IN THE COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS OF TENNESSEE

AT KNOXVILLE

August 19, 2014 Session

STATE OF TENNESSEE v. LONTA MONTRELL BURRESS, JR., AND

DARIUS JEREL GUSTUS

Appeal from the Criminal Court for Hamilton County

Nos. 279579, 279580, 279581, 279605 Honorable Don W. Poole, Judge

No. E2013-01697-CCA-R3-CD - Filed December 4, 2014

The Defendant-Appellant, Lonta Montrell Burress, Jr., was convicted as charged by a

Hamilton County jury of three counts of aggravated assault, one count of possession of a

deadly weapon during the commission of an offense not defined as a dangerous offense, one

count of theft of property, one count of felony evading arrest, and one count of misdemeanor

evading arrest. The trial court sentenced Burress to an effective sentence of six years. The

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other Defendant-Appellant, Darius Jerel Gustus, who was tried jointly with Burress, was

convicted as charged of three counts of aggravated assault, one count of possession of a

deadly weapon during the commission of an offense not defined as a dangerous offense, one

count of felony reckless endangerment, and one count of misdemeanor evading arrest. The

trial court also sentenced Gustus to an effective sentence of six years. On appeal, Burress

argues: (1) the evidence is insufficient to sustain his aggravated assault convictions and his

theft conviction; (2) the trial court erred in denying a mistrial based on the admission of gang

testimony; (3) the trial court erred in denying a mistrial based on a Bruton violation; and (4)

the trial court erred in determining that LaJuana Woods was an unavailable witness pursuant

to Tennessee Rule of Evidence 804 and erred in allowing the State to have Woods read her

testimony from the juvenile court transfer hearing transcript at trial. On appeal, Gustus

contends: (1) the evidence is insufficient to sustain his aggravated assault conviction

regarding victim Frederick Jones, Jr.; (2) the trial court erred in denying a mistrial based on

the admission of gang testimony; and (3) the trial court erred in admitting two bandanas

because there was an improper chain of custody. Upon review, we affirm the judgments of

the trial court.

 Prior to trial, the State dismissed charges against Burress for leaving the scene of an accident and 1

reckless driving. 
Tenn. R. App. P. 3 Appeal as of Right; Judgments of the Criminal Court Affirmed

CAMILLE R. MCMULLEN, J., delivered the opinion of the court, in which JOHN EVERETT

WILLIAMS, J., and ROBERT L. JONES, SP. J., joined.

John G. McDougal, Chattanooga, Tennessee, for Defendant-Appellant, Lonta Montrell

Burress, Jr., and Galen P. Pickard, Chattanooga, Tennessee, for the Defendant-Appellant,

Darius Jerel Gustus.

Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Renee W. Turner, Senior Counsel;

William H. Cox, III, District Attorney General; and Cameron B. Williams and Bret

Alexander, Assistant District Attorneys General, for the Appellee, State of Tennessee.

OPINION

Trial. Rodney Billingsley, a salesman for M & J Shoes in Chattanooga, Tennessee,

testified that his truck was stolen from his job on December 4, 2010. That day, he went

outside and cranked his truck to warm it up at 7:15 p.m. because the shop closed at 7:30 p.m.

When he returned to the store to close it for the day, he heard someone driving his truck

down the road. At the time, he was not overly concerned because he thought one of his

friends was playing a trick on him. Approximately fifteen minutes later, when it was time

for Billingsley to leave work, he discovered that his truck had not been returned and

immediately called the police to report it stolen. Billingsley said he never saw the person

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who took his truck. However, he asserted that he did not know Lonta Burress and had never

given Burress permission to take his truck.

Billingsley had purchased the truck, a red Ford F-150, six months earlier for $4500

and stated that it was in excellent condition at the time it was stolen. Three days after his

truck was taken, the police notified him that it had been totaled in a wreck at Third Street.

Florida Wynn, an officer with Chattanooga Police Department, testified that on

December 7, 2010, at 2:35 p.m. she was dispatched to the intersection of Through Street and

Greenwood Road in Hamilton County, Tennessee. When she arrived at that location, she

talked to Ronald Madden, Frederick Jones,Jr.,Jamichael Eubanks, and Tramelvin Simmons,

who told her that two African-American males had fired shotsfrom a red F-150 pickup truck.

Madden also told her that these two men were wearing either blue or black bandanas over

 We acknowledge that we do not use titles when referring to every witness. We intend no disrespect in doing

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so. Judge John Everett Williams believes that referring to witnesses without proper titles is disrespectful even though

none is intended. He would prefer that every adult witness be referred to as Mr. or Mrs. or by his or her proper title.

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their faces when the shots were fired from the truck. Officer Wynn issued a statement for

other officers to be on the lookout (BOLO) for two African-American males driving a red

F-150 truck.

Ronald Madden testified that on December 7, 2010, he called the police because he

saw two African-American teenagers in a truck, one of whom was firing gunshots at several

unarmed students at the intersection of Greenwood Road and Through Street. Madden saw

a school bus stop and then saw eight or nine students exit the bus and begin walking down

Through Street. At the time, a red F-150 pickup truck was parked behind the bus, and when

the bus pulled away from the bus stop, the person on the passenger side of the truck hoisted

himself up on the window ledge and fired with a single gun three or four shots over the truck

at a group of eight or nine unarmed students. Madden said the shooter had a blue bandana

covering his mouth. When the shots began, the students started running toward Through

Street. The truck backed up onto Greenwood Road, and then proceeded up Through Street,

and the passenger fired four or five more shots from a single gun at the fleeing students, who

were by that time on the opposite side of the street. Madden said it was obvious that the

shooter was aiming at a “certain individual” because when that person ran toward Through

Street, the truck backed up and followed him. He said he was able to get a good look at the

shooter because the shooter was on his side as the truck drove up Through Street. During the

shooting incident, Madden said he “actually felt helpless” and was upset and fearful because

the victims in this case could have been his own children. Madden said he called 9-1-1

during the shooting incident. After reviewing the video recording of the police chase,

Madden said the red truck from the shooting incident was the same red truck involved in the

police chase.

Tramelvin Simmons testified that in 2010, he attended Brainerd High School and rode

the school bus every day to school. On December 7, 2010, as he was getting ready to exit

the school bus, he heard ten to fifteen gunshots but could not determine their origin. He ran

a long way down Through Street before taking cover behind some trees. Simmons could tell

that shots were being fired behind him as he ran because the bullets were passing him and

hitting homes in front of him. He said there were seven students with him who were running

for cover, including his brother Frederick Jones, Jr., and another student named Jamichael

Eubanks, and that they all ran in different directions when the shooting began. Simmons said

that at the time of the shooting he was scared and afraid that he would be injured because he

knew he was in a dangerous situation. He did not know where Jones was when the shots

were fired, although he saw him exit the bus. He said Jones was walking when he first got

off the bus; however, when the shooting began, everyone began running, although he did not

specifically see Jones running. Simmons said Jones knew Burress and Gustus because they

all attended the same high school, but he was unsure whether Jones had ever had problems

with Burress or Gustus.

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Justin Allen, an officer with the Chattanooga Police Department, testified that he was

assigned to the crime suppression unit, which “respond[s] to shootings, major activities,

crimes, gang-related activities and things of that nature.” On December 7, 2010, at around

3:00 p.m., he was dispatched to the area of Greenwood Road and Through Street because

shots had been fired by a passenger inside a red F-150 truck. After patrolling the area for

five to ten minutes, Officer Allen found a vehicle matching that description in the 1000 block

of Dodson Avenue, which was approximately two miles from the intersection of Greenwood

Road and Through Street. He said the truck was traveling south on Dodson Avenue with

three occupants. Officer Allen identified Burress as the individual driving the truck. He also

said a male and a female were passengers in the truck. When he saw the truck, he made a

U-turn and initiated a traffic stop. When Officer Allen was about to exit his patrol car,

Burress drove away from the scene. Officer Allen notified dispatch that the truck had fled

and began pursuing the truck. He explained the manner in which Burress tried to avoid

capture:

The vehicle turned left onto Arlington Avenue through Willow Housing

Development, got down to Wilson Street where it blew a stop sign, almost

causing a wreck with a vehicle, where it turned back east onto Wilson Street,

ran through another stop sign at Wilson and North Chamberlain and continued

traveling [at] a high rate of speed going towards Memorial Hospital where it

was weaving in and out of traffic, driving erratically, went through another

light, continued to travel on Greenwood . . . still driving erratically at high

rates of speed and in and out of traffic, in and out of its lane, turned right onto

McCallie where it blew a red light at McCallie and continued to go west on

McCallie to North Willow.

