Opinion ID: 1439460
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Kermit Channel Testimony

Text: For his sixth argument, Appellant argues that the trial court abused its discretion in allowing the testimony of Kermit Channel. Specifically, Appellant objected to Channel's testimony regarding his conclusion that DNA found in blood taken from the trunk carpet of the Elliotts' car matched Felicia's DNA. His objection stems from his claim that the State failed to establish a proper chain of custody of the Elliotts' car, and as such, the results of evidence from that car, i.e., the DNA, was inadmissible. This court has consistently held that the purpose of establishing a chain of custody is to prevent the introduction of evidence that has been tampered with or is not authentic. Goodwin v. State, 342 Ark. 161, 27 S.W.3d 397 (2000); Dansby, 338 Ark. 697, 1 S.W.3d 403; Crisco v. State, 328 Ark. 388, 943 S.W.2d 582 (1997). While the State is not required to eliminate every possibility of tampering with the evidence, the trial court must be satisfied within a reasonable probability that there has been no tampering. Id. Minor uncertainties in the proof of chain of custody are matters to be argued by counsel and weighed by the jury, but they do not render the evidence inadmissible as a matter of law. Goodwin, 342 Ark. 161, 27 S.W.3d 397; Crisco, 328 Ark. 388, 943 S.W.2d 582. Moreover, the proof of the chain of custody for interchangeable items like blood needs to be more conclusive than for other items of evidence. Dansby, 338 Ark. 697, 1 S.W.3d 403; Crisco, 328 Ark. 388, 943 S.W.2d 582. Nevertheless, the mere possibility of access to blood, where there is no evidence of tampering, is not enough to render test results from that blood inadmissible. Dansby, 338 Ark. 697, 1 S.W.3d 403. Lastly, in matters such as this, the trial court is given some degree of discretion and in the absence of evidence indicating tampering, we will not reverse the trial court's ruling absent an abuse of discretion. Gardner v. State, 296 Ark. 41, 754 S.W.2d 518 (1988). With this in mind, we now look to the present situation. Here, it is clear that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in finding that the chain of custody was satisfied and, thus, allowing Channel to testify about the DNA evidence. The State presented adequate testimony establishing this chain. Jeff Winebaugh testified that, on July 20, 1998, he towed the Elliotts' car to a locked impound lot. The car was initially placed by itself in a locked, enclosed garage, but was placed outside in the locked impound lot the next day after the company received a call advising them they could put it outside as long as it was locked up. FBI Agent Lowell Cage testified that, on August 5, 1998, he photographed a section of carpet from the trunk of the car. FBI Agent Carl Malloy testified that he did not know if any other police agencies took photographs of the vehicle prior to the FBI getting involved, but that he was involved with the actual removal of items from the trunk. Specifically, Agent Malloy removed the piece of carpet from the trunk for it to be submitted into evidence. Although Agent Malloy did not personally participate in the submission of the evidence to the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory, he explained that he collected evidence and put it in the vehicle for transport to be submitted. Channel testified that he did an analysis on a carpet sample that had been removed from the Elliotts' car. He explained that he analyzed the carpet piece and compared it to Lisa Elliott's blood. In so doing, he found that the DNA profile from the carpet was consistent with that of the one female offspring of Lisa, namely Felicia. This evidence establishes a chain of custody for the carpet piece Channel testified about. Lastly, it should be noted, the trial court did not permit the piece of carpet to be introduced because one of the FBI agents who took it out of the trunk with Agent Malloy was unavailable. Nevertheless, Appellant infers that tampering was involved and, relying on Crisco, 328 Ark. 388, 943 S.W.2d 582, maintains that this court should reverse and dismiss the charges against him. Appellant's argument is without merit because Crisco is distinguishable from the present case. In Crisco , the description of the seized drug varied significantly between the seizing police officer's description and the chemist's. Moreover, the present case does not involve an easily interchangeable sample, like a drug or blood sample, because it deals with DNA. Additionally, there is no difference in the description of the carpet sample containing the DNA such as that found in Crisco . Consequently, this case is distinguishable from Crisco . See also Goodwin, 342 Ark. 161, 27 S.W.3d 397 (finding that there was no assertion that the substance introduced at trial differed in appearance or content from the substance seized from the defendant, and, therefore, Crisco is not applicable). Appellant has failed to expose any actual tampering, planting of evidence, or significant gap in the chain of custody. Moreover, the record does not reflect that any of these issues occurred. Consequently, the trial court did not abuse its discretion by admitting the DNA results and allowing Channel to testify.