## IN THE COURT O F CRIMINAL APPEALS

OF TE XAS

N O S

. P D

- 1 7 0 8

- 0 8 & P D

- 1 7 0 9

- 0 8

L E O N A R D M I L E S I I I

, A p p e l l a n t

v

.

T H E S T A T E O F T E X A S

O N A P P E L L A N T ’ S P E T I T I O N F O R D I S C R E T I O N A R Y R E V I E W

F R O M T H E F I F T H C O U R T O F A P P E A L S

D A L L A S C O U N T Y

C O C H R A N

, J

. , f

i l e d a c o n c u r r i n g o p i n i o n i n w h i c h J O H N S O N a n d A L C A L A

, J J

. , j o i n e d

.

O P I N I O N

I j o i n t h e m a

j o r i t y

. I w r i t e s e p a r a t e l y b e c a u s e t h i s c a s e i s a m e s s

. T h e l a w c o n c e r n i n g

p o s s e s s i o n o f c o d e i n e i s c o n f u s i n g a n d i n c o h e r e n t

. T h e i n d i c t m e n t i n t h i s c a s e i s v a g u e

,

i n s u f f i c i e n t

, a n d f

a i l s t o i n f

o r m a n y o n e o f t h e p r e c i s e o f f e n s e c h a r g e d

. T h e j u r y c h a r g e

t r a c k e d t h e i n d i c t m e n t a n d w a s e q u a l l y i n s u f f i c i e n t a n d d e f

i c i e n t

. A n d

, m o s t i m p o r t a n t l y

,

t h e S t a t e f

a i l e d t o p r o v e t h a t a p p e l l a n t p o s s e s s e d c o d e i n e i n a n y s p e c i f i c o n e o f t h e t h r e e

p o s s i b l e p e n a l t y g r o u p s

. A s i d e f r o m t h a t

, e v e r y t h i n g ’ s f i n e

, e x c e p t t h a t a p p e l l a n t

, i n s p i t eMiles Concurring Opinion Page 2

o f t h e p r o o f t h a t h e p o s s e s s e d 3 0 4 g r a m s o f a c o d e i n e m i x t u r e

, i s e n t i t l e d t o a n a c q u i t t a l

b e c a u s e t h e S t a t e f

a i l e d t o p l e a d o r p r o v e a n y s p e c i f i c c o d e i n e o f

f e n s e

.

P o s s e s s i o n o f c o d e i n e ( o r p o s s e s s i o n w i t h i n t e n t t o d e l i v e r c o d e i n e ) m a y f a l l i n t o o n e

o f t h r e e p o s s i b l e p e n a l t y g r o u p s u n d e r t h e T e x a s H e a l t h a n d S a f e t y C o d e

, d e p e n d i n g o n ( 1 )

i t s c o n c e n t r a t i o n i n t h e f i n a l s u b s t a n c e

, a n d ( 2 ) w h e t h e r t h e c o d e i n e i s m i x e d w i t h o t h e r

m e d i c i n e s

. C o d e i n e m a y c o m e i n v a r i o u s f o r m s a n d i t m a y b e m e d i c a l l y p r e s c r i b e d i n 1

v a r i o u s f o r m s f o r d i f f e r e n t p u r p o s e s

. P u r e c o d e i n e i s v e r y h i g h l y r e g u l a t e d

, b u t i t m a y b e

p r e s c r i b e d f

o r c e r t a i n m a l a d i e s

, s u c h a s p a i n f r o m a g g r e s s i v e c a n c e r

. O t h e r f o r m s o f

c o d e i n e

, m i x e d w i t h o t h e r n o n n a r c o t i c d r u g s

, a r e a l s o c o n t r o l l e d s u b s t a n c e s a n d m a y b e

o b t a i n e d o n l y b y p r e s c r i p t i o n

, b u t t h e i r a b u s e i s l e s s l i k e l y t o l e a d t o s e r i o u s m e d i c a l

p r o b l e m s

, s o t h e i l l e g a l p o s s e s s i o n o f s u b s t a n c e s c o n t a i n i n g t h o s e m e d i c i n e s i s l e s s s e r i o u s

.

