State of Missouri v. Darnell Brownlee, 501 S.W.3d 556

Brownlee was convicted by a jury of distributing a controlled substance near a school after an undercover sale on November 18, 2014, at 233 W. St. Joseph Street in Perryville, alleged to be within 2,000 feet of Immanuel Lutheran School.
At trial the State introduced an aerial photograph marking the sale location, the school, and a 2,000‑foot radius circle.
Officer Jason Kelley (Perry County deputy) testified he was familiar with the area, identified landmarks on the photo, and testified the photograph accurately depicted the streets and buildings as of November 2014.
Brownlee objected, arguing the State failed to lay a proper foundation because the creator (Southeast Missouri Planning) did not testify and Kelley was not the photographer nor shown to have seen the aerial view.
The trial court admitted the photograph; Brownlee was convicted, sentenced to 20 years as a prior and persistent offender, and his motion for a new trial was denied.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (State)	Defendant's Argument (Brownlee)	Held
Whether the aerial photograph was properly authenticated for admission	Any witness familiar with the subject matter may authenticate; Kelley was familiar and competent to testify from personal observation	Photograph’s creator or someone who knew creation circumstances must testify; Kelley didn’t take or view the image from the air	Photograph was properly authenticated by Kelley’s testimony; admission did not abuse discretion

State v. Cowles, 203 S.W.3d 303 (Mo. App. 2006) (trial court has discretion on photographic foundation)
State v. Powers, 148 S.W.3d 830 (Mo. App. 2004) (witness familiar with subject matter may authenticate photograph)
State v. Daugherty, 631 S.W.2d 637 (Mo. 1982) (creator of photograph not required to lay foundation)
State v. McGee, 336 Mo. 1082 (Mo. 1935) (photographer need not testify for admission)
State v. Smith, 681 S.W.2d 518 (Mo. App. 1984) (rejecting objection where photographer unidentified)
State v. McNear, 343 S.W.3d 703 (Mo. App. 2011) (witness need not have observed the exact aerial view to authenticate)