Opinion ID: 711041
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Sufficiency of Evidence of Appellant's Presence During the Sale

Text: 43 Chalmers argues that no rational jury could find that he was involved in the sale of drugs to the undercover officers for two reasons. First, the officer who looked through the peephole did not identify appellant as one of those involved in passing out the drugs. This argument is not persuasive because it only proves that Chalmers was not visible through the small peephole located four and one-half feet above the floor, not that appellant was not present. We do not contend that the only permissible finding a rational jury could have made was that appellant was present and selling drugs, but only that a rational jury could find that even from the back room where Chalmers was found, he was working, at the time of the sale charged, in concert with those who actually handled the specific exchange. The condition of the apartment made it rational for the jury to believe that all persons in it were working together to sell drugs. See Soto, 959 F.2d at 1185 (holding that presence of appellant under circumstances indicating that those present were involved in drug trade was sufficient). The jury also could have concluded that Chalmers had been there for innocent reasons, but that possibility does not merit the granting of the habeas corpus petition. See Jackson, 443 U.S. at 319, 99 S.Ct. at 2789 (holding that if any rational jury could find guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, verdict must be upheld). 44 Second, Chalmers argues that the prosecution did not show that he was in the apartment at the time of the sale. The police testified that there was traffic in and out between the time of the buy and the time of the bust. However, a jury could rationally conclude that appellant was present at the time of the sale for which he was charged and convicted. Id. The evidence that all persons inside the apartment were involved in the sale of drugs to the undercover officer weighs against a finding that Chalmers, as a seller, would be in and out of the apartment frequently. While there may have been frequent traffic to the front door of the apartment and back, this does not indicate heavy traffic in and out of the heavily secured, controlled-access apartment. That the jury could have rationally concluded that Chalmers was not there is not sufficient to merit the granting of the petition.