Court Opinion

ID: 9471974
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-05 03:45:36.927489+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:42:40.311771
License: Public Domain

HATCHETT, Circuit Judge,
dissenting:
While agreeing with the legal precedent cited by the majority, I dissent. No evidence exists, direct or circumstantial, that the petitioner engaged in a “sale” of marijuana, as defined by the Alabama Uniform Control Substances Act, Alabama Code § 20-2-70 (1975). The state of Alabama proved at trial only that an informant stuffed a $20 bill in petitioner’s pocket, left the scene, returned approximately twenty-five minutes later, entered a house where the petitioner was present near the entrance, and left the house with marijuana. It showed no conversation, no action by petitioner, and no account of persons or activities in the house.
It is interesting to note that under Alabama law, on the evidence in this case, the petitioner could not have been convicted of even possession of marijuana. Garsed v. State, 51 Ala.App. 622, 288 So.2d 161 (1973). In Garsed, the Alabama court held that mere presence at a marijuana patch without some act showing dominion or control would not support a conviction for possession. To prove possession in this case, the state of Alabama would have had to prove beyond a reasonable doubt three essential elements. Those elements are: (1) actual or potential physical control, (2) intention to exercise dominion, and (3) external manifestations of intent and control. Collins v. State, 391 So.2d 1078 (Ala.Cr. App.1980). This petitioner was convicted because an informant whose reliability had not been tested and who did not testify, *728stuffed $20 in the petitioner’s pocket.1 Although this evidence would not prove possession, the majority affirms the conviction for a sale.
Even more disturbing in this case is the fact that the petitioner, during the state’s presentation of evidence, was not allowed to learn the identity of the confidential informant. The magistrate’s report best relates the situation at trial:
Unknown to the defendant [at trial] was the fact that one, Mike Wash, was the confidential informant referred to by [Officer Exline]. Mike Wash was never referred to by name by any state witness nor was Mike Wash present in court. Obviously, Mike Wash did not testify in the proceedings. The witnesses for the state never established who was present in the residence of petitioner at the time the alleged sale of marijuana took place.
The state’s primary witness, Officer Exline, was cross-examined by defense counsel and was asked: “Were you in the presence or with a Mike Wash on that afternoon?” Mr. Estes [prosecuting attorney]: “Your Honor, we object to that question, it clearly asks the officer to identify an informant which we insist we have a right not to do.” The Court: “All right, I will sustain.” Repeated efforts by defense counsel to establish the identity of the confidential informant were objected to by the prosecutor, and the objections were sustained by the court. The court’s ruling with regard to the right of the state to conceal the identity of the confidential informant remained in force until after the prosecution rested. When the prosecution rested its case, petitioner, through his counsel, made a motion to exclude the state’s evidence on the ground that the state had failed to make out a prima facie case in that they failed to prove there was any sale of marijuana by the petitioner. The trial court overruled the motion. After a recess, the trial judge determined that he had erroneously ruled that the defendant would not be entitled to be advised of the identity of the informant. The court concluded that this was an exception to the informant’s privilege. See in this connection Roviaro v. United States, 353 U.S. 53, 77 S.Ct. 623 [1 L.Ed.2d 639] (1957). The law is clear that when a so-called confidential informant is an active participant in the offense charged, his identity must be disclosed. The possible defenses available to a defendant and the significance of an informant’s testimony are factors which must be considered in determining whether the public interest in protecting the flow of information is overridden by the right of an individual to prepare his defense. Roviaro v. United States, supra. In the instant case, the only person who has any evidence as to whether this petitioner sold a controlled substance is the so-called confidential informant. Without the testimony of the confidential informant, it is mere speculation as to whether this petitioner sold a controlled substance as charged in the indictment. [Emphasis added.]
Even though the majority correctly applies the Jackson v. Virginia standard of review, it is surprising that this petitioner *729was found guilty under the more stringent Alabama standard. The Alabama standard for sufficiency of evidence is: “It [evidence] is not sufficient to support a conviction if it does not exclude to a moral certainty every other reasonable hypothesis but that of the guilt of the accused.” Graham v. State, 374 So.2d 929 (Ala.Cr.App. 1979).
All Eleventh Circuit cases holding that evidence of presence at the scene of a crime is not sufficient to convict are weakened by the holding in this case.

. The reliability of this informant is shown by Officer Exline’s testimony:
A I had worked with him two weeks prior to that.
Q You had worked with Mike Wash?
A Yes, sir.
Q In what way did you work with him?
A In the undercover work.
Q In undercover work?
A Yes, sir.
Q Now, on that occasion, the two weeks pri- or to this particular incident here, did you know anything about Mike Wash’s background?
A No, sir.
Q Did you know that he was a convicted felon?
A No, sir.
Q Did you know anything about any deals that he might have made with the District Attorney’s Office?
A No, sir.
Q Had no knowledge of anything with regard to Mike Wash’s background?
A No, sir.