Opinion ID: 1571491
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Proof of Intent to Deliver.

Text: Because it is difficult to prove intent by direct evidence, proof of intent usually consists of circumstantial evidence and the inferences that can be drawn from that evidence. State v. Adams, 554 N.W.2d 686, 692 (Iowa 1996). We have also recognized that in controlled-substance prosecutions opinion testimony by law enforcement personnel experienced in the area of buying and selling drugs may be offered as evidence for purposes of aiding the trier of fact in determining intent. State v. Olsen, 315 N.W.2d 1, 6-7 (Iowa 1982). We stated in Olsen: [A witness] may testify on the pattern or modus operandi of a certain offense and compare the facts of the case to it. The distinction is that, on the one hand, the witness is asked for an opinion based upon certain evidence as it relates to a well-defined modus operandi and on the other, an opinion on the guilt or innocence of the defendant. The former is proper; the latter is not. Id. (citations omitted). We have also recognized that the intent to deliver a controlled substance may be inferred from the manner of packaging drugs, large amounts of unexplained cash, and the quantity of drugs possessed. Adams, 554 N.W.2d at 692; State v. Birkestrand, 239 N.W.2d 353, 362 (Iowa 1976); State v. Dandridge, 213 N.W.2d 903, 904 (Iowa 1974). In State v. Dinkins, 553 N.W.2d 339 (Iowa Ct.App.1996), the court of appeals was presented with a challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence to establish an intent to deliver crack cocaine. The court found that the fact that the defendant was observed interacting with persons on the street in an area where drug trafficking was common, possessed individually wrapped rocks of crack cocaine, along with evidence from an experienced police officer that these actions conformed to those of drug dealers was sufficient to support a finding of intent to deliver. Dinkins, 553 N.W.2d at 342. In the present case, although the quantity of drugs possessed was characterized as not exceeding that which might be acquired for personal use, the quantity was nonetheless substantial. This fact coupled with the packaging of the drugs and the expert testimony of experienced police officers was sufficient evidence to support the trial court's finding that defendant intended to deliver at least some of the methamphetamine that was found in his possession. Defendant's argument to the contrary is based on the assumption that he purchased the drugs wrapped in the form in which they were found at his residence. However, the State countered this theory through the testimony of Sergeant Kirkpatrick that one purchasing methamphetamine for personal use in the quantity that was involved here would ordinarily receive the substance in bulk packaging form. The district court, as trier of fact, could have found from all of the evidence that defendant possessed the substance in individual packages of small amounts to facilitate its sale.