Whatley v. State

445 S.W.3d 159, 2014 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 1511, 2014 WL 4996251
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Texas
DecidedOctober 8, 2014
DocketNo. PD-1627-13
StatusPublished
Cited by172 cases

This text of 445 S.W.3d 159 (Whatley v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Whatley v. State, 445 S.W.3d 159, 2014 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 1511, 2014 WL 4996251 (Tex. 2014).

Opinion

OPINION

JOHNSON, J.,

delivered the opinion of the Court in

which KELLER, P.J., PRICE, WOMACK, KEASLER, HERYEY, COCHRAN, and ALCALÁ, JJ., joined.

■ A Van Zandt County jury found appellant guilty of aggravated sexual assault of a child by touching and sentenced him to fifty years’ imprisonment. On direct appeal, appellant claimed that the evidence was. legally insufficient to support his conviction because the state did not offer evidence disputing his claim that he was asleep at the time and that his actions were therefore involuntary. The court of appeals agreed, and it reversed the judgment of the trial court and entered a judgment acquitting appellant. Whatley v. State, 415 S.W.3d 530, 548 (Tex.App.-Texarkana 2013). We granted the state’s petition for discretionary review,1 and we now reverse the judgment of the appellate court and remand for consideration of appellant’s final point of error.

I. Facts

Appellant’s stepdaughter accused him of touching her inappropriately on three separate occasions when she was ten or eleven years old.2 The first episode occurred while the family was on vacation at a lake in Arkansas. Appellant, the complainant, and her mother were sharing a bedroom in a rented cabin, and the abuse occurred while appellant and the complainant were alone in the bed. All three family members slept together in the bed that night. The second incident was during the same vacation in a reclining chair, and the third happened in the complainant’s bedroom at the family home in Canton, Texas.

This case requires us to decide what the jury could have reasonably inferred from trial testimony. In order to accurately represent the evidence that was available to the jury with regard to appellant’s consciousness, we sample generously from the trial transcript.

A. Testimony of Complainant’s Mother

The complainant’s mother testified as an outcry witness. She explained that, after the complainant informed her of the abuse, she (the mother) confronted appellant. The complainant was also present, at her [161]*161own request, because she was concerned that appellant would lie to her mother.

Q: And did you all talk?
A: We did.
Q: What did you say to him?
A: I said, [Melany] said you’ve been touching her.
Q: Did you wait for a response?
A: He started breathing fast and swallowing and that’s when-I think the first time he stood up and said, We’ve talked about this and she and I resolved it.

Ill R.R. ISO.

B. Direct Examination of Complainant

The complainant testified as well. She was eighteen years old at the time of trial. Portions of her testimony appear below.

Q: And was it common or uncommon for the two of you to sleep in the same bed?
A: Uncommon.
Q: Uncommon. Do you know if Jerry was asleep or awake when he touched you?
A: Well, I was — I had my back facing to him.
Q: Okay. So — okay. Well, describe for me how you and he were laying in the bed.
A: He was behind me and I had my back facing to him.
Q: Okay. So his front was to your back?
A: Uh-huh.
Q: Okay. Tell the jury what happened.
A: He touched my vagina, but he didn’t penetrate it.
Q: Do you recall what you were wearing?
A: Sleep pants and a shirt.
Q: Okay. Do you recall what he was wearing?
A: Just some shorts.
Q: Okay. Did he touch you in any other manner or did he just touch you on your vagina?
A: He just touched me on my vagina.
Q: Okay. Did he say anything to you when that occurred?
A: No, sir.
Q: Did you say anything to him when that occurred?
A: No, sir.
Q: And you said that he touched, but he did not penetrate. Can you describe the touch?
A: It was just light, under my clothes. He like reached under my clothes and just kind of rubbed.
Q: Okay. Was it skin-to-skin contact?
A: Yes, sir.
[[Image here]]
Q: Did you tell [your mother] what had happened to you?
A: No, sir, I didn’t.
Q: Why didn’t you?
A: I was afraid.
Q: Afraid of what?
A: And I just — I loved my dad and I didn’t want to not see him again.
Q: Is that the only incident that occurred in the cabin on the lake in Arkansas?
A: No, sir.
Q: Where did the other incident occur?
A: We were downstairs in the second living area and I — we were in a reeliner chair. I had come down there, I’m not sure for what reason, but we were watching TV. And I came to sit down on the reeliner chair arm and he was asleep at the time or falling asleep at the time and we were just watching TV. And [162]*162his eyes were still closed, but his hand started moving and he made me — he made me touch his penis.
[[Image here]]
Q: You said that he made you touch his penis. Was it on top of his clothes or underneath his clothes?
A: Both.
Q: Were his eyes open or closed?
A: Closed.
Q: ' Did he say anything to you?
A: No, sir.
Q: Did you say anything to him?
A: No, sir.
Q: Did you tell your mom?
A: No, sir.
[[Image here]]
Q: Why didn’t you?
A: ■ I was afraid.
Q: Afraid of what?
A: Not having a dad.
Q: Hm?
A: Not having a dad.
[[Image here]]
Q: Can you recall any other times that Jerry Whatley has touched you inappropriately?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: When was the next time?
A: At 1520 Woodland Drive in Canton.

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

Related

Christopher Nelson Hood v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2024
Matthew Bradley Smith v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2024
Andre Terrell Malone v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2024
Rondal Keith Jackson v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2024
Andre Timothy Jackson v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2024
Amy Elizabeth Odem v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2024
Steve Eric Roberson v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2023
Landon Johnson v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2023
Syed Sartaj Nawaz v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2023
Vital Garcia v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2023
Jose Alfredo Jimenez v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2023
Alexis Limon v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2023
Skylar Paige Vickers v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2023
Francisco Burgos, Jr. v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2023
Damonte Deandre Shears v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2023
David Chance Starr v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2023
Richard Dewayne Wilson v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2023
Ronnie Rodriguez Jr. v. the State of Texas
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2023

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
445 S.W.3d 159, 2014 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 1511, 2014 WL 4996251, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/whatley-v-state-texcrimapp-2014.