After that time, [Burress] was going [at] high rates of speed going

around other cars, dodging traffic, and when it turned right onto North Willow,

it caused a traffic accident with a red vehicle and continued to travel back on

North Willow until it lost control of the vehicle after running a red light at

Third Street and North Willow, hit a pole and flipped over several times.

Officer Allen stated that his entire pursuit of Burress, which occurred at approximately 3:00

p.m. in heavy traffic, lasted less than five minutes, although he reached speeds of over eighty

miles per hour during the chase. He stated that his pursuit of the truck was recorded by his

in-car video recording system.

Officer Allen stated that following the crash, all three occupants of the truck crawled

out of the vehicle and fled on foot. He followed the suspects in his patrol car and finally

exited his vehicle and followed them on foot. Officer Allen saw Burress in the alley and

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ordered him to stop, but Burress ran, and Officer Allen continued to pursue him on foot. He

eventually caught Burress at the corner of Cleveland Avenue and North Kelly Street. After

restraining Burress, Officer Allen returned to the scene of the accident. He observed that the

red truck had sustained such serious damage that it had “split in half.”

Rusty Morrison, an officer with the Chattanooga Police Department, testified that he

was assigned to the crime suppression unit, which was “more of a support unit for the entire

department for different divisions, for either working homicides, shootings, robberies and

so forth.” On December 7, 2010, Officer Morrison was in his office when he overheard a

call come in over the radio regarding the shots that were fired at the bus stop. He said that

he did not immediately respond to this first call because there were other officers in the field.

However, when he overheard Officer Allen advising dispatch that he was in pursuit of the

truck that matched the description of the vehicle the suspects were driving during the

shooting incident, Officer Morrison drove to the general location of the wreck. As he was

in route, he learned that the truck the suspects were in had been involved in a crash and that

Officer Allen had detained one of the suspects in an alley.

Officer Morrison knew there were two suspects, a male and a female, that had not yet

been detained. He began looking for these two suspects in an apartment complex nearby.

When he got to the front of the complex, he saw Gustus walking across Dodson Avenue.

Officer Morrison said that there were several officers in the area because of the crash, and

a crowd had gathered to watch what the officers were doing. Despite this chaos, Gustus

walked across the road and never looked at the officers. Gustus, who was carrying an Oreo

racing jacket, then walked into a recycling center. Officer Morrison immediately became

suspicious of Gustus’s behavior because he did not appear to be an employee at the recycling

center.

When Officer Morrison pulled into the area and tried to contact Gustus, he

immediately ran from him. As he pursued him, Officer Morrison identified himself multiple

times as a police officer, but Gustus did not stop. Instead, Gustus ran around a dumpster

before exiting the recycling center and running back across Dodson Avenue and into the

apartment complex. Right before Gustus ran around a building, he dropped his jacket, and

jumped over a fence. Sergeant Royval, who was on the other side of the fence, ultimately

took Gustus into custody. When Officer Morrison returned to examine the jacket Gustus had

dropped, he found two fully-loaded .38 caliber revolvers in the outside pockets of the jacket,

and he found a medical insurance card in the name of Rodney Billingsley inside the jacket.

During an interview at the hospital, Gustus initially denied knowing anything about

a shooting. Gustus said that Burress picked him up and later fled from an officer during a

traffic stop. Eventually, Gustus admitted to Officer Morrison that he was involved in the

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shooting. He said that he saw Frederick Jones, Jr., and when Jones displayed a weapon, he

got scared and pulled out his weapon and fired it to scare Jones. Gustus acknowledged that

he was sitting in the passenger seat of the truck Burress was driving when he fired his gun.

When they fled the area in the truck, Gustus reloaded his gun in case he had to shoot again

and tossed the spent shell casings out the window of the truck.

Jamichael Eubanks testified that he was seventeen years old, attended Brainerd High

School, and regularly rode the bus to and from school. On December 7, 2010, Eubanks

exited the school bus at the intersection of Greenwood Road and Through Street. He said

Frederick Jones,Jr., and Tramelvin Simmons, along with some other students, got off the bus

with him, and they began walking up the street when they heard several gunshots. Eubanks

could not tell the origin of the shots, although he saw a red truck parked behind the bus. He

was unable to see the occupants of the red truck. Eubanks said he, Jones, Simmons, and the

otherstudents all ran in different directions, although it did not appear that a particular person

was the target of the gunshots. He ran to his house because he was scared that he might get

shot. Eubanks said he knew Burress and Gustus from school and acknowledged that he had

testified at the juvenile court transfer hearing that the gunshots had been fired at them from

the red truck. Eubanks said that when he arrived home, he did not tell his mother about the

shooting. He could not recall what he said to the police during his interview following the

shooting. Specifically, he did not recall telling the police that Lonta Burress and two other

individuals were inside the truck, that the truck had been following the bus, that he thought

a shooting was about to take place, and that the passenger in the truck opened fire a short

time later. He also did not remember telling the police that Jones and Burress had an

ongoing dispute over a girl.

Josh May, another officer with the Chattanooga Police Department, testified that he

worked in the crime suppression unit, which he stated was the “de facto gang unit within the

city” that identified “gang members, ke[pt] track of them” and had “a myriad of other

responsibilities.” He said his unit also assisted federal agencies, helped with warrant

roundups, and supported other divisions within the police department. Officer May

interviewed Jamichael Eubanks at his home after the shooting. During the interview,

Eubanks said that he, Frederick Jones, Jr., and Tramelvin Simmons were riding the school

bus when they realized that a red pickup truck was following them. Eubanks knew

something was going to happen and identified Burress as one of the people inside the truck.

He explained that Burress and Jones had been fighting over a girl and that the dispute

between them was getting worse. Eubanks told Officer May that the passenger in the red

truck actually fired the shots from the passenger side of the vehicle.

Officer May said he was present at the crash scene when officers collected two

bandanas, a light blue one and a dark blue one, from the red truck. He then identified two

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bandanas at trial as the ones collected from the red truck. He stated that he was certain that

these were the two bandanas he saw inside the red truck at the scene, although he did not

personally see them being collected, and the court allowed them to be entered into evidence.

Officer May acknowledged that bandanas like the ones in this case could have been bought

in any store. He further acknowledged that he was not present when the truck wrecked and

that he did not know when the bandanas were put into the truck.

James Russell Davis, II, a special agent forensic scientist with the Tennessee Bureau

of Investigation, was declared an expert in the field of gunshot primer residue analysis.

Agent Davis stated that the gunshot residue kits taken from Burress and Gustus were

negative for gunshot residue. However, he explained that negative results did not mean that

Burress and Gustus had not fired, handled, or been near a gun when it was fired. He stated

that gunshot residue could be removed through activity or washing one’s hands. He also said

that a person could fire a gun while wearing gloves and then throw the gloves away, which

could cause a negative result.

LaJuana Woods testified that she knew Burress and Gustus but did not remember

anything that happened on December 7, 2010. When Woods said that she could not

remember anything about a shooting incident involving a red truck on December 7, 2010, the

State presented her with a copy of the transcript from the juvenile court transfer hearing to

refresh her recollection. She then testified that she could not recall being picked up by

Burress in a red truck on December 7, 2010. She acknowledged that she had talked to the

State about this case within the last week but asserted that her answers to the State’s

questions during that meeting had come from the juvenile court transfer hearing transcript

and not from her independent recollection of those events. At that point, the State requested

that it be allowed to treat Woods as an adverse witness, which the court granted. Woods

again stated she did not remember Burress picking her up in a red truck on December 7,

2010, and did not remember giving prior testimony about the December 7, 2010 incident.

She denied that she was feigning memory loss because she had been threatened.

The State requested that Woods review the transcript from the prior hearing and then

asked if she could remember testifying about why she left her home on December 7, 2010.

