Miller v. State
Miller v. State
Opinion of the Court
OPINION
delivered the opinion of the Court
Appellant was indicted for delivery of less than one gram of cocaine, which is a state jail felony. See Tex. Health & Safety Code Ann. § 481.112. The indictment also alleged that appellant had twice before been convicted of felony offenses. See Tex. Penal Code Ann. § 12.42(a)(2). After a jury convicted appellant of the offense of delivery of a controlled substance, she pleaded true to both enhancement paragraphs. Appellant elected to have the trial court assess her punishment, and it sentenced appellant to confinement for six years. Appellant filed a notice of appeal.
On direct appeal, the Austin Court of Appeals affirmed the judgment of the trial court. See Miller v. State, No. 03-99-00040 CR, 1999 WL 699799 (Tex.App.— Austin September 9, 1999) (not designated for publication). On appeal, appellant argued that the trial court erred when it excluded the evidence that she committed the offense under duress, which she offered in support of her defense, as irrelevant. The Austin Court explained that it could not conclude the trial court abused its discretion, and it overruled appellant’s point of error. See id. This Court granted the second ground for review of appellant’s petition for discretionary review to determine if the trial court erred when it found appellant’s testimony in support of
I.
Appellant claimed another person coerced her into committing the instant offense. At trial, she testified that a man, James Magee, threatened her with harm if she did not deliver cocaine to the undercover officer in this case.
Appellant responded that “these [sic] next sequence of events clearly establish why her state of mind was what it was when she engaged in the transaction with the police officer.” The trial court stated that he believed appellant had already established her defense of duress by her testimony that Magee threatened her before the commission of the offense. Appellant explained to the trial court that
the outcome of the threat, the carrying out of the threat and that it happened— and she’s about to testify to that — is all part of the same duress and coercion.
The trial court then allowed appellant, outside the presence of the jury, to proffer her testimony of the assault.
Appellant testified that she attempted to hide from Magee after she delivered the cocaine to the undercover officers. When Magee found appellant some hours after the delivery of the rock cocaine, he told her that she “had messed things up.” Ma-gee was angry, and he pushed her around, telling her “to give up the $10.” Appellant stated that she told Magee she did not have the $10
Because Magee’s assault on appellant occurred several hours after the delivery
The Court of Appeals concluded the trial court did not abuse its discretion. The Austin Court stated that the authority relied upon by appellant was distinguishable from the instant case. See Miller v. State, No. 03-99-00040-CR, slip op. at 6, 1999 WL 699799 (Tex.App. — Austin Sept.10, 1999) (not designated for publication).
II.
The U.S. Constitution ensures that criminal defendants will have “a meaningful opportunity to present a complete defense.” Gilmore v. Taylor, 508 U.S. 333, 343, 113 S.Ct. 2112, 124 L.Ed.2d 306 (1993); Crane v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 683, 106 S.Ct. 2142, 90 L.Ed.2d 636 (1986); California v. Trombetta, 467 U.S. 479, 104 S.Ct. 2528, 81 L.Ed.2d 413 (1984). The Supreme Court described the different ways a defendant can avail himself of this opportunity in Washington v. Texas, 388 U.S. 14, 87 S.Ct. 1920, 18 L.Ed.2d 1019 (1967):
The right to offer the testimony of witnesses, and to compel their attendance if necessary, is in plain terms the right to present a defense, the right to present the defendant’s version of the facts as well as the prosecution’s to the jury so it may decide where the truth lies. Just as an accused has the right to confront the prosecution’s witnesses for the purpose of challenging their testimony, he has the right to present his own witnesses to establish a defense. This right is a fundamental element of due process of law.
Id., at 19, 87 S.Ct. 1920. This principle has been invoked in cases where trial courts have intimidated defense witnesses into silence, see e.g., Webb v. Texas, 409 U.S. 95, 93 S.Ct. 351, 34 L.Ed.2d 330 (1972), and where trial courts have excluded evidence. See Crane v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. at 693, 106 S.Ct. 2142; Chambers v. Mississippi 410 U.S. 284, 93 S.Ct. 1038, 35 L.Ed.2d 297 (1973).
In Chambers, the trial court applied the hearsay rule to bar the admission of evidence by the defendant in support of his defense that another man, McDonald, admitted that he committed the crimes. 410 U.S. at 287, 93 S.Ct. 1038. The Court reversed the decision of the trial court, explaining that “the right of an accused to due process is, in essence, the right to a fair opportunity to defend against state accusations. [The right] to call witnesses in one’s own behalf [has] long been recognized as essential to due process.” Id. at 294, 93 S.Ct. 1038. Furthermore, Justice Black has described the right to present evidence in one’s own defense as a critical component of our criminal justice system:
A person’s right to reasonable notice of a charge against him, and an opportunity to be heard in his own defense — a right to his day in court — are basic in our system of jurisprudence, and these rights include, as a minimum, a right to examine the witnesses against him, to offer testimony, and to be represented by counsel.
In re Oliver, 333 U.S. 257, 273, 68 S.Ct. 499, 92 L.Ed. 682 (1948).
Evidence must satisfy two requirements to be considered relevant: first, materiality, and second, probativeness. For evidence to be material it “must be shown to be addressed to the proof of a material proposition, i.e., ‘any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action.’ ‘If the evidence is offered to help prove a proposition which is not a matter in issue, the evidence is immaterial.’” 1 Steven Goode et al., Texas PRactice: Guide to the Texas Rules of Evidence: Civil and CRiminal § 401.1 (2d ed. 1993 & Supp. 1995). If the proponent establishes that the proffered evidence is material, Rule 401 also requires that the proponent establish the evidence is probative, i.e., the proffered evidence must tend to make the existence of the fact “more or less probable than it would be without the evidence.”
