Hughitt v. State, 539 S.W.3d 531

Background

Appellant Shanna Hughitt was convicted of (1) engaging in organized criminal activity and (2) possession with intent to deliver 4–200 grams of methamphetamine in a drug‑free zone; sentences totaled 28 years, to run consecutively.
Police executed a search warrant at a house rented/paid for by Hughitt; Sliger (her partner) had ~16 g methamphetamine in his pocket and other drugs/paraphernalia were found in the house; Hughitt had just over 1 g methamphetamine on her person and drug residue/packaging nearby.
Operation Tangled Web targeted a network of dealers; evidence showed Sliger was a primary distributor who brought large quantities into the county and many witnesses described purchases from Sliger.
The organized‑crime indictment alleged possession with intent to deliver 400+ grams as the predicate offense under Tex. Penal Code § 71.02(a).
At trial experts testified about typical dealer/companion dynamics and that the house’s paraphernalia indicated distribution activity; no direct evidence linked Hughitt to the 16 g found on Sliger’s person.

Issues

Issue	Appellant's Argument	State's Argument	Held
1. Validity of indictment for engaging in organized criminal activity (§71.02)	The listed predicate—possession with intent to deliver—does not appear among §71.02 enumerated offenses, so indictment is defective	Possession with intent to deliver is encompassed by “delivery” (citing Health & Safety Code) and thus is a proper predicate	Indictment defective: possession with intent to deliver is not an enumerated predicate under §71.02(a); conviction vacated and indictment dismissed
2. Sufficiency of evidence for possession with intent to deliver 4–200 g (drug‑free zone)	Evidence insufficient to show Hughitt possessed the additional ~16 g found on Sliger or that she intended to deliver that quantity	Joint possession/party liability or constructive delivery could support conviction given shared residence, paraphernalia, and relationship to Sliger	Reversed for 4–200 g: evidence insufficient to establish Hughitt had knowledge/control of the 16 g; conviction for that range reversed; evidence supports lesser included offense (1–4 g) and case remanded to reform judgment and retry punishment only
3. Ineffective assistance of counsel	Trial counsel failed to sever, give opening, present defenses (battered‑woman, rehab), object to hearsay/leading questions, and inadequately cross‑examined witnesses	Counsel’s strategic choices are presumed reasonable; record lacks evidence to show deficient performance or resulting prejudice	Ineffective‑assistance claim overruled: record undeveloped on counsel’s strategy and many complaints relate to the vacated organized‑crime conviction

Key Cases Cited

State v. Moff, 154 S.W.3d 599 (Tex. Crim. App.) (indictment sufficiency reviewed de novo)
Posey v. State, 545 S.W.2d 162 (Tex. Crim. App.) (indictment must allege facts constituting an offense)
Rotenberry v. State, 245 S.W.3d 583 (Tex. App.) (discussing dismissal where indictment fails to charge an offense)
Hart v. State, 89 S.W.3d 61 (Tex. Crim. App.) (elements of organized criminal activity)
Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (Sup. Ct.) (standard for sufficiency of the evidence)
Brooks v. State, 323 S.W.3d 893 (Tex. Crim. App.) (application of Jackson standard in Texas)
Isassi v. State, 330 S.W.3d 633 (Tex. Crim. App.) (sufficiency review guidance)
Poindexter v. State, 153 S.W.3d 402 (Tex. Crim. App.) (affirmative‑links rule for joint possession)
Deshong v. State, 625 S.W.2d 327 (Tex. Crim. App.) (origin of affirmative‑links principle)
Evans v. State, 202 S.W.3d 158 (Tex. Crim. App.) (list of affirmative links factors)
Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (Sup. Ct.) (ineffective assistance standard)
Thornton v. State, 425 S.W.3d 289 (Tex. Crim. App.) (reformation to lesser included offense and remand for punishment)
Hooper v. State, 214 S.W.3d 9 (Tex. Crim. App.) (speculation cannot support guilt)
Tate v. State, 500 S.W.3d 410 (Tex. Crim. App.) (court reiterating that speculation is insufficient to support conviction)