Opinion ID: 1712849
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: admission of michael johnson's opinion testimony

Text: Michael Johnson testified as the State's first witness. During direct examination, he testified that his long-time friend, Darryl Jenkins, used crack cocaine and often sold that drug from the Jenkins home. Johnson indicated that he did not use crack cocaine, but he had been selling that drug almost every day for approximately two years. Johnson stated that he often sold crack cocaine from the Jenkins home, with Jacqueline Thompson being one of his regular customers. Regarding the night in question, Johnson testified that he observed the Camry arrive at the Jenkins home, whereupon Jacqueline Thompson exited the vehicle. Thompson walked over to Johnson's Impala and purchased a $10 rock of crack cocaine, and after Thompson indicated that there were two men in the Camry who wanted to buy fifty rocks, Johnson agreed to serve them. Johnson testified that after Thompson returned to the Camry, he obtained a sandwich bag containing crack cocaine from Darryl Jenkins. Johnson observed the contents of the bag and found them to be about a gram in size and identical in shape. Further, although Johnson did not know the exact number of rocks that were in the bag, he knew the bag contained enough to sell fifty rocks. Finally, Johnson confirmed that he was intimately familiar with the appearance of crack cocaine and had never received any complaints that the crack cocaine he sold was bad, defective, or fake. After several defense objections, the trial court conducted a voir dire examination to determine whether Johnson would be permitted to express opinions regarding the identity and weight of the rocky substance contained in the sandwich bag obtained from Darryl Jenkins, which was the center of the transaction that night. During the voir dire examination, Johnson stated that he had sold drugs earlier in the evening prior to the transaction with Brooks and Brown. He had previously seen a quantity of fifty or more rocks of crack cocaine on more than five occasions, and he had, on a prior occasion, weighed more than fifty rocks of cocaine on a digital, triple-beam scale. Regarding the sandwich bag of rocks obtained from Darryl Jenkins, Johnson stated that he had not previously engaged in sales of the specific rocks from that bag earlier in the evening. He did confirm, however, that he had examined the contents of the bag and knew that there was enough to serve at least fifty rocks. Further, Johnson stated that he knew the weight of the rocks based on experience because a juggler, or rock of crack cocaine, weighs one gram. Finally, while being questioned by defense counsel concerning cornbread, which is allegedly a form of crack cocaine weighing less than regular crack cocaine, Johnson reiterated that neither he nor Jenkins ever sold bad dope from the Jenkins home. After hearing Johnson's proffered testimony and considering argument submitted by both prosecution and defense, the trial court determined that Johnson would be permitted to express his opinion, in the form of expert testimony, regarding the identity and weight of the rocky substance contained in the sandwich bag which he had obtained from Darryl Jenkins. On appeal, Brooks claims that the trial court clearly erred in making this determination. We reject Brooks' claim on the merits. [16] Section 90.702, Florida Statutes (1999), provides: If scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact in understanding the evidence or in determining a fact in issue, a witness qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education may testify about it in the form of an opinion; however, the opinion is admissible only if it can be applied to evidence at trial. It is within the trial court's discretion to determine a witness's qualifications to express an opinion as an expert, and the court's determination in this regard will not be reversed absent a clear showing of error. See, e.g., Geralds v. State, 674 So.2d 96, 100 (Fla.1996); Ramirez v. State, 542 So.2d 352, 355 (Fla.1989); Johnson v. State, 438 So.2d 774, 777 (Fla.1983); see generally Charles W. Ehrhardt, Florida Evidence § 702.1, at 552-53 (1999 ed.). After considering these standards, case law from this State and other jurisdictions, as well as the facts of this case, we conclude that the trial court did not clearly err in allowing Michael Johnson, an experienced crack cocaine dealer, to express opinion testimony regarding the identity and approximate weight of the rocky substance contained in the sandwich bag obtained from Darryl Jenkins.
In A.A. v. State, 461 So.2d 165, 165-66 & n. 1 (Fla. 3d DCA 1984), the trial court allowed a police officer to testify as an expert with specialized knowledge that, in his opinion, the substance possessed by the defendant was marijuana. The officer had been with the police department for nine years and had worked four years in a special narcotics unit; he had participated in numerous courses relating to narcotics investigation; he had seen and smelled tons of marijuana during his career; and his prior substance identifications had always been corroborated by lab tests. See id. at 166. The officer formed his opinion regarding the particular substance possessed by the defendant based upon sight, smell, the packaging of the substance, and the fact that the defendant possessed rolling papers. See id. On appeal, the Third District approved the admission of the officer's testimony, holding that the trial court did not abuse its discretion by finding that the officer qualified, through his training and extensive work experience, as an `expert' in marijuana identification. Id. (citing, among other authorities, section 90.702, Florida Statutes (1983)); cf., e.g., Pama v. State, 552 So.2d 309, 311 (Fla. 2d DCA 1989) (determining that the State adequately proved substance was marijuana based on experienced law enforcement officer's examination and identification of the substance); Dean v. State, 406 So.2d 1162, 1164 (Fla. 2d DCA 1981) (finding that jury could properly find defendant guilty of marijuana possession based on testimony of experienced narcotics officer that he saw occupants of car smoking cigarette in manner commonly used in smoking marijuana, and he smelled strong odor of marijuana emanating from the car immediately thereafter). Although