Court Opinion

ID: 9774834
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 18:35:03.513088+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:32:16.649571
License: Public Domain

DOUGLAS, Judge
(dissenting).
In addition to the evidence cited in the majority opinion, the record shows that the house searched was appellant’s residence. After obtaining a search warrant, officers set up a surveillance on the house and waited to be sure that appellant was there before executing the warrant. While there, they saw several known narcotic users entering and leaving the apartment. When the officers entered, they found appellant’s father in one bedroom. In another bedroom they found appellant’s wife in bed. The closet in that room contained men’s clothing. A raincoat which contained heroin was in that closet. Other heroin was found in the bathroom by the bedroom where appellant’s wife was in bed.
Here we have a case where heroin was found in appellant’s residence in the closet of the bedroom where his wife was in bed. Would it not be a logical and legitimate deduction that appellant occupied this bedroom? There was also heroin and narcotics paraphernalia throughout the apartment. Needle marks were on both of his arms.
Apparently from this case all a narcotics dealer has to do to prevent a conviction is to have other people in his home where he keeps narcotics. It follows from the majority opinion that no one in the house could be convicted. The Court does not discuss joint control. Curtis v. State, 519 S.W.2d 883 (Tex.Cr.App.1975), should be followed. In that case Curtis and four others were found seated in a circle in the living room of an apartment. Marihuana was found in a sport jacket in a closet in a bedroom where a woman claimed by Curtis to be his wife was found asleep. An officer testified that the apartment had been under surveillance two days before the execution of the warrant, that several people entered and left shortly before the arrest, and that Curtis was seen entering the apartment some thirty minutes before the officers executed the warrant. This Court held that evidence to be sufficient.
The Court should hold the evidence sufficient in the present case.