T h e t h r e e d i f

f e r e n t t y p e s o f p o s s i b l e p r e s c r i p t i o n c o d e i n e s o u r c e s

– p u r e f o r m

, s t r o n g f

o r m

,

w e a k f o r m

– a c t a s a r o u g h p r o x y f o r t h e t h r e e d i f

f e r e n t p e n a l t y g r o u p s

.

C o d e i n e i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 4 i s p r e s c r i p t i o n

- l e v e l c o u g h s y r u p

. P o s s e s s i o n o f c o d e i n e 2

The Pena lty

Groups roug hly

corr espond to the Controlled Substance Sche dules, which 1

are lists of controlled substances published e very y ear by the Texas Commi ssioner of Public

Hea lth. The schedule s are published in the Texas Register and ca n be ac cesse d here :

http:// www.dshs.state.tx.us/L ay outs/Cont entPag e.aspx? Pag eI D=35821& id=3847 (last ac cesse d

November

16, 2011). The January

2011 schedule is available a t 36 Tex. R eg . 306 (January 21,

2011), or online a t http:// www.dshs.state.tx.us/dm d/PDF/Schedules2011.pdf.

This categ ory

of code ine usually

ref ers to Promethazine/code ine sy rup which c ontains 2

an antihistime (prometha zine) and a c oug h suppressant ( codeine ). Another name f or this

substance is Phere rg an/code ine sy rup. This substance is a Schedule V narc otic under the Fe dera l

Controlled Subst ance Act. 21 U.S.C. § 829(c) . These a re g ener ally

over- the-c ounterMiles Concurring Opinion Page 3

i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 4 i s p r o h i b i t e d i f t h e a c t o r d i d n o t o b t a i n t h e c o u g h m e d i c i n e w i t h a v a l i d

p r e s c r i p t i o n

. T h e d e f

i n i t i o n o f “ c o u g h s y r u p ” c o d e i n e i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 4 i s 3

A c o m p o u n d

, m i x t u r e

, o r p r e p a r a t i o n c o n t a i n i n g l i m i t e d q u a n t i t i e s o f a n y o f

t h e f o l l o w i n g n a r c o t i c d r u g s t h a t i n c l u d e s o n e o r m o r e n o n n a r c o t i c a c t i v e

m e d i c i n a l i n g r e d i e n t s i n s u f f i c i e n t p r o p o r t i o n t o c o n f e r o n t h e c o m p o u n d

,

m i x t u r e

, o r p r e p a r a t i o n v a l u a b l e m e d i c i n a l q u a l i t i e s o t h e r t h a n t h o s e p o s s e s s e d

b y t h e n a r c o t i c a l o n e : n o t m o r e t h a n 2 0 0 m i l l i g r a m s o f c o d e i n e p e r 1 0 0

m i l l i l i t e r s o r p e r 1 0 0 g r a m s

. 4

S o w h e n t h e S t a t e w a n t s t o c h a r g e a d e f e n d a n t w i t h u n a u t h o r i z e d p o s s e s s i o n o f r e g u l a r

p r e s c r i p t i o n “ c o u g h s y r u p

, ” t h i s i s w h a t i t s h o u l d b o t h p l e a d a n d p r o v e

. T h e i n d i c t m e n t

s h o u l d a l l e g e a l l t h a t v e r b i a g e

, t h e j u r y c h a r g e s h o u l d i n c l u d e a l l t h a t v e r b i a g e

, a n d a w i t n e s s

m u s t t e s t i f

y t h a t t h e s u b s t a n c e a n a l y z e d f i t s t h a t l e n g t h y d e f

i n i t i o n

.

B u t t h e a c t o r m i g h t p o s s e s s s t r o n g e r p r e s c r i p t i o n “ c o u g h s y r u p ” o r p r e s c r i p t i o n p a i n

p i l l s

, s u c h a s T y l e n o l 3

, t h a t c o n t a i n c o d e i n e

. T h a t t y p e o f m e d i c i n a l c o d e i n e f a l l s i n t o 5

medications, but Texas reg ulated their use under Te x . Hea lth & Safe ty Code § 481.074(i) (“ A

person may

not dispense a c ontrolled substance listed in S chedule V [of the fede ral a ct] and

containing 200 mg or

less of code ine . . . per

100mL or 100g , without the prescr iption of a

prac titioner”), be cause these c oug h sy rups wer e being diluted and abuse d as a c oncoction ca lled

“dra nk.” See W

yatt v. De partment of Fam. & Protective Serv. , 193 S.W .3d 61, 65 (Tex.