When Woods said she could not recall her testimony in response to that question, the State

asked her to read her answer from the transcript. She then read that Burress had picked her

up. When Woods said that she no longer remembered her testimony from the prior hearing,

the court told her to “[a]nswer his questions as best you can.” At that point, the State asked

Woods the same questions that she had been asked at the prior hearing and then had Woods

read her response from the transcript. By having Woods read her responses from the prior

hearing, the State was able to present evidence that Burress had picked up Woods in a red

pickup truck, and she had sat between Burress, who was driving, and Gustus, who was in the

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passenger seat. When Woods first got in the truck, a small gun was lying in the middle seat

where she was going to sit, and she moved it to the floorboard of the truck. She said that the

truck ended up behind a bus, and when some of the teenagers in the bus began staring at

them, Gustus fired four shots at a boy, although she did not know the boy’s name. When

Gustus began shooting, the boy ran. Woods said that there were other teenagers around when

Gustus started shooting at the boy and that Gustus used the gun that she moved to the

floorboard of the truck. After the shooting incident, Burress drove them through the Wilcox

Tunnel, and they got stopped by an officer. When the officer never got out of his patrol car,

Burress drove off and wrecked the truck following a high-speed police chase. Following the

wreck, Woods, Burress, and Gustus ran in different directions. After reading her prior

testimony, Woods said that the transcript did not refresh her recollection about what had

happened on December 7, 2010.

Woods stated that she could not remember what had occurred on December 7, 2010,

because she had been hit in the head with a bat when a fight broke out at a concert in Atlanta,

and her injuries to her skull required her to be hospitalized for two days. She also stated that

she nearly died prior to having her child in 2011. She remembered flipping over in the truck

and glass shattering, but she did not remember anything about the shooting. Although she

did not remember the things she testified to at the juvenile hearing, Woods acknowledged

that if her responses were in the transcript from that hearing, she probably made those

statements at the time. Woods agreed that she had previously testified that Burress never

fired a weapon during the incident and that neither she nor Burress were wearing a mask

during the incident.

Woods admitted that she had previously testified that four shots were fired but that

she could not remember if any other shots were fired or if the gun was reloaded. She also

could not remember whether Gustus wore anything covering his face, although she

acknowledged that she had previously testified Gustus had not worn anything to disguise

himself. She said she had previously testified that Gustus stuck his hand out of the side of

the truck before firing his gun. She was unable to recall whether Gustus fired his gun at one

person or a crowd but acknowledged that she had testified at the transfer hearing that Gustus

had shot at one person.

ANALYSIS

I. Sufficiency of the Evidence. Burress argues that the evidence is insufficient to

sustain his convictions for aggravated assault and theft, and Gustus contends that the

evidence is insufficient to support his conviction for aggravated assault involving victim

Frederick Jones, Jr. We conclude that a rational jury could have found Burress and Gustus

guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of these offenses.

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The State, on appeal, is entitled to the strongest legitimate view of the evidence and

all reasonable inferences which may be drawn from that evidence. State v. Davis, 354

S.W.3d 718, 729 (Tenn. 2011) (citing State v. Majors, 318 S.W.3d 850, 857 (Tenn. 2010)).

When a defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence, the standard of review applied

by this court is “whether, after reviewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the

prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime

beyond a reasonable doubt.” Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319 (1979). Similarly, Rule

13(e) of the Tennessee Rules of Appellate Procedure states, “Findings of guilt in criminal

actions whether by the trial court or jury shall be set aside if the evidence is insufficient to

support the finding by the trier of fact of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.” Guilt may be

found beyond a reasonable doubt where there is direct evidence, circumstantial evidence, or

a combination of the two. State v. Matthews, 805 S.W.2d 776, 779 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1990)

(citing State v. Brown, 551 S.W.2d 329, 331 (Tenn. 1977); Farmer v. State, 343 S.W.2d 895,

897 (Tenn. 1961)).

The standard of review for sufficiency of the evidence “‘is the same whether the

conviction is based upon direct or circumstantial evidence.’” State v. Dorantes, 331 S.W.3d

370, 379 (Tenn. 2011) (quoting State v. Hanson, 279 S.W.3d 265, 275 (Tenn. 2009)). The

jury as the trier of fact must evaluate the credibility of the witnesses, determine the weight

given to witnesses’ testimony, and reconcile all conflicts in the evidence. State v. Campbell,

245 S.W.3d 331, 335 (Tenn. 2008) (citing Byrge v. State, 575 S.W.2d 292, 295 (Tenn. Crim.

App. 1978)). Moreover, the jury determines the weight to be given to circumstantial

evidence and the inferences to be drawn from this evidence, and the extent to which the

circumstances are consistent with guilt and inconsistent with innocence are questions

primarily for the jury. Dorantes, 331 S.W.3d at 379 (citing State v. Rice, 184 S.W.3d 646,

662 (Tenn. 2006)). When considering the sufficiency of the evidence, this court shall not

reweigh the evidence or substitute its inferences for those drawn by the trier of fact. Id.

A. Aggravated Assault Offenses Involving Jones. Burress and Gustus, noting that

Jones did not testify at trial, argue that the State presented insufficient evidence that Jones

was in reasonable fear of imminent bodily injury for their respective aggravated assault

convictions. Gustus specifically asserts that the only evidence showing Jones was afraid was

testimony from Tramelvin Simmons and Jamichael Eubanks that Jones ran when the shots

were fired. In his brief to this court, Gustus claims that there was “no proof given as to

where in the vicinity Frederick Jones[,] Jr.[,] was during the shooting, how far away he was

from the shooter, where the shooter [was] and in what direction the shooter was firing,

whether he was being targeted, or that he even knew that a shooting was occurring outside

of other children running.”

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Burress and Gustus were charged with intentionally or knowingly causing Frederick

Jones, Jr., to reasonably fear imminent bodily injury through the use or display of a deadly

weapon. See T.C.A. § 39-13-102(a)(1)(B) (2010) (amended July 1, 2011 and July 1, 2013).

Aggravated assault based on fear requires the victim to have a “well-grounded apprehension

of personal injury or violence.” State v. Jones, 789 S.W.2d 545, 550-51 (Tenn. 1990).

Circumstantial evidence is sufficient to establish a victim’s fear of imminent bodily injury.

State v. Jessie James Austin, No. W2001-00120- CCA-R3-CD, 2002 WL 32755555, at *5

(Tenn. Crim. App. Jan. 25, 2002) (citations omitted). “The element of ‘fear’ is satisfied if

the circumstances of the incident, within reason and common experience, are of such a nature

as to cause a person to reasonably fear imminent bodily injury.” State v. Gregory Whitfield,

No. 02C01-9706-CR-00226, 1998 WL 227776, at *2 (Tenn. Crim. App. May 8, 1998) (citing

State v. Jamie Lee Pittman, No. 03C01-9701-CR-00013, 1998 WL 128801, at *5 (Tenn.

Crim. App. Mar. 24, 1998)).

A victim’s fear may be inferred from circumstances surrounding the offense, even if

the victim does not testify at trial. See State v. Barry Smith, No. W2011-02122-CCA-R3-

CD, 2013 WL 6388588, at *14 (Tenn. Crim. App. Dec. 5, 2013) (concluding that the nontestifying victims were in reasonable fear of imminent bodily injury when witnesses testified

that these victims were inside the house at the moment the defendants began shooting and

that people were “hollering” and “screaming” and were trying to find a place to hide from

the “bullets flying from every angle”); State v. Szumanski Stroud, No. W2006-01945-

CCA-R3-CD, 2007 WL 3171158, at *3 (Tenn. Crim. App. Oct. 29, 2007) (holding that two

non-testifying victims were in reasonable fear of imminent bodily injury when the evidence

showed that they had a violent altercation with the defendant at their home, that the

defendant pointed a gun at one of the victims, and that the defendant fired four or five shots

at the victimsinside the car); State v. Harry Jamieson, No. W2003-02666-CCA-R3-CD, 2004

WL 2996910, at *8 (Tenn. Crim. App. Dec. 23, 2004) (concluding that the non-testifying

victims were in reasonable fear of imminent bodily injury when other witnesses testified that

the defendant pointed his gun at the victims and that the victims were “hysterical” and

“crying”); Jessie James Austin, 2002 WL 32755555, at *6 (finding that the non-testifying

victim reasonably feared imminent bodily injury when a witness testified the victim was

aware of the defendant’s threatening statements and the defendant pointed his gun at the

victim).

