Opinion ID: 1157261
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Agent Netwall's Redirect Examination

Text: The defendant also challenges the trial court's ruling permitting Agent Netwall on redirect examination to testify that the 21.6 milligrams or 0.0007 ounces of heroin constituted a usable amount. The defendant argues that such testimony was beyond the qualifications of the witness and outside the scope of proper redirect examination. We find no error in the trial court's ruling. Without objection from the defendant the court permitted Agent Netwall to testify as an expert witness in analytical chemistry. Whether opinion testimony is within a witness' expertise generally is a matter addressed to the sound discretion of the court and no abuse of discretion has been shown here. See, e. g., People v. Jiminez, 187 Colo. 97, 528 P.2d 913 (1974); Scott v. People, 166 Colo. 432, 444 P.2d 388 (1968); Starkey v. Bryan, 166 Colo. 43, 441 P.2d 314 (1968). The defendant during his cross-examination of this witness inferentially injected into the trial the arguable issue of insufficient proof of guilty knowledge and/or possession due to the very minute amount of heroin recovered. Under these circumstances the trial court acted within its discretion in permitting the prosecution to question the witness about this matter in an effort to dispel any unfavorable innuendo created by the witness' testimony on cross-examination. People v. Taggart, Colo., 621 P.2d 1375, 1386 (1981). See also, e. g., People v. Pickett, 194 Colo. 178, 571 P.2d 1078 (1977); Mathis v. People, 167 Colo. 504, 448 P.2d 633 (1968); Abeyta v. People, 156 Colo. 440, 400 P.2d 431 (1965).