App.–Houston [1 Dist.] 2006, no pet.). This “hip-hop c ommunity ” drink is desc ribed in st

Wiki pedia, whic h is perhaps a n acc eptably

authoritative sourc e for

this sort of “stree t arg ot”

information. See ge nerally , “Purple Dr ank” http:// en.wikipedia.or g /wiki/P urple_dra nk.

T E X

. H E A L T H & S A F E T Y C O D E § 481.118(a)

. 3

Id., § 481.105(1). 4

Penalty Group 3 c odeine medic ations include, for example, Empirin 4 (aspirin and 5

codeine No.4 for pa in), Fiorina l 3 (aspirin, ca ffe ine, code ine No.3, and a barbituate ; used for

tension heada ches) , and Ty lenol 3 (Ty lenol and code ine No.3 for pain). The codeine numbering

sy stem shows the conc entra tion of codeine ; highe r numbers de note hig her c oncentr ations. EachMiles Concurring Opinion Page 4

P e n a l t y G r o u p 3

. T h e d e f i n i t i o n o f “ c o u g h s y r u p o n s t e r o i d s ” o r p r e s c r i p t i o n p i l l s c o n t a i n i n g

c o d e i n e i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 3 i s

a m a t e r i a l

, c o m p o u n d

, m i x t u r e

, o r p r e p a r a t i o n

, c o n t a i n i n g l i m i t e d q u a n t i t i e s

o f t h e f o l l o w i n g n a r c o t i c d r u g s

, o r a n y o f t h e i r s a l t s : n o t m o r e t h a n 1

. 8 g r a m s

o f c o d e i n e

, o r a n y o f i t s s a l t s

, p e r 1 0 0 m i l l i l e t e r s o r n o t m o r e t h a n 9 0

m i l l i g r a m s p e r d o s a g e u n i t

, w i t h o n e o r m o r e a c t i v e

, n o n n a r c o t i c i n g r e d i e n t s

i n r e c o g n i z e d t h e r a p e u t i c a m o u n t s

. 6

A g a i n

, t h e S t a t e s h o u l d p l e a d t h e u n a u t h o r i z e d p o s s e s s i o n o f c o d e i n e i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 3 b y

s e t t i n g o u t a l l t h a t v e r b i a g e ; t h e j u r y c h a r g e s h o u l d t r a c k t h a t v e r b i a g e

, a n d a w i t n e s s m u s t

t e s t i f y t h a t t h e s u b s t a n c e p o s s e s s e d b y t h e d e f e n d a n t m e e t s t h a t s p e c i f i c d e f i n i t i o n

.

P o s s e s s i o n o f c o d e i n e

, w i t h o u t a p r e s c r i p t i o n

, t h a t d o e s n o t m e e t t h e d e f i n i t i o n o f

e i t h e r P e n a l t y G r o u p 3 o r P e n a l t y G r o u p 4 i s p r o s c r i b e d i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 1

. T h a t i s

, t h e 7

of these othe r ing redie nts (aspirin, ca fee ine, Ty lenol, etc.) are the “nonna rcotic a ctive medicina l

ingr edients” tha t “conf

er on the mix ture . . . va luable medicina l qualities other than those

possessed by

the nar cotic alone ” re fer

red to by the statute. T E X

. H E A L T H & S A F E T Y C O D E §

481.105(1).

Id., § 481.104(4). 6

Id. , § 481.102(3)( A). Possession of code ine in Penalty Groups 3 or 4 is a le ss serious 7

offe nse than possession of c odeine in Penalty Group 1, but it is not alway s true that possession of

codeine in Penalty

Groups 3 or 4 is a le sser- included offe nse of possession of c odeine in Penalty

Group 1. The less serious off ense r equire s proof of a

n element–a

mix ture that c ontains a

nonnarc otic ingr edient that conf ers upon the mixture medicinal qualities other tha n those

possessed by

pure c odeine–that is not nec essar y to prove possession of c odeine in Penalty Group