Gustus argues that the State presented no proof regarding Jones’s location during the

shooting or his proximity to the gunfire. This is essentially a zone of danger argument, which

this court has specifically declined to apply in aggravated assault offenses. State v. Bobby

Joe Young,Jr., No. M2010-01531-CCA-R3-CD, 2011 WL 6291813, at *8 (Tenn. Crim. App.

Dec.14, 2011) (citing State v. James Paris Johnson, No. E2008-02555-CCA-R3-CD, 2010

WL 3565761, at *6 (Tenn. Crim. App. Sept.15, 2010) (noting that the zone of danger

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approach is applicable to reckless endangerment cases involving victims who are unaware

of danger but is not applicable to aggravated assault cases based on fear because the latter

offense requires that the victim have a fear or reasonable apprehension of being harmed)).

Instead, the proper inquiry is whether Jones, who did not testify, had a reasonable fear of

imminent bodily injury.

At trial, Officer Wynn testified that upon arriving at the scene, she talked to Ronald

Madden, Frederick Jones,Jr.,Jamichael Eubanks, and Tramelvin Simmons, who told her that

two African-American males had fired shots from a red F-150 pickup truck. Madden himself

testified that the passenger in the truck, who was wearing a blue bandana over his face, fired

three or four gunshots at several unarmed teenagers who had just exited a school bus. He

said that when the gunshots were fired, the teenagers scattered and ran for safety, and then

the truck backed up onto Greenwood Road and drove up Through Street, where the

passenger fired an additional four or five shots at a “certain individual.” Madden said that

he “actually felt helpless” and was upset and fearful because the victims in this case could

have been his own children. Tramelvin Simmons testified that he heard ten to fifteen

gunshots and ran for cover. At the time, there were seven students with him who were

running in different directions for cover, including Jamichael Eubanks and Frederick Jones,

Jr. Simmons further testified that he was scared and was afraid that he was going to be

injured because it was a dangerous situation. Jamichael Eubanks testified that he exited the

bus with Frederick Jones, Jr., and Tramelvin Simmons when they heard shots fired, and they

all ran in different directions. Eubanks said he ran home because he was scared that he might

get shot. Officer Morrison stated that Gustus admitted that he fired his gun during the

incident to scare Jones. Officer May testified that Eubanks told him that Burress was inside

the red truck and that Burress and Jones had been fighting over a girl.

In the light most favorable to the State, the evidence shows that Frederick Jones, Jr.,

was present at the scene of the shooting, was one of the teenagers fired upon after exiting the

bus, and was running because he was fearful he might be shot during the incident. Given this

proof, a rational jury could have found that Burress and Gustus intentionally or knowingly

caused Frederick Jones, Jr., to reasonably fear bodily injury through the use of a deadly

weapon. Therefore, we conclude the evidence is sufficient to support the aggravated assault

convictions involving Jones.

B. Aggravated Assault Convictions Under a Theory of Criminal Responsibility.

Burress also contends that the evidence is insufficient to convict him of the three aggravated

assault offenses because there was no proof presented that he fired the gun or had possession

of the gun during the shooting incident. We conclude the evidence is sufficient to sustain all

three of his aggravated assault convictions under a theory of criminal responsibility.

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For the aggravated assault offenses in this case, the State had to prove beyond a

reasonable doubt that Burress intentionally or knowingly caused Tramelvin Simmons,

Frederick Jones, Jr., and Jamichael Eubanks to reasonably fear imminent bodily injury

through the use or display of a deadly weapon. See T.C.A. § 39-13-102(a)(1)(B) (2010). At

trial, the State argued that Burress was guilty of the charged offenses under a theory of

criminal responsibility. An individual is criminally responsible for the conduct of another

person if, “[a]cting with intent to promote or assist the commission of the offense, or to

benefit in the proceeds or results of the offense, the person solicits, directs, aids, or attempts

to aid another person to commit the offense[.]” Id. § 39-11-402(2) (2010). Criminal

responsibility is not a distinct crime but “a theory by which the state may prove the

defendant’s guilt based on another person’s conduct.” State v. Osborne, 251 S.W.3d 1, 16

(Tenn. Crim. App. 2007) (citing State v. Mickens, 123 S.W.3d 355, 389-90 (Tenn. Crim.

App. 2003)). In the theory of criminal responsibility, “an individual’s presence and

companionship with the perpetrator of a felony before and after the commission of an offense

are circumstances from which his or her participation in the crime can be inferred.” State v.

Watson, 227 S.W.3d 622, 639 (Tenn. Crim. App. 2006) (citing State v. Ball, 973 S.W.2d

288, 293 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1998)). In this situation, “[n]o particular act need be shown, and

the defendant need not have taken a physical part in the crime to be held criminally

responsible.” Id. (citing Ball, 973 S.W.2d at 293).

In order to be held criminally responsible for the acts of another, “there must be proof

that the aider and abettor associated himself with the venture, acted with the knowledge that

an offense was to be committed, and shared the principal’s criminal intent.” State v. Hall,

976 S.W.2d 121, 140 (Tenn. 1998) (citing Hembree v. State, 546 S.W.2d 235, 239 (Tenn.

Crim. App. 1976)). There is no requirement that the State “elect between prosecution as a

principal actor and prosecution for criminal responsibility[.]” State v. Hodges, 7 S.W.3d 609,

625 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1998) (citing State v. Williams, 920 S.W.2d 247, 257-58 (Tenn. Crim.

App. 1995)).

Here, the evidence established that Burress, who was driving the red pickup truck,

followed the school bus. When Jones, Simmons, and Eubanks, the three victims in these

counts, exited the bus, Burress followed the victims so that Gustus could shoot at them.

When Gustus fired the shots, the victims ran for cover, and Burress pursued them so that

Gustus could fire additional shots at the victims as they ran down the street. Following this

shooting incident, Burress engaged in a high speed chase to avoid capture. The evidence

established that Burress acted with the intent to promote or assist the commission of the

aggravated assault offenses against these three victims by aiding Gustus in shooting at the

victims. See T.C.A. § 39-11-402(2). Accordingly, we conclude that the evidence is

sufficient to sustain Burress’s three convictions for aggravated assault.

-12-
C. Burress’s Conviction for Theft of Property. Burress also argues that the State

presented no proof that he stole Rodney Billingsley’s pickup truck. We conclude that the

evidence was sufficient to sustain the theft conviction because Burress never provided a

satisfactory explanation for why he was in possession of the stolen truck.

“A person commits theft of property if, with intent to deprive the owner of property,

the person knowingly obtains or exercises control over the property without the owner’s

effective consent.” Id. § 39-14-103(a) (2010). As relevant in this case, the term “deprive”

means to “[w]ithhold property from the owner permanently or for such a period of time as

to substantially diminish the value or enjoyment of the property to the owner[.]” Id. § 39-11-

106(a)(8)(A) (2010). Theft of property valued at $1000 or more but less than $10,000 is a

Class D felony. Id. § 39-14-105(3) (2010).

Viewed in the light most favorable to the State, the evidence at trial showed that

Officer Allen saw Burress driving a red Ford F-150 pickup truck that had been reported as

stolen. Officer May testified that Eubanks told him Burress was inside the red pickup truck

when the shooting incident occurred. It is well established that unsatisfactorily explained

possession of recently stolen goods permits an inference, in light of the surrounding

circumstances, that the individual in possession stole the property or knew that it was stolen.

See, e.g., Bush v. State, 541 S.W.2d 391, 397 n.5 (Tenn. 1976); State v. Anderson, 738

S.W.2d 200, 202 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1987). Whether property is considered recently stolen

“depends upon the nature of the property, and all the facts and circumstances shown by the

evidence in the case.” Bush, 541 S.W.2d at 397 n.5; Anderson, 738 S.W.2d at 202. Based

on the evidence presented at trial, the truck in this case qualified as “recently stolen.”

