Weems v. State

167 S.W.3d 350, 2005 WL 486548
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJuly 14, 2005
Docket14-03-01067-CR
StatusPublished
Cited by35 cases

This text of 167 S.W.3d 350 (Weems v. State) 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
Weems v. State, 167 S.W.3d 350, 2005 WL 486548 (Tex. Ct. App. 2005).

Opinion

OPINION

JOHN S. ANDERSON, Justice.

Following the trial court’s denial of his motion to suppress, appellant Widener Michael Weems was convicted by a jury of murder and assessed punishment at life in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Institutional Division. He appeals his conviction on a single issue. He contends the trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress and admitting his written and videotaped statements and any evidence discovered through those statements because the State failed to prove the police had probable cause to arrest him, and thus, his in-custody statements were the fruit of an unlawful arrest. We affirm.

I. Factual and PkocbduRal Backgkound

In January 2004, H.P. Weems reported his father, Holmes Weems, missing. Shortly thereafter, investigators discovered Holmes Weems’ vandalized and abandoned vehicle in a field. H.P. Weems gave investigators information that if anything bad had happened to his father, it would be at the hands of the Weems brothers, specifically appellant. 1 Thereafter, investigators questioned appellant’s wife, Emily Weems. Mrs. Weems told investigators appellant and his brother were responsible for murdering her father. After receiving her statement, an investigator allegedly drew up a probable cause affidavit and obtained a warrant for appellant’s arrest. Thereafter, appellant was arrested and brought to the Brazoria County Sheriffs Department. That night, after he received and waived his Miranda rights, appellant made a written confession and directed officers to the location of Holmes Weems’ body. The next morning, appellant accompanied officers to the exact location of the body, and, upon his return to the Sheriffs office, gave a videotaped statement about his involvement in the murder.

Before trial on the instant case, appellant filed a motion to suppress the written and videotaped statements he made following his arrest. The trial court conducted a pre-trial hearing on appellant’s motion, made findings of fact and conclusions of law, and denied the request. In his sole appellate issue, appellant contends the trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress his incriminating statements because, he claims, the State failed to prove the police had probable cause to arrest him, and thus, his in-custody statements were the fruit of an unlawful arrest.

II. Motion to SuppRess

A. Standard of Review

We review the trial court’s ruling on a motion to suppress evidence under an abuse-of-discretion standard. Villarreal v. State, 935 S.W.2d 134, 138 (Tex.Crim.App.1996). If supported by the record, a trial court’s ruling on a motion to suppress will not be overturned. Hill v. State, 902 S.W.2d 57, 59 (Tex.App.-Houston [1st Dist.] 1995, pet. ref'd). At a suppression hearing, the trial judge is the sole finder of facts. Arnold v. State, 873 S.W.2d 27, 34 (Tex.Crim.App.1993); Hill, 902 S.W.2d at *355 59. The trial judge is free to believe or disbelieve any or all of the evidence presented. Romero v. State, 800 S.W.2d 589, 543 (Tex.Crim.App.1990). We give almost total deference to the trial court’s determination of historical facts that the record supports, especially when the trial court’s findings turn on evaluating a witness’s credibility and demeanor. State v. Ross, 32 S.W.3d 853, 856 (Tex.Crim.App.2000); Carmouche v. State, 10 S.W.3d 323, 327 (Tex.Crim.App.2000); Guzman v. State, 955 S.W.2d 85, 89 (Tex.Crim.App.1997). We give the same amount of deference to the trial court’s ruling on mixed questions of law and fact if the question is resolved by evaluating credibility and demeanor. Ross, 32 S.W.3d at 856.

We consider de novo issues that are purely questions of law, such as whether probable cause existed. See Maxwell v. State, 73 S.W.3d 278, 281 (Tex.Crim.App.2002); Guzman, 955 S.W.2d at 89. Furthermore, if the trial court’s ruling is reasonably supported by the record and is correct on any theory of law applicable to the case, the reviewing court will sustain it upon review. Villarreal, 935 S.W.2d at 138. This is true even if the decision is correct for reasons different from those espoused at the hearing. Id. at 138-39.

B. Preservation of Error

The State argues that appellant’s grounds on appeal do not comport with his objection at trial, and further, that his objection was not specific enough to raise the issue of probable cause. 2 We disagree. Pursuant to Rule 33.1, appellate review is waived unless the record shows appellant timely complained to the trial court stating the grounds for the ruling sought with sufficient specificity, unless the grounds were apparent from the context, and obtained a ruling on the complaint. Tex. R.App. P. 33.1; see Daniels v. State, 25 S.W.3d 893, 897 (Tex.App.-Houston [14th Dist.] 2000, no pet.). Appellant’s written motion to suppress states “the arrest was illegal, in that officers had no lawful warrant for the Defendant’s arrest, nor had authority to arrest without a warrant, when the Defendant was taken into custody.” Defense counsel objected numerous times during the course of the suppression hearing, arguing appellant was not lawfully under arrest, not lawfully in custody, was illegally detained and arrested, and the arrest was warrantless with no authority to arrest without a warrant. These objections were sufficiently specific under Rule 33.1. Therefore, appellant did not waive the issue and we may review it on appeal.

C. Warrants and Probable Cause to Arrest

The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution provides:

The right of the people to be secure in them persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

U.S. Const. Amend. IV. The affidavit supporting an arrest warrant is called a complaint. Tex.Code CRIm. PROC. Ann. art. 15.04 (Vernon 1977). A complaint in support of an arrest warrant must: (1) state the name of the accused, if known, and if not known, must give some reasonably definite description of him; (2) show that the accused has committed some offense against the laws of the State, either direct *356 ly or that the affiant has good reason to believe, and does believe, that the accused has committed such offense; (3) state the time and place of the commission of the offense, as definitely as can be done by the affiant; and (4) be signed by the affiant. Tex.Cobe CRiM. PROG.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Patricia Lynn Swartz v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2024
the State of Texas v. Mayra Luna
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2021
Gerald Montgomery v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2019
Weems v. State
550 S.W.3d 776 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2018)
Horhn v. State
481 S.W.3d 363 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2016)
William Columbus Horhn v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2015
Ex Parte Reginald Weathers
494 S.W.3d 330 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2015)
Salgado, Juan
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2015
Quinton, Lawrence Gene
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2015
Ricky Dale Jones, Jr. v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2014
State v. Ryan T. Harrison
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2014
Clinton Dewayne Shelton v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2013
Bryant Williams v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2012
Dino Mejia v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2012
Ferguson v. State
335 S.W.3d 676 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2011)
Kristopher Keith Kinchloe v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2011
Cisneros v. State
290 S.W.3d 457 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2009)
Richard Cisneros, Jr. v. State
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2009

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
167 S.W.3d 350, 2005 WL 486548, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/weems-v-state-texapp-2005.