1. One small pill of pure c odeine, dissolved in a bottle of soda , will alway s be a Pena lty Group 1

offe nse, re g ardle ss of how we ak the c oncentr ation of code ine in the liquid. I t is not t he fina l

conce ntration or per centa g e of c odeine in the bottle of soda that is determinative; it is the fac t

that the ac tor used a ve ry

highly controlled substanc e–pure codeine –to start with. Pure code ine

pills are much strong er a

nd more hig hly

controlled than a

re c oug h sy

rups containing codeine

. Sometimes, of course, a

n offe nse under

Penalty Group 3 or 4 is a

lesser- included off

ense of an

offe nse under

Penalty Group 1. F or example, suppose the c odeine mixt ure doe s contain aMiles Concurring Opinion Page 5

s u b s t a n c e c o n t a i n s s o m e a m o u n t o f c o d e i n e ( a n y a m o u n t a t a l l ) b u t ( 1 ) i t d o e s n o t c o n t a i n

o t h e r n o n n a r c o t i c t h e r a p e u t i c i n g r e d i e n t s

, o r ( 2 ) i t d o e s c o n t a i n s o m e n o n n a r c o t i c t h e r a p e u t i c

i n g r e d i e n t s

, b u t t h e c o d e i n e c o n c e n t r a t i o n i s g r e a t e r t h a n 1

. 8 g r a m s ( P e n a l t y G r o u p 3 ) o r 2 0 0

m g ( P e n a l t y G r o u p 4 ) p e r 1 0 0 m i l l i l i t e r s o f s u b s t a n c e

. I f t h e S t a t e w i s h e s t o c h a r g e 8

p o s s e s s i o n o f c o d e i n e i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 1

, i t s h o u l d p l e a d t h a t t h e d e f e n d a n t p o s s e s s e d

c o d e i n e ( i n s o m e a m o u n t ) “ n o t l i s t e d i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 3 o r 4

. ” T h e i n d i c t m e n t s h o u l d

e x p l i c i t l y s t a t e t h a t t h e d e f e n d a n t d i d

i n t e n t i o n a l l y o r k n o w i n g l y p o s s e s s [ o r p o s s e s s w i t h i n t e n t t o d e l i v e r ] a

c o n t r o l l e d s u b s t a n c e

, t o

- w i t : C O D E I N E n o t l i s t e d i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 3 o r 4

, i n

a n a m o u n t b y a g g r e g a t e w e i g h t

, i n c l u d i n g a n y a d u l t e r a n t s o r d i l u t a n t s

, o f 2 0 0

g r a m s o r m o r e b u t l e s s t h a n 4 0 0 g r a m s

.

T h e j u r y c h a r g e s h o u l d d o t h e s a m e

, e x c e p t t h a t t h e j u r y c h a r g e m u s t a l s o s e t o u t t h e

d e f i n i t i o n s o f c o d e i n e i n P e n a l t y G r o u p s 3 a n d 4

, s o t h e j u r y c a n d e t e r m i n e t h a t t h i s

s u b s t a n c e c o n t a i n i n g c o d e i n e d o e s n o t m e e t t h o s e d e f i n i t i o n s

, i

. e

. , i t i s n e i t h e r r e g u l a r n o r

s u p e r

- s t r o n g c o u g h s y r u p

, n o r r e g u l a r p r e s c r i p t i o n

- l e v e l c o d e i n e m e d i c a t i o n

. S i m i l a r l y

, a

w i t n e s s m u s t t e s t i f

y t h a t t h i s s u b s t a n c e d o e s n o t c o n t a i n t h e n o n n a r c o t i c s u b s t a n c e s t h a t g i v e

nonnarc otic active me dicinal ing redie nt in sufficient propor tion to confer on the mix ture va luable

medicinal qualities other tha n those possessed by

the nar cotic alone , but the conce ntration of

codeine in that mix ture is g rea ter than 1.8 g rams per 100 milli liters, the State may plead a Penalty

Group 1 off

ense. I f the proof

shows that it is onl y

1.7 g rams per

100 milli liters, the State could

seek a n instruction on the lesser- included Penalty Group 3 off

ense.

Penalty Group 1 c odeine medic ations would include, for example, Codeinum (“code ine 8

base” pellets; a pre scription-only homeopathic r emedy

for se vere coug hs) or c odeine sulfa te

(strong , pure c odeine, without any other medic inal ingr edients; used for sever e pain)

.Miles Concurring Opinion Page 6

t h e r a p e u t i c v a l u e t o c o d e i n e l i s t e d i n P e n a l t y G r o u p s 3 a n d 4

.

