336 Ga. App. 83
Ga. Ct. App.2016Background
- Crider was a passenger in a car driven by Buffie Douglas; police stopped the vehicle for erratic lane movement and investigated possible impairment.
- About eight to ten minutes into the stop, the officer obtained Douglas’s consent to search the vehicle and found methamphetamine under the front passenger seat where Crider had been sitting; both were arrested.
- Douglas led police to a motel room; officers later seized additional methamphetamine, a scale, pipes, multiple phones, and a toy gun from a room opened with a key card found on Crider.
- Douglas testified she bought meth from Crider earlier that night, that Crider had additional drugs at the motel, and that she did not place drugs under her car’s passenger seat.
- Crider moved to suppress evidence from the vehicle stop and the motel room search, challenged sufficiency of the trafficking evidence, requested jury instructions (presumption of possession / equal access), and claimed ineffective assistance of trial counsel.
- Trial court denied suppression motions, the jury convicted Crider of trafficking in methamphetamine and possession of drug-related objects, and the Court of Appeals affirmed.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Legality of vehicle search (suppression) | Crider: detention was unlawfully prolonged before consent; search was fruit of illegal detention | State: officer was still investigating possible impairment; consent obtained contemporaneously and valid | Denied suppression; court found detention not unreasonably prolonged and consent valid |
| Legality of motel room search (suppression) | Crider: warrant was obtained after officers entered and searched the room | State: officers did not enter the room until after a warrant was obtained; time entries were mistaken | Denied suppression; trial court’s factual finding that search was pursuant to warrant not clearly erroneous |
| Sufficiency of evidence for trafficking | Crider: insufficient proof he possessed drugs under passenger seat; cannot aggregate amounts without proof he possessed both sets | State: Douglas’s testimony corroborated by extrinsic evidence (cash, key card, scale, phones); constructive possession established | Evidence sufficient; jury could find constructive possession and combine amounts to reach trafficking threshold |
| Jury instructions & ineffective assistance re: instructions | Crider: trial court erred by not giving presumption of possession/equal access; counsel ineffective for not requesting presumption charge | State: court properly declined presumption charge; State did not rely on presumption; equal access unnecessary; counsel’s choices were reasonable | No plain error; refusal to give presumption/equal access proper; ineffective assistance claims rejected |
Key Cases Cited
- Thomas v. State, 300 Ga. App. 120 (applying standard of review on suppression) (2009) (trial-court fact findings accepted unless clearly erroneous)
- Perez v. State, 249 Ga. App. 399 (trial judge as factfinder on suppression issues) (2001)
- State v. Allen, 298 Ga. 1 (considering videotape evidence in suppression review) (2015)
- Rodriguez v. State, 295 Ga. 362 (limits on prolonging traffic stops) (2014)
- Brooks v. State, 285 Ga. 424 (consent to search obviates need for warrant/probable cause) (2009)
- Grimes v. State, 296 Ga. 337 (accomplice testimony requires slight corroboration) (2014)
- Smith v. State, 331 Ga. App. 296 (constructive possession elements) (2015)
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (standard for sufficiency of the evidence) (1979)