the Third District's decision in A.A. addressed whether an experienced law enforcement officer could properly express an opinion, as an expert, regarding the identity of marijuana, it appears that no Florida appellate decision has addressed whether a person who is experienced with marijuana or another controlled substance as either a dealer, user, or both, may similarly be qualified to express such an opinion. Courts in many other jurisdictions have, however, allowed such persons to express opinion testimony regarding the identity of alleged controlled substances. See, e.g., United States v. Dominguez, 992 F.2d 678, 681 (7th Cir. 1993) (stating that circumstantial evidence establishing identity of an alleged controlled substance may include, among other things, lay-experience based on familiarity through prior use, trading, or law enforcement, citing United States v. Manganellis, 864 F.2d 528, 541 (7th Cir. 1988)); United States v. Paiva, 892 F.2d 148, 157 (1st Cir.1989) (finding that witness may express opinion regarding identity of an alleged controlled substance based on past experience and personal knowledge and observation); State v. Saez, 173 Ariz. 624, 845 P.2d 1119, 1124 (App.1992) (stating that a majority of jurisdictions have held that drug abusers or addicts may possess sufficient qualifications to testify about matters at issue in a narcotics prosecution); Copeland v. State, 430 N.E.2d 393, 396 (Ind.Ct.App.1982) (finding that trial court did not abuse its discretion in allowing experienced drug addict to testify as an expert witness regarding identity of dilaudid); Commonwealth v. Dawson, 399 Mass. 465, 504 N.E.2d 1056, 1057 (1987) (stating that [t]he great weight of authority in this country permits... an experienced user of a controlled substance to testify that a substance that he saw and used was a particular drug); State v. Rubio, 110 N.M. 605, 798 P.2d 206, 208 (App.1990) (determining that witness's experience as a successful cocaine dealer qualified him to give his opinion that the substance was cocaine); Hill v. Commonwealth, 8 Va.App. 60, 379 S.E.2d 134, 136 (1989) (Users and addicts, if they have gained a familiarity or experience with a drug, may identify it. Numerous courts have permitted lay purchasers of drugs to testify as to the identification of drugs after previous use has been demonstrated.); State v. Hernandez, 85 Wash.App. 672, 935 P.2d 623, 625 (1997) (stating that a witness who demonstrates an expertise `acquired either by education or experience' in this area may give an opinion as to the identity of a substance); see generally Michael D. Blanchard & Gabriel J. Chin, Identifying the Enemy in the War on Drugs: A Critique of the Developing Rule Permitting Visual Identification of Indescript White Powder in Narcotics Prosecutions, 47 Am. U.L.Rev. 557 (1998); J. Allison DeFoor, II, Consumer Testimony as Proof of Identity of the Controlled Substance in a Narcotics Case, 33 U. Fla. L.Rev. 682 (1981); W.A. Harrington, Annotation, Competency of Drug Addict or User to Identify Suspect Material as Narcotic or Controlled Substance, 95 A.L.R.3d 978 (1979 & 1999 Supp.). It is our view that, upon establishment of a proper predicate, a drug dealer under these circumstances may express an opinion, in the form of expert testimony, regarding the identity of crack cocaine. We do not reach the issue as to any other possible controlled substance. In the present case, the State presented evidence that (1) Michael Johnson was an experienced crack cocaine dealer, having sold that drug almost every day for approximately two years; (2) Johnson never sold bad, defective, or fake crack; (3) Johnson obtained the sandwich bag which contained the substance from his long-time friend and associate, Darryl Jenkins, who was a crack cocaine user and dealer who did not sell bad, defective, or fake crack; (4) Johnson had sold drugs earlier that evening; (5) Jacqueline Thompson, who brought Brooks and Brown to the location for the purchase of rocks of crack cocaine, regularly purchased that substance from Johnson at the Jenkins home; and (6) Johnson had an opportunity to examine and inspect the rocky substance contained in the sandwich bag that he obtained from Darryl Jenkins. Under these circumstances, we find that the trial court did not clearly err in allowing Michael Johnson to express his opinion, in the form of expert testimony, that the sandwich bag contained crack cocaine. Cf. United States, v. Marsalla, 164 F.3d 1178, 1179-80 (8th Cir. 1999) (finding that in making sentencing determination, district court justifiably relied upon experienced crack cocaine dealer's opinion that the substance she had purchased, visually inspected, and then sold to defendant was crack cocaine),
In a similar manner, Brooks asserts that the trial court clearly erred in allowing Johnson to express an opinion that the rocks in the sandwich bag each weighed one gram. We disagree with the position that Johnson was not qualified to express an opinion regarding the approximate weight of the rocks in the sandwich bag. [17] The State presented evidence that (1) Johnson was an experienced crack cocaine dealer; (2) he had previously seen a quantity of fifty or more rocks of crack cocaine on more than five occasions, and he had, on a prior occasion, weighed more than fifty rocks of cocaine on a digital, triple-beam scale; (3) in the drug trade, a juggler, or rock of crack cocaine, is traded in one-gram increments; and (4) Johnson had the opportunity to examine and inspect the rocks in the sandwich bag, and he determined that the bag contained enough to sell fifty rocks that were about a gram in size and identical in shape. Under these circumstances, the trial court properly allowed Johnson to give opinion testimony regarding the approximate weight of the rocks in the sandwich bag. See, e.g., State v. Gilbert, 507 So.2d 637, 638 (Fla. 5th DCA 1987) (finding that trial court erred in precluding narcotics officer from testifying about approximate weight of bag containing cocaine that was dumped by defendant in pond, stating [a]n experienced narcotics officer (as well as a lay witness) can testify to the approximate weight of a given matter); Madruga v. State, 434 So.2d 331, 332 (Fla. 3d DCA 1983) (finding that experienced drug enforcement officer could properly testify to the approximate weight of the marijuana at issue).