T h e L e g i s l a t u r e h a s c h o s e n t o d e f i n e t h e i l l e g a l p o s s e s s i o n o f c o d e i n e i n a v e r y

i n f e l i c i t o u s m a n n e r

, e s p e c i a l l y b y d e f i n i n g t h e m o s t s e r i o u s o f f e n s e ( c o d e i n e t h a t d o e s n o t 9

h a v e n o n n a r c o t i c a g e n t s a d d e d t h a t g i v e i t a d d i t i o n a l m e d i c i n a l v a l u e o r t h a t h a s t o o h i g h a

c o n c e n t r a t i o n o f c o d e i n e a l o n g w i t h t h e n o n n a r c o t i c m e d i c i n e s ) s e t o u t i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 1

a s r e q u i r i n g t h e S t a t e t o d i s p r o v e t h a t t h e s u b s t a n c e f a l l s i n t o P e n a l t y G r o u p 3 o r 4

.

N o n e t h e l e s s

, t h e L e g i s l a t u r e w r i t e s t h e l a w s

, a n d g e n e r a l l y i t i s e n t i t l e d t o w r i t e t h e m i n t h e

m a n n e r i t c h o o s e s

, r e g a r d l e s s o f t h e b u r d e n t h i s p u t s o n o t h e r s

.

I n t h e p r e s e n t c a s e

, t h e i n d i c t m e n t s t a t e d t h a t a p p e l l a n t d i d

u n l a w f u l l y a n d k n o w i n g l y p o s s e s s w i t h i n t e n t t o d e l i v e r a c o n t r o l l e d

s u b s t a n c e

, t o

- w i t : C O D E I N E

, i n a n a m o u n t b y a g g r e g a t e w e i g h t

, i n c l u d i n g a n y

a d u l t e r a n t s o r d i l u t a n t s

, o f 2 0 0 g r a m s o r m o r e b u t l e s s t h a n 4 0 0 g r a m s

.

N o o n e c a n t e l l b y l o o k i n g a t t h e i n d i c t m e n t w h i c h P e n a l t y G r o u p

– 1

, 3

, o r 4

– t h a t t h e S t a t e

a l l e g e d

. T h e i n d i c t m e n t c o u l d h a v e a l l e g e d a l l o f t h e s t a t u t o r y v e r b i a g e i n e i t h e r P e n a l t y

1 0

G r o u p 3 o r 4 ; i t c o u l d h a v e a l l e g e d “ c o d e i n e n o t l i s t e d i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 3 o r 4 ” ; i t c o u l d e v e n

Severa l other drug s listed in P enalty Group 1 shar e this same pec uliar cha rac teristic that 9

require s the State to plead a nd prove tha t the substance the actor possessed is not listed in P enalty

Group 3 or 4.

The dissent notes that the notation “POSS CS I NT DEL 200G/PG3/4/2nd” appea rs in 1 0

the top rig ht-hand c orner

of the indictment under

the hea ding “ Charg e.” We may look to the

caption of a

n indictment to discern wha t offense the State intends to plead, but in this case, tha t

caption is not very

helpful bec ause it pre sumably stands for Pena lty

Group 3 or 4. T hese a

re two

separ ate of

fense s, so the caption is somewhat like “ assault/ag g . assault D/W.” At any rate , even

if one c ould discern the spe cific of fense that the State intended to alleg e, the jury char g e does not

say any thing a bout the specific offe nse that the jury must ag ree on and the e vidence does not

support proof, be y ond a re asonable doubt, of any specific offe nse.Miles Concurring Opinion Page 7

h a v e a l l e g e d “ C o d e i n e l i s t e d i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 1

, ” “ C o d e i n e l i s t e d i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 3

, ” o r

“ C o d e i n e l i s t e d i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 4

. ” T h i s i n d i c t m e n t i s d e f e c t i v e

. B u t a p p e l l a n t d i d n o t f i l e

a m o t i o n t o q u a s h

, s o i t i s n o w t o o l a t e f o r h i m t o c o m p l a i n a b o u t t h e i n d i c t m e n t

.