Moreover, Burress offered no explanation regarding his possession of the truck. Because the

evidence established that Burress was driving the truck without the permission of the owner,

Rodney Billingsley, it was the jury’s prerogative to infer that Burress stole the vehicle.

Accordingly, the evidence is sufficient to support Burress’s conviction for theft.

II. Denial of Mistrial. Burress and Gustus argue that the trial court should have

granted a mistrial when Officer May testified that his primary purpose was to investigate

gang activity after the court ruled that gangs could not be mentioned at trial. Burress also

argues that trial court should have granted a mistrial after the State committed a Bruton

violation.

The decision to grant or deny a mistrial rests within the sound discretion of the trial

court and will not be reversed absent an abuse of discretion. State v. Nash, 294 S.W.3d 541,

546 (Tenn. 2009); State v. Robinson, 146 S.W.3d 469, 494 (Tenn. 2004). A trial court

should declare a mistrial “only upon a showing of manifest necessity.” Robinson, 146

S.W.3d at 494 (citing State v. Saylor, 117 S.W.3d 239, 250-51 (Tenn. 2003)). “‘In other

-13-
words, a mistrial is an appropriate remedy when a trial cannot continue, or a miscarriage of

justice would result if it did.’” Saylor, 117 S.W.3d at 250 (quoting State v. Land, 34 S.W.3d

516, 527 (Tenn. Crim. App. 2000)). “‘The purpose for declaring a mistrial is to correct

damage done to the judicial process when some event has occurred which precludes an

impartial verdict.’” State v. Reid, 164 S.W.3d 286, 341-42 (Tenn. 2005) (quoting State v.

Williams, 929 S.W.2d 385, 388 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1996)). The party seeking a mistrial has

the burden of establishing the necessity for a mistrial. Reid, 164 S.W.3d at 342 (citing

Williams, 929 S.W.2d at 388). In determining whether a trial court abused its discretion in

granting or denying a mistrial, this court should consider the following factors: “(1) whether

the State elicited the testimony, (2) whether the trial court gave a curative instruction, and (3)

the relative strength or weakness of the State’s proof.” State v. Welcome, 280 S.W.3d 215,

222 (Tenn. Crim. App. 2007) (citing State v. Lawrence Taylor, No. W2002-00183-CCA-R3-

CD, 2003 WL 402276, at *10 (Tenn. Crim. App. Feb. 14, 2003)).

A. Officer’s Comments about Gangs. Burress and Gustus argue that the trial court

should have granted a mistrial when Officer May testified that his primary purpose was to

investigate gang activity after the court granted a motion in limine precluding the mention

of gangs at trial. Burress specifically argues that Officer May’s comment about gangs was

extremely prejudicial because it allowed the jury to believe that Burress was in a gang, even

though no other evidence presented at trial supported this inference. He also claims that

Officer May’s comment affected the jury’s verdict given the weakness of the State’s case,

which he claims consisted primarily of reminding Woods of her testimony from the juvenile

transfer hearing and of Ronald Madden’s testimony that directly contradicted Woods’s

testimony. Gustus claims that the trial court should have granted a mistrial in this case

because the State elicited Officer May’s testimony, creating a “prejudicial mindset” in the

jury that he was in a gang, because the trial court failed to give a curative instruction, and

because the evidence was far from overwhelming in light of the conflicting testimony, lack

of fingerprints, and negative gunshot residue tests.

Just prior to trial, Burress filed a motion in limine asking the court to preclude “any

testimony in the foregoing case in relation to gangs or gang activity” because such testimony

would “only be used to inflame the jury and would serve no purpose in the instant case.” The

record indicates that Gustus also filed a similar motion in limine, but a copy of this motion

was not included in the record. In a hearing immediately prior to the start of trial, the court

ruled that “nothing concerning gangs shall be mentioned until there is an out-of-jury hearing

[pursuant to Rule 404(b)].”

During trial, the court conducted two 404(b) hearings out of the presence of the jury

wherein the parties questioned Jamichael Eubanks and Officer May. During these hearings,

Eubanks testified that although he knew Burress and Gustus from Brainerd High School, he

-14-
did not know if Burress or Gustus were in a gang. He stated that Frederick Jones, Jr., was

his friend and that Jones was not in a gang. Eubanks did not recall telling the police that the

shooting occurred because Burress was in the Rolling Sixties Crips gang or that Burress and

Jones had a history of fighting. Officer May testified that he worked in the crime suppression

unit, which was “a de facto unit with multi-faceted jobs, but, ideally, targeting gang members

and keeping up with gangs.” Following the wreck, Officer May interviewed Jamichael

Eubanks, who said that Jones and Burress “had had a beef going back a long time over a

female and had been going back and forth at the Eastdale Rec[reation] Center.” Officer May

said that Eubanks disclosed that he had been a member of the Eastdale Bloods gang for the

last couple of months and that Burress was in the Rolling Sixties Crips gang. He did not tell

him whether Gustus was in a gang. Eubanks also told him that Jones and Burress had

ongoing problems over a woman and that the shooting incident “may have been prompted

by the gang activity” because Burress and Jones were in opposing gangs. On crossexamination, Officer May stated that Burress had never admitted to him that he was in a

gang. Following this testimony, the court commented that the mention of gangs merely

brought in “some prejudicial matter” that did not appear “to be overly probative.” The court

later noted, “[I]f it w[ere] pretty clear cut that gangs were involved [in this shooting] and this

was a feud or fight going on between gangs, I think that would be an exception to 404(b) as

a motive, but I really don’t see that as strong testimony, I’ll be honest with you.” The court

said that it would consider the admissibility of gang testimony over the lunch break.

Later, in the presence of the jury, the following exchange took place between the State

and Officer May during direct examination:

Q. And what do you do with the Chattanooga Police Department?

A. I am currently assigned to the crime suppression unit.

Q. And what is the crime suppression unit?

A. We’re essentially the de facto gang unit within the city. We identify

gang members, keep track of them and have a myriad of

responsibilities.

At that point, the following bench conference was had in the presence of but out of the

hearing of the jury:

[Burress’s attorney]: We’d asked that [information regarding gangs] be

kept out and he’s brought it back in again. I’m

-15-
asking for a mistrial again. I think he’s brought it

in about gangs–

State: I asked him what he did.

Trial court: I think everyone else that’s testified has said the

same thing, talking about a gang unit?

[Gustus’s attorney]: He basically said that’s all he does . . . and it’s

now put in the jury’s mind this is a gang case.

[Burress’s attorney]: Before, the others just do everything else, but he

said specifically they’re for gang members and

everything.

Trial court: I’m going to let him testify as to what he does.

You know, you can broaden it out he’s a police

officer to make him soften that a little bit, if you

will.

The State continued its direct examination of Officer May:

Q. What does the crime suppression unit do?

A. We have a lot of responsibilities, but our main focus is gang members,

identifying gang members and keep[ing] track of them.

Q. Other than identifying gang members and keeping track of them, what

are your other responsibilities with regard to the crime suppression

unit?

A. We assist federal agencies, warrant roundups. We’re kind of a catch-all

unit. We assist other divisions within our, within the department;

homicide, property crimes. Our unit, essentially, we know a lot of

people, there’s a ten-man unit, we know a lot of people and we go out

and we find persons of interest and such.

At the time of Officer May’s first comment, the trial court apparently had not made a final

ruling on the record about the admissibility of gang evidence. However, the trial transcript

and other parts of the record indicate the parties understood that evidence regarding gangs

-16-
would be inadmissible. While Officer May’s remark was in response to a question by the

State, it does not appear that the State intentionally elicited it because other officers testified

about their duties without incident. Moreover, although Burress’s attorney asked for a

mistrial during the bench conference, neither defense attorney asked for the trial court to give

a curative instruction to the jury regarding Officer May’s comment. The trial court, rather

than providing a curative instruction, instructed the State during a bench conference to

“broaden” Officer’s May’s description of the duties of the crime suppression unit to avoid

the implication that this was a gang case. While the State could have asked for a five minute

recess to properly address this issue with Officer May, the State likely believed that Officer

May had heard the court’s instruction and would avoid any mention of gangs in the future.

Officer May’s first and second comments were fleeting, and he never stated that Burress was

a gang member or that the case involved gangs. Finally, the evidence in this case, while

largely circumstantial, was overwhelming. For these reasons, Burress and Gustus have failed

to establish that the trial court abused its discretion in denying a mistrial based on Officer

May’s comments.

