Tate, Dallas Carl, PD-0730-15

Dallas Carl Tate was stopped and arrested on outstanding warrants; two passengers remained in the vehicle and were not arrested.
Tate identified himself as the vehicle owner but had no ownership documents; the registration listed someone else.
Police impounded the vehicle and during an inventory found a syringe containing a brown liquid in a compartment to the right of the front passenger seat (under the HVAC controls).
The syringe was discovered after Tate had been removed from the car and the passengers remained in the vehicle for several minutes.
Passengers’ purses and persons were searched with consent and no contraband was found; officer could not see passengers’ actions while they remained in the car.
The Second Court of Appeals reversed Tate’s conviction, concluding the evidence was legally insufficient to prove Tate knowingly or intentionally possessed the methamphetamine.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Sufficiency of evidence to prove possession of a controlled substance	State: cumulative factors (Tate was driver/claimed owner; syringe was within arm’s reach of where he sat; his prior drug conviction and associations support an inference of knowledge)	Tate: no affirmative link — contraband found after his removal, no evidence it was in plain view while he occupied vehicle, passengers had access, and prior acts/associations are weak/inadmissible links	Court of Appeals: evidence insufficient; a rational juror could not find beyond a reasonable doubt that Tate knowingly or intentionally possessed the contraband

Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (standard for sufficiency review)
Poindexter v. State, 153 S.W.3d 402 (Tex. Crim. App. 2005) (requirement of affirmative links when accused not in exclusive possession)
Deshong v. State, 625 S.W.2d 327 (Tex. Crim. App. 1981) (affirmative link concept)
Robertson v. State, 80 S.W.3d 730 (Tex. App.–Houston [1st Dist.] 2002) (insufficient where contraband found after defendant removed and passengers remained)
Evans v. State, 202 S.W.3d 158 (Tex. Crim. App. 2006) (contrasting fact pattern where proximity and statements supported possession)
Tate v. State, 463 S.W.3d 272 (Tex. App.–Fort Worth 2015) (appellate decision reversing conviction for insufficient evidence)
Dobbs v. State, 434 S.W.3d 166 (Tex. Crim. App. 2014) (Jackson sufficiency framework)
Isassi v. State, 330 S.W.3d 633 (Tex. Crim. App. 2010) (sufficiency and circumstantial evidence guidance)
Brown v. State, 911 S.W.2d 744 (Tex. Crim. App. 1995) (possession elements)