Whallon’s testimony regarding statements that Marshall made to him— specifically, the statements about her drug use and the incident where the police searched her vehicle for listening devices. The trial court also allowed over Marshall’s objection Officer Tandy’s testimony regarding the results of the drug screen that was administered immediately prior to the start of the revocation hearing. The State did not introduce into evidence any printed documentation of the failed drug screen.

[10] At the hearing, the State argued that Marshall’s probation should be revoked and that she should be directed to serve her previously-suspended three-year sentence in the DOC. Marshall argued that she should be allowed to participate in inpatient treatment and that her probation should be continued.

[11] At the conclusion of the hearing, the trial court determined that Marshall violated the terms of her probation, revoked her probation, and ordered her to serve in the DOC the remaining three years of her previously-suspended sentence. Marshall appeals.

Discussion and Decision

I. Standard of Review

[12] Marshall challenges the trial court’s revocation of her probation. Our general

standard of review in such cases is well-established. Probation is a favor granted by the State, not a right to which a defendant is entitled. Butler v. State, 951 N.E.2d 255, 259 (Ind. Ct. App. 2011). Though a defendant is entitled to due process in a probation revocation proceeding, he is not entitled to all the rights he enjoyed before the underlying criminal conviction, such as the applicability of the rules of evidence or an elevated burden of proof. Id. A defendant is, however, entitled to certain due process protections, including the right to confront witnesses, right to cross-examine witnesses, and right to representation of counsel. Ind. Code § 35-38-2-3(f) (2015); Butler, 951 N.E.2d at 259. There must also be substantial evidence of probative value from which the trial court could determine based upon a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant violated the terms of his probation. Figures v. State, 920 N.E.2d 267, 272 (Ind. Ct. App. 2010).

II. Hearsay Evidence

[13] Marshall contends that the trial court erroneously admitted into evidence

certain hearsay evidence, namely, Officer Whallon’s testimony regarding the search of Marshall’s vehicle and Officer Tandy’s testimony regarding the results of Marshall’s drug screen. Marshall claims that the testimony constituted inadmissible hearsay which does not pass the substantial trustworthiness test.

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