Title: State v. Hutton

State: arizona

Issuer: Arizona Supreme Court

Document:

109 Ariz. 356 (1973) 509 P.2d 626 The STATE of Arizona, Appellee, v. Richard Joe HUTTON, Appellant. No. 2455. Supreme Court of Arizona, In Banc. May 7, 1973. *357 Gary K. Nelson, Atty. Gen. by Thomas A. Jacobs, Asst. Atty. Gen., Phoenix, for appellee. Ross P. Lee, Maricopa County Public Defender by Robert H. Lichty, Deputy Public Defender, Phoenix, for appellant. CAMERON, Vice Chief Justice. This is an appeal from a jury verdict and judgment of guilty to the crime of possession of narcotic drugs, § 36-1002 A.R.S., with a prior conviction, § 13-1649 A.R.S., and a sentence thereon of not less than fifteen nor more than twenty years. We are asked to answer three questions on appeal: The facts necessary for a determination of this matter on appeal are as follows. The defendant, Richard Joe Hutton, was under surveillance by Officers Oscar Long and Ken Patterson on the evening of 26 January 1971. The defendant was observed standing in the doorway of a tavern. The defendant would have brief conversations with people entering and leaving the tavern and then he would walk from the tavern through a parking lot to an alley behind the tavern. The officers were unable to ascertain what was happening while defendant was in the alley. Defendant would then return to the door of the tavern and the people with whom he had been conversing would leave. *358 On the following afternoon, Officer Patterson discovered in the alley behind the tavern a red cigarette package which he suspected contained narcotics. The detectives left the cigarette package in place and took up a position of surveillance nearby. After awhile, the defendant came near the cigarette package and then left. After several minutes he returned, picked up the package, and began walking down the alley. The two detectives pursued him and arrested him for illegal possession of narcotics. The defendant timely moved to suppress the testimony of Officers Long and Patterson concerning their observations of the defendant on 26 January 1971, the day before the arrest. The motion was denied. At the trial the defendant took the stand in his own behalf and testified that a friend of his with whom he was having a drink in the tavern, advised him that she had seen somebody hide something in the vicinity of the cigarette package. The defendant testified he went out to investigate, was unable to find anything, and then returned to the tavern. His friend directed him to look more closely by a fence near the parking lot and he then returned to the alley, found the package, and was then arrested. The defendant contended that he did not know the cigarette package contained narcotics. During the trial the defendant was cross-examined, concerning two prior felony convictions at which time he objected to allowing certain of the questions. From a jury verdict and judgment of guilty and a sentence of not less than fifteen nor more than twenty years in the Arizona State Prison, the defendant appeals. TESTIMONY CONCERNING THE ACTIVITIES OF 26 JANUARY 1971 The defendant contends that the testimony of the police officers concerning the defendant's trips from the door of the tavern to the alley "suggested that he was engaged in the crime of selling these narcotics on that night." Admittedly, defendant's numerous trips to the alley following conversations with people in the door of the tavern, after which the people would then leave the premises, might lead a person to believe that the defendant was in fact engaged in some sort of questionable activity. The question before this court, however, is not whether this is an inference of other criminal acts, but whether or not this testimony provides the "complete story" of what the defendant was doing. Our court has stated: And the Court of Appeals has stated: The defendant's two visits to the alley on the afternoon of the 27th become reasonable and understandable when his activities of the night before are known. Under these circumstances, we believe that the defendant's conduct the night before serves to provide a "complete picture" of the defendant's activities concerning the crime for which he was charged, and we find no error in the trial court admitting such evidence. *359 CROSS-EXAMINATION REGARDING PRIOR CONVICTION The defendant took the stand in his own behalf and was cross-examined as follows: Defendant does not question the fact that he was convicted of the two prior felonies. He does, however, object to the question concerning the fact that the defendant was represented by counsel at the prior conviction. Defendant claims that while a defendant who takes the stand in his own defense may be impeached by evidence of a prior felony, once this is admitted the prosecution may only inquire as to the name and nature of the crime, the places where it was committed, and the number of convictions the defendant has incurred. This court has stated: In the instant case, the defendant was equivocating about the 1958 conviction and the prosecutor appeared to be attempting to refresh his memory. Once the defendant admitted the 1958 prior conviction, the questions ceased. We find no error in the questions. WERE THE INSTRUCTIONS PROPER? Finally, defendant questions the instructions as to the elements of the crime. The court instructed the jury as follows: After the instructions were read but before the case was submitted to the jury, the defendant objected and requested a further instruction on specific intent which was denied. This requested instruction, if reduced to writing, is not part of the record on appeal, is not set out in the briefs, and the reporter's transcript does not make clear exactly what instruction defendant was requesting. We, therefore, have no way of knowing whether the court's failure to further instruct was error or not. The defendant contends, however, that the statement in the instructions "that the defendant had knowledge of the presence of the narcotic," should have read "that he had knowledge that the substance was a narcotic." While we agree with defendant that the latter statement is certainly a more correct statement of the law and is preferable to the one actually given, we do not believe that the jury was in any way misled by the statement of the court. We feel that the jury had a proper understanding of the law and that there was no error in the instructions. Judgment affirmed. HAYS, C.J., and STRUCKMEYER, LOCKWOOD and HOLOHAN, JJ., concur.