Opinion ID: 399011
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Marszalkowski's Appeal

Text: Insufficiency of Evidence 23 Joanne Marszalkowski likewise argues that insufficient evidence was presented to support the charge against her of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and methaqualone. She consequently claims reversible error in the trial judge's denial of her motion for a directed verdict of acquittal. We disagree. Based on our evaluation of the evidence in a light most favorable to the government, see Glasser v. United States, 315 U.S. 60, 80, 62 S.Ct. 457, 469, 86 L.Ed. 680 (1942), we conclude that reasonable jurors could indeed have found the evidence inconsistent with every hypothesis of her innocence, United States v. Moore, 505 F.2d 620, 623 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 421 U.S. 918, 95 S.Ct. 1581, 43 L.Ed.2d 785 (1975). 24 Possession of narcotics may be constructive or actual. United States v. Goldstein, 635 F.2d 356, 362 (5th Cir. 1981). A defendant's constructive possession of contraband may be established by circumstantial evidence of his or her ownership or control of the premises in which the contraband is hidden. United States v. Moreno, 649 F.2d 309, 312 (5th Cir. 1981). The apartment in which the instant drugs were concealed was owned by Joanne's mother and rented in Joanne's name; the cocaine and methaqualone introduced against her were recovered from a tall dresser in her bedroom containing women's clothing and from the nighttable near her bed. These facts, which provide ample evidence of her dominion over the premises from which the contraband was recovered, fulfill the requisite element of constructive possession. 25 Furthermore, the high purity of the cocaine found in the tall dresser and nighttable, 5 along with the recovery from her apartment of a substance used to cut cocaine, a large amount of cash ($10,500.00) and a weapon (.38 Smith & Wesson revolver concealed in the nighttable next to her bed) constitute surrounding circumstances from which Marszalkowski's intent to distribute is readily inferrable. United States v. Grayson, 625 F.2d 66 (5th Cir. 1980); United States v. Muckenthaler, 584 F.2d 240, 247 (8th Cir. 1978); United States v. Mather, 465 F.2d 1035 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 409 U.S. 1085, 93 S.Ct. 685, 34 L.Ed.2d 672 (1972). Validity of Search Warrant 26 The appellant would, however, have the court delete from its consideration of the sufficiency of the evidence all items seized from her apartment, including those found during execution of the search warrant. While supporting the trial court's invalidation of the warrantless entry to arrest Brock, she challenges its failure to strike as unnecessarily tainted the evidence found in the later search conducted pursuant to a warrant. She contends that the probable cause supporting issuance of the warrant was based on observations made in the apartment immediately after the unlawful entry; hence, given the illegality of the initial entry, all that followed was fruit of the poisonous tree. Wong Sun v. United States, 371 U.S. 471, 83 S.Ct. 407, 9 L.Ed.2d 441 (1963). We need not explore, however, the merits of Marszalkowski's argument, since we agree with the government's response as appellee in United States v. Marszalkowski, No. 80-5597, and its identical argument as appellant in the separate appeal of United States v. Brock, No. 80-5621, that the agents' original entry comported fully with constitutional stricture. 6 United States v. Allen, 588 F.2d 1100, 1106 (5th Cir. 1980). We consider next our reasons for this conclusion. 27