B. Alleged Bruton Violation. Citing Bruton v. United States, 391 U.S. 123 (1968),

Burress also contends that the trial court should have granted a mistrial when Officer

Morrison referenced an out-of-court statement by Gustus implicating Burress. Burress

argues that either the State failed to prepare Officer Morrison or that Officer Morrison

intentionally gave the objectionable testimony and that the trial courtshould have granted the

mistrial because this Bruton violation “irrevocably damaged” his trial.

During direct-examination, Officer Morrison testified that he had generated a report

based on his interview with Gustus at the hospital. At that point, Burress’s attorney asked

to approach, and the following bench conference occurred in the presence of but out of the

hearing of the jury:

[Gustus’s attorney]: Judge, we’re going to object to this [arrest report]

being entered.

[Burress’s attorney]: He’s trying to introduce the arrest report, so, he

can’t do that.

[The State]: It is a redacted version of his statement written

down by the officer, contempora[neously]–

The Court: He took an oral statement and this was just to

refresh his memory about the oral statement in it.

-17-
[Burress’s attorney]: He wants to introduce [the arrest report] into

evidence.

[Gustus’s attorney]: Yeah, it’s hearsay upon hearsay.

[The State]: [Officer Morrison] generated a reportshortly after

taking the statement from [Gustus], in which he

writes down what the defendant tells him.

The Court: He can testify [about] what the defendant told

him, he can refresh his memory with that, but I’ll

sustain the objection [about admitting the arrest

report into evidence].

Following this bench conference, the State had Officer Morrison’s report, which was

generated by him shortly after taking Gustus’s statement, marked for identification. Then

the State asked the following questions of Officer Morrison:

Q: Now, after Mr. Gustus waived his Miranda rights, you did take a

statement from him?

A: That’s correct.

Q: Initially, when you spoke to him, did he tell you what happened?

A: He did say, his first story that he gave, that he didn’t know anything

about a shooting, that he was picked up and that–he was picked up by

Mr. Burress and then he fled the scene, upon a traffic stop. But Mr.

Gustus said that he had no knowledge of a shooting.

Then Burress’s attorney again asked to approach the bench, and the following bench

conference occurred:

[The State]: See, that’s the problem. If I can admit the

statement, then there’s not going to be any issues

with Bruton.

[Burress’s attorney]: Saying what he told what my person did and

everything else like that.

-18-
[The State]: I have instructed him that he–

The Court: Well, he can talk about himself, what he’s done,

and then I’ll sustain as far as Mr. Burress is

concerned. You want me to caution the jury?

[Burress’s attorney]: Yeah, caution the jury, but I mean, it’s hearsay.

I’m almost ready to ask for a mistrial.

The State: Should I admonish him again, I mean outside the

presence of the jury or you want me to do it right

now?

[Burress’s attorney]: I think it needs to be done outside.

The court took a five-minute recess to allow the jury to leave the courtroom. During this

recess, the following exchange took place:

The Court: Objection was made at the bench in regard to the

statement from Detective Morrison from

[Burress’s attorney] on behalf of his client in

regard to anything being mentioned about Mr.

Burress, and which has been sustained.

[Burress’s attorney]: And of course I made [a] motion for a mistrial

and the Court has denied that, correct?

The Court: Well, you said you’re getting close to asking for

a motion for a mistrial, are you doing that?

[Burress’s attorney]: Yes, Your Honor, I am.

The Court: Well, I think from what I’ve heard, [it’s] very

hard to understand what the officer said, so I

don’t think that arises to the manifest necessity, I

think there can be curative steps taken to make

sure, and I’ll be glad to give a curative instruction

that this officer, any statement taken by Mr.

Gustus shouldn’t refer to anyone else at all and

they should . . . not consider that.

-19-
The State then voir dired Officer Morrison about the fact that he was precluded from

mentioning any comment that Gustus made about Burress when testifying about Gustus’s

statement. The trial court denied the motion for a mistrial, stating, “[It was] very difficult

to understand at that point in time, I think, what the detective was talking about, but based

upon the request of [Burress’s attorney], I will indicate to the jury that they should not

consider anything said to the detective by Mr. Gustus in regard to anyone else, [that] anything

else should not be considered by them at all.”

When the jury returned to the courtroom, the trial court gave the following curative

instruction:

Members of the jury, prior to you going out for the short recess, the

Detective Morrison was asked certain questions and started giving you a

response as to when he talked to defendant Gustus as to what he said. In that

brief remark, he started to indicate that another name was mentioned, someone

else is mentioned. You should not consider anyone else in regard to the

statement of Mr. Gustus other than Mr. Gustus. And I will give you

instructions in regard to how you may consider that at a later date or in the

instructions later, but you are not permitted to consider any statement about

anyone else, should not consider that in your deliberations at all, this only

concerns Detective Morrison’s interview with defendant Darius Jerel Gustus.

Burress contends that the trial court should have granted a mistrial because Officer’s

Morrison’s statement constituted a Bruton violation. Admission of a non-testifying

codefendant’s confession implicating the defendant at a joint trial violates a defendant’s

constitutional right to confrontation. Smart v. State, 544 S.W.2d 109, 111-12 (Tenn. 1976)

(citing Bruton, 391 U.S. at 126). While we agree that Officer Morrison’s remark was a

Bruton violation, not every Bruton violation justifies a reversal of the conviction. State v.

Elliot, 524 S.W.2d 473, 478 (Tenn. 1975) (citing Harrington v. California, 395 U.S. 250, 254

(1969)); Schneble v. Florida, 405 U.S. 427, 430 (1972). If “the properly admitted evidence

of guilt is so overwhelming, and the prejudicial effect of the codefendant’s admission is so

insignificant by comparison[,]” then the improper use of the admission is harmless beyond

a reasonable doubt. Schneble, 405 U.S. at 430; see Elliot, 524 S.W.2d at 478. Reversal is

not required unless it is proven beyond a reasonable doubt that the error complained of

contributed to the verdict. Chapman v. California, 386 U.S. 18, 24 (1967).

The record shows that although Officer Morrison’s comment was in response to the

State’s question, the State did not intentionally elicit the challenged testimony. At the time

of the statement, the court sustained the defense’s objection to the admission of the police

report outlining Gustus’s statement but denied a mistrial and instead gave the jury a curative

-20-
instruction telling the jury to disregard the statement about Burress. Officer Allen and

Woods testified that Burress was in the truck when shots were fired. Officer Mays testified

that Eubanks had told him that Burress was inside the truck when shots were fired from the

truck. This proof did not depend upon Officer Morrison’s remark. While Officer Morrison’s

comment was improper, it was brief, and the trial court promptly provided an effective

curative instruction. See State v. Dick, 872 S.W.2d 938, 944 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1993). We

must presume that the jury followed the trial court’s instructions not to consider Officer

Morrison’s improper remark. State v. Smith, 893 S.W.2d 908, 923 (Tenn. 1994) (citing State

v. Baker, 751 S.W.2d 154, 164 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1987)). In reaching this decision, we note

that “‘[a] defendant is entitled to a fair trial but not a perfect one.’” Bruton, 391 U.S. at 135

(quoting Lutwak v. United States, 344 U.S. 604, 619 (1953)). Given the evidence presented

in this case, “we conclude that the minds of an average jury would not have found the State’s

case significantly less persuasive had the testimony as to [Gustus’s] admission been

excluded.” Schneble, 405 U.S. at 432 (internal quotation marks omitted). Because the

comment did not result in a miscarriage of justice and did not preclude an impartial verdict,

Burress has failed to show that the trial court abused its discretion in denying the motion for

a mistrial.

III. Admission of Bandanas into Evidence. Gustus argues that the trial court erred

in allowing the State to admit two bandanas that were found in the truck after Burress and

Gustus fled from the scene of the wreck. He claims that these bandanas should not have been

admitted because the State failed to establish a proper chain of custody. We conclude that

the trial court properly admitted this evidence.

On direct examination, the State asked Officer May if he recalled the collection of

bandanas from the wrecked red Ford F-150. During the ensuing bench conference, the

following exchange took place:

[Burress’s attorney]: While he may go ahead and recall it, he’s not the

one that–I think somebody else went ahead and

collected them and everything else.

