Opinion ID: 1058826
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: sufficiency of the evidence

Text: The defendant argues that the evidence was not sufficient to support a conviction for conspiracy because there was no evidence of any agreement between Hutchinson and himself, an overt act, or of the 300 grams of cocaine. We agree with the Court of Criminal Appeals that the proof presented at trial supports each of the elements necessary for a conviction. Although an accused is originally cloaked with a presumption of innocence, a jury verdict of guilty removes that presumption and replaces it with one of guilt, shifting the burden of proof to the defendant to demonstrate the insufficiency of the convicting evidence. State v. Dellinger, 79 S.W.3d 458, 489 (Tenn.2002); State v. Tuggle, 639 S.W.2d 913, 914 (Tenn.1982). On appeal, we must determine whether any rational trier of fact could have found the accused guilty of every element of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt. See Tenn. R.App. P. 13(e); State v. Harris, 839 S.W.2d 54, 75 (Tenn.1992). In making this decision, we are to accord the State the strongest legitimate view of the evidence as well as all reasonable and legitimate inferences that may be drawn therefrom. Tuggle, 639 S.W.2d at 914. As such, we are precluded from re-weighing or reconsidering the evidence, State v. Morgan, 929 S.W.2d 380, 383 (Tenn.Crim.App.1996), nor may we substitute our own inferences for those drawn by the trier of fact from circumstantial evidence, State v. Matthews, 805 S.W.2d 776, 779 (Tenn.Crim.App.1990). To sustain a conviction for conspiracy, the State is required to prove that two (2) or more people, each having the culpable mental state required for the offense which is the object of the conspiracy and each acting for the purpose of promoting or facilitating commission of an offense, agree that one (1) or more of them will engage in conduct which constitutes such offense. Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-12-103(a) (2003). No person may be convicted of conspiracy to commit an offense unless an overt act in pursuance of such conspiracy is alleged and proved to have been done by the person or by another with whom the person conspired. Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-12-103(d) (2003). The offense alleged to have been the object of the conspiracy was the sale of 300 grams or more of a substance containing cocaine ... in violation of Tennessee Code Annotated § [ ]XX-XX-XXX. We find that the Court of Criminal Appeals accurately summarized the evidence that supports the findings by the trier of fact: The sharing of vehicles and financial responsibility therefor between these two individuals suggest involvement in each other's affairs. In addition, the trash pulls... revealed mail belonging to the defendant and to Hutchinson intermingled in each other's garbage. These pulls also led to the discovery of an empty box of baggies...; latex gloves ...; Inositol ...; and, in some of the otherwise empty bags, cocaine residue. Beyond this, the police discovered the defendant essentially surrounded by evidence of drug dealing upon executing a search warrant at Hutchinson's residence. Baggies of cocaine were in plain sight throughout the room; electric scales ... were discovered near the defendant; a box of rubber gloves and hundreds of dollars were also located in his vicinity; etc. Moreover, two officers testified that, upon entering, they saw loose cocaine flying through the air coming from the defendant's direction. In fact, one officer stated that he had seen the defendant throw the bag of cocaine. According to yet another officer the defendant stated, while being booked, that he had been trying to knock cocaine off of the table when the officers came into the home. As previously noted, testing revealed that two hundred ninety-four grams of cocaine had been seized at the scene. Officer Danny Eddings' testimony indicated that quite a bit of the cocaine spilled on the carpet had not been recovered. The period of time involved in the indictment would have also included the residue above-referenced, cocaine involved in one or two sales Hutchinson acknowledged making earlier on the day of the arrest, etc. The defendant contends that the only act he was charged with engaging in was possession, and that this was not an overt act in furtherance of the conspiracy. The acts of maintaining a structure for the storing, repackaging, and safekeeping of cocaine and possessing more than twenty-six grams of cocaine were both alleged in the indictment, and constitute actions committed in furtherance of the alleged conspiracy. Even if it were Hutchinson alone who maintained the structure, this is not fatal to the State's case, because the conspiracy statute provides that the requisite overt act may be done by the applicable defendant or by another with whom the person conspired. Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-12-103(d) (2003). The record contains sufficient proof supporting both alleged overt acts. As to whether there was an agreement between the parties, our courts have long held: To prove a conspiracy, it is not necessary that the State show a formal agreement between the parties to do the unlawful act, but a mutual implied understanding is sufficient, although not manifested by any formal words, or by a written agreement. The unlawful confederation may be established by circumstantial evidence and the conduct of the parties in the execution of the criminal enterprise. Randolph v. State, 570 S.W.2d 869, 871 (Tenn.Crim.App.1978); see also State v. Pike, 978 S.W.2d 904, 915-16 (Tenn.1998). Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the State, we conclude that the jury could reasonably infer from the aforementioned facts the existence of an agreement between Hutchinson and the defendant to sell cocaine. Finally, as to the amount of cocaine that the State alleges the defendant conspired to sell, it is true that the total amount of substance tested by TBI was 294 grams. However, the record contains evidence regarding one or two cocaine sales made by Hutchinson on the morning of the arrest, cocaine residue found in the trash pulls, and quite a bit of loose cocaine left on the floor resulting from the tossing of a bag of cocaine as the search began. From such proof, the jury could reasonably infer that the defendant and Hutchinson had conspired to sell three hundred grams or more of cocaine during the months covered by the indictment on which the defendant was tried. Thus viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to and resolving all conflicts in the favor of the State, we find sufficient proof to support each element of the conspiracy.