451 P.3d 272
Utah Ct. App.2019Background
- Police conducted binocular surveillance (~100 yards) near a homeless shelter and observed a brief (~20 sec) hand-to-hand drug transaction.
- The seller (later identified as Glenn Conway Hunter) was described contemporaneously by officers as wearing camouflage pants, black hoodie, black sunglasses, black hat, and a gold chain.
- Officers directed an arrest team; the buyer was detained first with methamphetamine; officers then had seller detained and found Hunter in possession of over five grams of methamphetamine and a handgun.
- Hunter was charged with distribution of a controlled substance and possession of a firearm by a restricted person (a possession count was later merged).
- At trial Hunter moved for a directed verdict arguing misidentification and chain-of-custody gaps; his attorney did not request a Long cautionary identification instruction.
- The jury convicted Hunter on both counts; on appeal he claimed ineffective assistance for failing to request a Long instruction and insufficiency of the evidence due to misidentification and chain-of-custody issues.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ineffective assistance for failing to request a Long cautionary instruction | Hunter: counsel should have requested Long because eyewitness identification was central and briefly interrupted | State: identification was contemporaneous/real-time, not memory-based; Long inapplicable; request would have been futile | Court: Long applies to memory-based, post-event IDs; real-time ID falls outside Long (per Bowdrey); counsel not deficient; claim fails |
| Sufficiency of evidence for distribution conviction | Hunter: conviction rests on speculation—officers misidentified the seller and chain-of-custody gaps mean the tested sample may not be his | State: officers observed the sale and contemporaneously identified Hunter; Hunter was found with >5g meth; chain-of-custody issues go to weight, not admissibility | Court: Evidence (direct and circumstantial) was sufficient; chain-of-custody concerns for jury to weigh; conviction affirmed |
Key Cases Cited
- State v. Long, 721 P.2d 483 (Utah 1986) (requires cautionary jury instruction when eyewitness ID based on memory is central and requested by defense)
- State v. Bowdrey, 438 P.3d 946 (Utah Ct. App. 2019) (clarifies Long does not govern contemporaneous, real-time identifications)
- Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (U.S. 1984) (two-prong test for ineffective assistance of counsel)
- State v. Griffin, 384 P.3d 186 (Utah 2016) (chain-of-custody issues generally affect weight, not admissibility, absent bad faith)
- State v. Maestas, 299 P.3d 892 (Utah 2012) (appellate standard for reviewing sufficiency of the evidence)