[The State]: I don’t have to have the person who collected it as

long as he can say that those bandanas are the

ones collected from the truck.

The Court: Just as long as he can properly authenticate them,

identify them.

-21-
[Burress’s attorney]: Yeah, because I mean he’s not the one that

collected them, so there’s a chain of custody thing

here, Your Honor.

The Court: If he can identify them.

In the presence of the jury, Officer May identified two bandanas as the bandanas that were

collected from the red Ford F-150, and the State asked that the bandanas be entered into

evidence. During a bench conference, the court held that Officer May had not yet properly

authenticated the two bandanas for admission.

In the presence of the jury, the State asked Officer May how he knew that these

bandanas at trial were the same bandanas collected from the red truck, and Officer May

replied that he had observed the bandanas in the truck, although he was not the officer who

collected them. At that point, the trial court allowed the State to mark the two bandanas for

identification purposes only because it wanted “more authentication” of them. After

detailing the manner in which the Chattanooga Police Department collected evidence, the

State again asked for the exhibit containing the bandanas to be admitted, which prompted

another bench conference where the following exchange occurred:

[Burress’s attorney]: He still has the same problem. He said he saw the

bandanas, but not how they were collected, who

collected them.

The Court: He says he was sure that those were the bandanas.

You all can cross-examine [him] on that.

[Gustus’s attorney]: Chain of custody.

[Burress’s attorney]: I mean that’s not what we can go with. I mean

how[] [doe]s he know [these are the same

bandanas]? He’s not the one that picked them up.

He saw bandanas. There’s nothing to go ahead

and show that these are the bandanas that he saw.

So I mean how can he go ahead and do that?

[Gustus’s attorney]: Chain of custody, Your Honor.

The Court: That’s not the strongest, but he’s identified them,

so I’m going to let them in.

-22-
During cross-examination by Burress’s attorney, Officer May repeatedly stated that the

bandanas admitted into evidence were the same bandanas collected from the truck because

he had been able to observe them inside the truck. When Burress’s attorney objected on the

basis that Officer May was not answering the question, the State disclosed during a bench

conference that the reason Officer May was responding the same way every time was

because the bandanas in the truck were baby blue and dark blue, which were gang colors, and

he had been instructed not to mention gangs in his testimony. The court stated that Officer

May had “probably answered all he’s going to answer.” At the time, the trial court was under

the impression that Officer May had seen the bandanas placed into the evidence bag, which

the defense denied.

When cross-examination continued, Officer May acknowledged that he had not seen

the bandanas being placed in the evidence bag. He further acknowledged that the bandanas

in the truck could have been bought in any store. Then Burress’s attorney asked Officer

May, “[S]o you believe these are [the bandanas] but you’re not quite sure because you didn’t

see that collection, [did not] see them actually put in these bags and sealed?” Officer May

responded, “I have immaculate trust in my team that that was the evidence that was collected

from the truck.” Officer May said he observed these two bandanas when he came “[w]ithin

inches” of the truck a short time after the wreck. However, he acknowledged that he was not

there when the truck was wrecked and did not know how the bandanas got into the truck or

to whom they belonged.

“The requirement of authentication or identification as a condition precedent to

admissibility is satisfied by evidence sufficient to the court to support a finding by the trier

of fact that the matter in question is what its proponent claims.” Tenn. R. Evid. 901(a).

Therefore, the question of whether tangible evidence has been properly authenticated is left

to the discretion of the trial court. State v. Cannon, 254 S.W.3d 287, 295 (Tenn. 2008)

(citing State v. Scott, 33 S.W.3d 746, 752 (Tenn. 2000); State v. Beech, 744 S.W.2d 585, 587

(Tenn. Crim. App. 1987)). The trial court’s determination will not be disturbed in the

absence of a clearly mistaken exercise of such discretion. State v. Holbrooks, 983 S.W.2d

697, 701 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1998 (citing Beech, 744 S.W.2d at 587). Therefore, we will not

reverse unless the “‘court applied an incorrect legal standard, or reached a decision which

is against logic or reasoning that caused an injustice to the party complaining.’” State v.

Shirley, 6 S.W.3d 243, 247 (Tenn. 1999) (quoting State v. Shuck, 953 S.W.2d 662, 669

(Tenn. 1997)).

To admit tangible evidence, the party offering the evidence must either introduce a

witness who is able to identify the evidence or must establish an unbroken chain of custody.

Cannon, 254 S.W.3d at 296; Holbrooks, 983 S.W.2d at 700 (citing State v. Goodman, 643

S.W.2d 375, 381 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1982)). This rule ensures that “‘there has been no

-23-
tampering, loss, substitution, or mistake with respect to the evidence.’” Scott, 33 S.W.3d at

760 (quoting State v. Braden, 867 S.W.2d 750, 759 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1993)). However,

absolute certainty of identification is not required. See State v. Kilpatrick, 52 S.W.3d 81, 87

(Tenn. Crim. App. 2000) (citing Ritter v. State, 462 S.W.2d 247, 250 (Tenn. Crim. App.

1970)). In addition, an item may be admitted even if the State fails to call each witness who

handled the item. Cannon, 254 S.W.3d at 296 (citing State v. Johnson, 673 S.W.2d 877, 881

(Tenn. Crim. App. 1984)). “Reasonable assurance, rather than absolute assurance, is the

prerequisite for admission.” Kilpatrick, 52 S.W.3d at 87. “[W]hen the facts and

circumstances that surround tangible evidence reasonably establish the identity and integrity

of the evidence, the trial court should admit the item into evidence.” Id. at 296.

To buttress his argument that the bandanas should not have been admitted, Gustus

claims that his case is distinguishable from State v. Oscar Dimery, No. E2010-01430-CCAR3-CD, 2012 WL 171939 (Tenn. Crim. App. Jan. 20, 2012). In Oscar Dimery, the defendant

asserted that the trial court erred in admitting the defendant’s clothing into evidence because

the State established an insufficient chain of custody. Id. at *8. The defendant argued the

State failed to sufficiently establish the identity of the clothing because no witness could

testify that the clothing had been taken from the defendant, because no inventory sheet

existed, and because the evidentiary procedures had not been followed. Id. The detective,

who interviewed the defendant while he was wearing the clothes in question, signed the

property receipt when the items were collected at the jail and later signed a form showing that

he collected the defendant’s clothes and took them to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation

for testing. Id. at *6-7. This court held that the trial court did not abuse its discretion by

admitting the evidence because the trial court only admitted the clothing that the officer

could identify and excluded the clothing that the officer could not identify. Id. at *9. In

reaching this decision, the court concluded that the “circumstances surrounding the evidence

reasonably establish[ed] the identity of the evidence and its integrity.’” Id. at *9 (quoting

Scott, 33 S.W.3d at 760).

Gustus argues that unlike the officer in Oscar Dimery, Officer May “did not take any

physical action to place himself within the chain of custody.” Instead, he claims Officer May

merely observed the two bandanas in the truck and asserted that the bandanas presented to

him at trial were the same bandanas that he saw inside the truck. Moreover, he asserts that

unlike the officer in Oscar Dimery, Officer May “was unable to give any distinguishing

factors [regarding] the bandanas that would differentiate [them] from others.” Finally, he

claimsthat unlike Oscar Dimery, there were no alternate means of identifying bandanas,such

as comparing them to photographs that were taken at the time they were collected. Gustus

argues that if the bandanas had not been admitted into evidence, then there would have been

“additional questions as to the identity of the shooter.” He also claims that by allowing them

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in, “additional evidence was supplied to the jury to corroborate . . . the prejudicial statements

made involving gangs.”

As we previously noted, the jury never heard evidence that Burress or Gustus were

in a gang or that the bandanas in this case represented gang colors. The record shows that

the defense thoroughly cross-examined Officer May regarding his identification of this

evidence, which gave the defense an opportunity to diminish the weight of this evidence to

the jury. Because the facts and circumstances surrounding the bandanas reasonably

established the identity and integrity of this evidence, we conclude that the trial court did not

abuse its discretion in admitting them.