Id The proffered evidence is relevant if it has been shown to be material to a fact in issue and if it makes that fact more probable than it would be without the evidence.
In the instant case, the trial court concluded that appellant raised the affirmative defense of duress, and it instructed the jury on that affirmative defense.
While this Court has never confronted the scenario of determining the relevancy of an act subsequent to an offense and the affirmative defense of duress to that offense, the Fifth Circuit has dealt with that scenario. We will look to their opinion on this matter as persuasive authority to this Court. In United States v. McClure, 546
The Fifth Circuit concluded that the trial court’s decision was reversible error. The defendant’s “right to present a vigorous defense required the admission
In the instant case, appellant testified that Magee threatened her, forcing her to make the delivery to the undercover officer. There was little, if any, attenuation between the delivery of the cocaine and the assault. Appellant proffered the testimony that Magee pursued her after she made the delivery. When Magee caught up to her a few hours after the delivery and discovered the deal had not gone down the way he wanted and that he would not receive the money from the delivery which he expected, he then carried out the threat he made before the delivery and assaulted appellant. A rational jury could find that this evidence helps to prove that appellant was under a constant state of duress from Magee when she delivered the cocaine, that this duress caused her to fear for her safety, and that her fear was reasonable. Appellant’s testimony that Magee assaulted her tended to make the existence of a consequential fact more probable, ie., that appellant delivered the cocaine under duress than it was without the admission of the testimony. See Tex.R.Evid. 401; McClure, 546 F.2d at 672. Cf. Tate v. State, 981 S.W.2d 189, 193 (Tex.Crim.App. 1998) (concluding that a jury could not “properly convict or acquit absent the opportunity to hear proffered testimony bearing upon a theory of defense and weigh its credibility along with other evidence in the case.”). We, therefore, conclude the trial court abused its discretion by excluding the testimony as irrelevant based on when the assault occurred. We conclude the evidence of the assault was relevant under Rule 401.
The question left unanswered is whether this relevant evidence was admissible pur
The State did not argue at trial or on appeal that appellant’s testimony that Ma-gee assaulted her was inadmissible under Rule 403
We reverse the judgment of the Austin Court of Appeals and remand this case to that court so that it can conduct a harm analysis consistent with Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 44.2.
. Though this Court also granted review on appellant’s first ground for review, we now conclude that our decision to grant review of the first ground was improvident. The first ground for review is hereby dismissed. See Tex.R.App. Proc. 69.3
. James Magee set up appellant's meeting with the undercover officer. Appellant believed the arrangement was for her to have sex. The officer told appellant he didn’t want sex, but that he did want $20 worth of crack cocaine. Appellant left the officer and returned to her hotel room where Magee was present. She told Magee that “he did not want me, that he wanted some drugs.” Ma-gee threatened appellant, telling her that she was to give the officer some rock and get the $20. Magee gave appellant a rock and escorted her back to the undercover officer’s car. Appellant felt she could not walk away from committing this offense. She delivered the cocaine to the officer, but did not get the $20 because the undercover officers made the bust as soon as she gave them the rock cocaine. The investigating officers confirmed appellant’s identity, seized the rock cocaine, and released appellant without arresting her that night. Appellant testified she was afraid of what Magee would do to her when he found out she did not collect the money for the cocaine. Appellant fled from the scene of the delivery to avoid Magee. But he pursued appellant and found her only a few hours after the delivery of the cocaine. Magee physically assaulted appellant as soon as he found her.
.There was a discrepancy in appellant’s testimony between the $20 she was told to collect for the cocaine, and Magee’s demand for $10 when he was assaulted her. The trial court cleared this up during appellant’s testimony outside the presence of the jury.
THE COURT: And the $10 was his portion of the 20 or what?
[APPELLANT]: No.
THE COURT: The $10 was supposed to be over and above the 20?
[APPELLANT]: The agreement he made with the gentleman for introducing me for sex.
THE COURT: Right. He was going to get $10 out of it.
[APPELLANT]: Yes.
. This Court has stated that a defendant has a Sixth Amendment right to present a defense and to present his version of the facts. See Coleman v. State, 966 S.W.2d 525, 527-28 (Tex.Crim.App. 1998) (recognizing the defendant's right to compulsory process in order to
. The trial court's instruction to the jury stated they should acquit the appellant if they found,
by a preponderance of the evidence that [appellant] engaged in the proscribed conduct because she was compelled to do so by threat of imminent death or serious bodily injury to herself.
Tex Penal Code Ann. § 8.05(a).
. The Fifth Circuit concluded that Carroll's actions coercing three other people to sell heroin, which were extraneous crimes, wrongs or acts involving other persons, were admissible under Federal Rules of Evidence 404(b). See McClure, 546 F.2d at 672.
. Rule 402 states:
All relevant evidence is admissible, except as otherwise provided by constitution, by statute, by these rules or by other rules prescribed pursuant to statutory authority. Evidence which is not relevant is inadmissible.
. Rule 403 states:
Although relevant, evidence may be excluded if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, or misleading the jury, or by consideration of undue delay, or needless presentation of cumulative evidence.
Concurring Opinion
filed a concurring opinion.
I join the judgment of the Court and its opinion, except for the discussion of constitutional principles, ante at 506-507. In my view those principles are not implicated in this case.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Deleslyn Lightsey MILLER, Appellant, v. the STATE of Texas
- Cited By
- 160 cases
- Status
- Published