S i m i l a r l y

, t h e j u r y c h a r g e i n t h e p r e s e n t c a s e d i d n o t a s k t h e j u r y t o d e c i d e w h e t h e r t h e

S t a t e h a d p r o v e n t h a t a p p e l l a n t p o s s e s s e d w i t h i n t e n t t o d e l i v e r c o d e i n e i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 1

,

3

, o r 4

. T h e j u r y c h a r g e c o n t a i n s n o d e f i n i t i o n s o f c o d e i n e

, e x c e p t t o s a y

, “ Y o u a r e i n s t r u c t e d

t h a t C o d e i n e i s a c o n t r o l l e d s u b s t a n c e

. ” P o s s e s s i o n o r p o s s e s s i o n w i t h i n t e n t t o d e l i v e r a n y

o f t h e s e t h r e e t y p e s o f c o d e i n e w i t h o u t a p r e s c r i p t i o n m a y b e i l l e g a l

, b u t t h e t y p e o f c o d e i n e

o n e p o s s e s s e s m a k e s a s i g n i f i c a n t d i f f e r e n c e i n t h e p u n i s h m e n t l e v e l

. T h e s e p u n i s h m e n t

l e v e l s a r e s o s i g n i f

i c a n t t h a t t h e o f

f e n s e s a r e l i s t e d i n e n t i r e l y d i f f e r e n t s t a t u t e s : M a n u f

a c t u r e

o r D e l i v e r y o f S u b s t a n c e i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 1 i s a n o f f e n s e u n d e r S e c t i o n 4 8 1

. 1 1 2 ;

M a n u f a c t u r e o r D e l i v e r y o f S u b s t a n c e i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 3 o r 4 i s a n o f f e n s e u n d e r S e c t i o n

4 8 1

. 1 1 4 ; P o s s e s s i o n o f S u b s t a n c e i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 1 i s a n o f f e n s e u n d e r S e c t i o n 4 8 1

. 1 1 5 ;

P o s s e s s i o n o f S u b s t a n c e i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 3 i s a n o f f e n s e u n d e r S e c t i o n 4 8 1

. 1 1 7 ; a n d

P o s s e s s i o n o f S u b s t a n c e i n P e n a l t y G r o u p 4 i s a n o f f e n s e u n d e r S e c t i o n 4 8 1

. 1 1 8

. T h e

L e g i s l a t u r e o b v i o u s l y i n t e n d e d a l l o f t h e s e t o b e s e p a r a t e a n d d i s t i n c t o f f e n s e s w i t h s e p a r a t e

a n d d i s t i n c t p e n a l t y r a n g e s

. T h e S t a t e m u s t p i c k o n e o f f e n s e a n d t h e n p r o v e t h a t o n e

.

T h e e v i d e n c e i n t h i s c a s e s h o w e d t h a t a p p e l l a n t p o s s e s s e d 2 3 8 m i l l i l i t e r s o f a l i q u i d

t h a t w e i g h e d 3 0 4 g r a m s a n d h a d b o t h c o d e i n e a n d p r o m e t h a z i n e i n i t

. T h e c o n c e n t r a t i o n o f

c o d e i n e w a s 1 5 8 m i l l i g r a m s p e r o n e h u n d r e d m i l l i l i t e r s

. I t l o o k s a s i f t h e S t a t e w a sMiles Concurring Opinion Page 8

a t t e m p t i n g t o p r o v e t h a t a p p e l l a n t w a s m a k i n g “ d r a n k ” a n d w a s u s i n g a p r e s c r i p t i o n c o u g h

s y r u p t h a t c o n t a i n s p r o m e t h a z i n e

. T h a t s u b s t a n c e w o u l d f a l l i n t o P e n a l t y G r o u p 4

. B u t a s

t h e m a j o r i t y e x p l a i n s

, t h e S t a t e n e v e r a s k e d “ t h e m a g i c q u e s t i o n ”

– w h e t h e r t h e n o n n a r c o t i c

s u b s t a n c e

– t h e p r o m e t h a z i n e

– w a s “ i n s u f f i c i e n t p r o p o r t i o n t o c o n f e r o n t h e c o m p o u n d