IV. LaJuana Woods’s Unavailability to Testify. Burress argues that the trial court

erred in determining that LaJuana Woods was an unavailable witness pursuant to Rule

804(a)(5) because the State was unable to locate her. He also argues that the State never

requested that Woods be declared unavailable for lack of memory pursuant to Rule 804(a)(3).

Burress claims that after the defense was able to procure Woods’s appearance at trial, the

trial court erred in allowing the State to question Woods as an adverse witness and erred in

allowing the State to have Woods read from the transcript from the juvenile court transfer

hearing rather than requiring her to refresh her recollection from the transcript before

testifying and then attempting to impeach her. Burress claims that he did not waive this issue

by failing to make a contemporaneous objection because he objected at the beginning of

Woods’s testimony. We conclude that because LaJuana Woods was unavailable for lack of

memory under Rule 804(a)(3), her juvenile court testimony was admissible as substantive

evidence under rule 804(b)(1).

During trial, the State notified the court that Woods had failed to appear at trial and

that it was requesting that Woods be declared unavailable so that it could admit her testimony

from Burress’s and Gustus’s juvenile court transfer hearing. Gustus’s attorney objected,

arguing that Woods was not unavailable because she had been present for the first day of

trial, though the State failed to call her to testify, and because the State had failed to

subpoena her with a court-issued subpoena. When Burress asked that the court read Woods’s

testimony from the juvenile court transfer hearing before making a determination regarding

the reliability of the prior testimony, the court stated that it had already reviewed the

transcript from the juvenile court hearing.

After hearing testimony from an investigator in the district attorney’s office, a

lieutenant in the sheriff’s department, and an investigator with the police department, the trial

court found that Woods was unavailable because she intentionally failed to appear at trial

after the State had made every effort to have her appear. It also found that the juvenile court

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transfer hearing carried its own indicia of reliability. A short time later, the defense was able

to procure Woods’s appearance at trial by having Woods’s former attorney contact her.

In the presence of the jury, Woods testified that she knew Burress and Gustus but did

not remember anything that happened on December 7, 2010. When Woods said that she

could not remember anything about a shooting incident involving a red truck on December

7, 2010, the State presented her with a copy of the transcript from the juvenile court transfer

hearing to refresh her recollection. Woods then asked to speak to the trial court, and the jury

was excused. During the jury-out hearing, Woods said, “I have been through surgeries, high

risk pregnancy, almost lost me and my child, and I’m on medications, so I’m trying to figure

out how I should remember everything.” She stated that the only thing she remembered from

December 7, 2010, was the wreck. She also said that she had been in a wreck the previous

night, which had caused her to lose her hearing. The court instructed Woods to testify

truthfully based on her recollection of events.

When the jury returned, Woods testified that she could not recall being picked up by

Burress in a red truck on December 7, 2010. She acknowledged that she had talked to the

State about this case within the last week but asserted that her answers to the State’s

questions during that meeting had come from the juvenile court transfer hearing transcript

and not from her independent recollection of those events. At that point, the State asked that

it be allowed to treat Woods as an adverse witness, which the court granted. Woods again

stated she did not remember Burress picking her up in a red truck on December 7, 2010, and

did not remember giving prior testimony about the December 7, 2010 incident. She denied

that she was feigning memory loss because she had been threatened.

The State requested that Woods review the transcript from the prior hearing and then

asked if she could remember testifying about why she left her home on December 7, 2010.

When Woods said she could not recall her testimony in response to that question, the State

asked her to read her answer from the transcript. She then read that Burress had picked her

up. When Woods said that she no longer remembered her testimony from the prior hearing,

the court told her to “[a]nswer his questions as best you can.” At that point, the State asked

Woods the same questions that she had been asked at the prior hearing and then had Woods

read her response from the transcript. By having Woods read her responses from the prior

hearing, the State was able to present evidence that Burress had picked up Woods in a red

pickup truck, and she had sat between Burress, who was driving, and Gustus, who was in the

passenger seat. When Woods first got in the truck, a small gun was lying in the middle seat

where she was going to sit, and she moved it to the floorboard of the truck. She said that the

truck ended up behind a bus, and when some of the teenagers in the bus began staring at

them, Gustus fired four shots at a boy, although she did not know the boy’s name. When

Gustus began shooting, the boy ran. Woods said that there were other teenagers around when

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Gustus started shooting at the boy and that Gustus used the gun that she had previously

moved to the floorboard of the truck. After the shooting incident, Burress drove them

through the Wilcox Tunnel, and they got stopped by an officer. When the officer never got

out of his patrol car, Burress drove off and wrecked the truck following a high-speed police

chase. Following the wreck, Woods said that she, Burress, and Gustus ran in different

directions. After reading her prior testimony, Woods said that the transcript did not refresh

her recollection about what had happened on December 7, 2010.

Initially, we note that Burress’s argument that the trial court erred by determining that

Woods was unavailable pursuant to Rule 804(a)(5) is moot because Woods ultimately

testified at trial. As to Burress’s complaints about the manner in which the State questioned

Woods, we note that neither Burress’s nor Gustus’s attorney ever objected to the State

treating Woods as an adverse witness or having Woods read her responses from the juvenile

court transfer hearing transcript at trial. Consequently, any issue about Woods reading her

testimony from the prior hearing at trial is waived. See Tenn. R. App. P. 36(a) (“Nothing in

this rule shall be construed as requiring relief be granted to a party responsible for an error

or who failed to take whatever action was reasonably available to prevent or nullify the

harmful effect of an error.”).

Waiver notwithstanding, we note that Woods’s prior testimony was admissible

because she was an unavailable witness based on lack of memory pursuant to Rule 804(a)(3),

which allows for sworn prior testimony of an unavailable witness to be read to the jury at

trial. See Tenn. R. Evid 804(a)(3), Advisory Comm’n Comment to 1994 Amendment

(“Memory lapse, if demonstrated to the trial judge under Rule 104(a), is enough to get the

contents of recorded recollection read to the jury, and the same condition should be enough

to get cross-examining sworn former testimony before the jury.”). Although the trial court

never formally declared Woods to be unavailable pursuant to Rule 804(a)(3) for lack of

memory, the record clearly shows that Woods was unavailable because she demonstrated a

lack of memory of the subject matter of her prior testimony. While it would have been

preferable for the court to formally make the determination that Woods was unavailable

under 804(a)(3) out of the presence of the jury, had the court done so, the substance of

Woods’s testimony before the jury would have been substantially the same as what the jury

heard in this case.

Moreover, there was no question that Woods’s prior testimony from the juvenile court

transfer hearing was reliable, even though it was hearsay under Tennessee Rule of Evidence

801(c), because Burress and Gustus had a similar motive and opportunity to cross-examine

Woods in that prior hearing. See Tenn. R. Evid. 804(b)(1) (stating that former testimony by

an unavailable declarant “given as a witness at another hearing of the same or different

proceeding” is a hearsay exception “if the party against whom the testimony is now offered

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had both an opportunity and a similar motive to develop the testimony by direct, cross, or

redirect examination”). This court has held that a juvenile transfer hearing, which determines

whether there are reasonable grounds to believe that a defendant committed alleged acts, is

reliable. See State v. Summers, 159 S.W.3d 586, 598 (Tenn. Crim. App. 2004); T.C.A. § 37-

1-134(a)(4). Accordingly, we conclude that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in

admitting Woods’s prior testimony based on her unavailability for lack of memory. See State

v. Dotson, 254 S.W.3d 378, 392 (Tenn. 2008) (stating that “questions concerning the

admissibility of evidence rest within the sound discretion of the trial court, and this Court

will not interfere in the absence of abuse appearing on the face of the record”).

CONCLUSION

We conclude that the evidence is sufficient to sustain Burress’s convictions for

aggravated assault and theft and Gustus’s conviction for aggravated assault against Jones.

We further conclude that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying a mistrial

based on the admission of gang testimony and the Bruton violation, that LaJuana Woods was

an unavailable witness pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Evidence 804(a)(3), which made her

prior testimony from the juvenile court transfer hearing admissible as substantive evidence,

and that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in admitting the two bandanas into

evidence. Upon review, the judgments of the trial court are affirmed.

__________________________________

CAMILLE R. McMULLEN, JUDGE

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