Larry Bruce Wiley v. State
2012 Tex. App. LEXIS 7664
| Tex. App. | 2012Background
- Appellant Larry Wiley was convicted by bench trial of possession of cocaine (4–200 grams) and sentenced to 25 years after two prior felonies were pleaded true.
- Event occurred in a high-narcotics area; officers pursued a hand-to-hand narcotics transaction suspect who threw an object.
- Wiley was detained near the scene after he was seen near the discarded object and suspected of concealing or picking it up.
- Cocaine was discovered in a car Wiley owned/whose registration was in his name, parked on a public street within close proximity to the scene.
- The car contained Wiley’s name on paperwork and he possessed car keys and a large amount of cash at arrest.
- Wiley challenged the sufficiency of the evidence linking him to the car and the narcotics, and challenged the denial of his motion to suppress evidence.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sufficiency of the evidence to prove possession | Wiley: no evidence of contact with car; others drove car | Wiley contends no link to car or drugs | Evidence legally sufficient to establish possession |
| Detention legality | Detention lacked reasonable suspicion; hunches shown | Detention supported by area and observations | Detention for investigation upheld; reasonable suspicion established |
| Alleged unlawful search via car alarm | Alarm use was an unlawful search | Alarm use not a search; lawful as seizure incident to arrest | Alarm use did not violate Fourth Amendment; suppression denied |
Key Cases Cited
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (U.S. 1979) (standard for legal sufficiency of evidence)
- Ford v. State, 158 S.W.3d 488 (Tex. Crim. App. 2005) (totality of circumstances for reasonable suspicion)
- Brown v. State, 911 S.W.2d 744 (Tex. Crim. App. 1995) (possession requires more than fortuitous connection)
- Poindexter v. State, 153 S.W.3d 402 (Tex. Crim. App. 2005) (affirmative links to contraband; shared possession concepts)
- Kibble v. State, 340 S.W.3d 14 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 2010) (shared possession principles in multi-occupant scenarios)
- Evans v. State, 202 S.W.3d 158 (Tex. Crim. App. 2006) (enumerates links supporting sufficiency analysis)