,

m i x t u r e

, o r p r e p a r a t i o n v a l u a b l e m e d i c i n a l q u a l i t i e s

. ” O f c o u r s e t h e S t a t e n e e d n o t p r o v e 1 1

t h a t a n y p a r t i c u l a r p r o p o r t i o n o r a m o u n t o f t h e p r o m e t h a z i n e w a s p r e s e n t

, o n l y t h a t t h e

p r o m e t h a z i n e w a s a n o n n a r c o t i c s u b s t a n c e a n d i t w a s p r e s e n t i n a “ s u f f i c i e n t p r o p o r t i o n t o

c o n f e r o n t h e c o m p o u n d v a l u a b l e m e d i c i n a l q u a l i t i e s o t h e r t h a n t h o s e p o s s e s s e d ” b y t h e

c o d e i n e a l o n e

. C o m m o n s e n s e m a y s u f f i c e f o r m a n y t h i n g s

, b u t i t w i l l n o t s u f f i c e f o r 1 2

s a t i s f y i n g t h e s t a t u t o r y d e f

i n i t i o n o f t h e a p p r o p r i a t e p e n a l t y g r o u p a n d h e n c e t h e c o r r e c t

c o d e i n e o f

f e n s e

. U n d e r t h e s e c i r c u m s t a n c e s

, a p p e l l a n t i s e n t i t l e d t o a n a c q u i t t a l b e c a u s e t h e

e v i d e n c e i s i n s u f

f i c i e n t t o p r o v e h i s g u i l t f o r p o s s e s s i n g a s u b s t a n c e t h a t m e e t s t h e d e f i n i t i o n

See ge nerally Sanche

z v. State , 275 S.W .3d 901 (Tex. Crim. App. 2009) (evidenc e wa s 1 1

sufficie nt to show that nonnarcotic substanc e in mix ture in bottle containing codeine was in

sufficie nt proportion to confe r on that mix ture va luable medicina l qualities other than those

possessed by

the code ine itself).

See Sanc hez v. State , 275 S.W .3d 901, 905-07 (Te x . Crim. App. 2009) (Ke ller, J., 1 2

concur ring ). I joined J udg e Ke ller’s c oncurr ence in Sanchez , and I ag ree entirely

with her

statement that “the failure to prove the pr oportion of prometha zine does not render the evidenc e

leg ally insufficient to support a c onviction for an of fense involving code ine under Penalty Group

4.” See infra , dissenting op., a t 4. The State must, however , prove tha t the promethazine, in

whateve r propor

tion (or quantity

) it is found within the substance is (1) a sufficient proportion to

(2) g ive the mix ture va luable medicina l qualities other than those possessed by the code ine

alone. The State must prove the def inition of codeine unde r Penalty Group 4, but it need not

prove a ny particula r quantity of the nonna

rcotic or any particula r propor tion of it withi n the final

mix ture.Miles Concurring Opinion Page 9

o f a n y o f t h e t h r e e p o s s i b l e p e n a l t y g r o u p s

.

P e r h a p s t h e L e g i s l a t u r e w i l l r e d r a f t t h e s e s t a t u t e s t o m a k e t h e m a l i t t l e m o r e u s e r ( a n d

j u r y ) f r i e n d l y

. U n t i l a n d u n l e s s i t d o e s

, a w i t n e s s m u s t t e s t i f y t h a t t h e s u b s t a n c e m e e t s t h e

s t a t u t o r y d e f

i n i t i o n o f c o d e i n e a s t h a t d e f i n i t i o n i s s t a t u t o r i l y s e t o u t i n e i t h e r P e n a l t y G r o u p

1

, 3

, o r 4

. A n d t h e j u r y c h a r g e m u s t c o n t a i n t h e s t a t u t o r y d e f i n i t i o n o f t h e a p p r o p r i a t e

p e n a l t y g r o u p

. F i n a l l y

, i f a d e f e n d a n t f i l e s a m o t i o n t o q u a s h t h e i n d i c t m e n t f o r l a c k o f

n o t i c e

, t h e S t a t e m u s t a l l e g e w h i c h p e n a l t y g r o u p o f f e n s e i t p l a n s t o p r o v e i n t h e i n d i c t m e n t

.

W i t h t h e s e a d d i t i o n a l c o m m e n t s

, I j o i n t h e m a j o r i t y o p i n i o n

.

F i l e d : D e c e m b e r 7

, 2 0 1 1

P u b l i s h