Court Opinion

ID: 9655112
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-23 19:00:29.874096+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:13:16.181236
License: Public Domain

TOM GRAY, Chief Justice,
dissenting.
I agree with neither the determination of error nor the Court’s resulting harm analysis. In many cases, events occur that members on this Court would have han-died differently. We should be very careful to not allow what we would have done, as the trial attorney or the trial court, color our decision on appeal. When a trial court makes a discretionary ruling, the courts of appeals have been repeatedly directed by the higher court that we do not substitute our judgment for that of the trial court. See Salazar v. State, 38 S.W.3d 141 (Tex.Crim.App.2001); Guzman v. State, 955 S.W.2d 85 (Tex.Crim.App.1997); Montgomery v. State, 810 S.W.2d 372 (Tex.Crim.App.1990)(op. on reh’g). Again, in yet another case, I believe that is all that we are doing.
The Court seems to accept that identity was the primary disputed issue. The Court seems to accept that evidence of motive was relevant to show why the defendant is the one who committed the crime — identity. The Court seems to accept that possession of a firearm by a convicted felon while on probation would be a motive for the convicted felon to evade arrest. Of course, the State needed to prove the identity of the person who was evading arrest. The trial court conducted the 403 balancing test and decided in favor of admitting the evidence. But this Court wants to handcuff the State and keep them from presenting this evidence— evidence relevant to prove identity.
This Court, as a reviewing court, is supposed to review the trial court’s decision. This Court, as a reviewing court, is not supposed to conduct its own determination of the balancing test. I think a careful review of this Court’s opinion reveals that is exactly what the Court has done, made its own determination rather than review the trial court’s decision. This is most evident when, as here, the Court expressly *655uses only the trial court’s balancing factors to decide whether the trial court abused its discretion instead of using the appropriate “relevant criteria” to review the trial court’s decision. See Graff v. State, 65 S.W.3d 730, 739-740 (Tex.App.-Waco 2001, pet. ref'd).
And then there is the harm analysis. Would there be a different result had the Court considered certain factors when assessing harm in a Rule 403 error? See Id. at 741. Is this why they were not used?
We have done this before. See Thrift v. State, 134 S.W.3d 475 (Tex.App.-Waco 2004, no pet.); Williams v. State, 27 S.W.3d 599 (Tex.App.-Waco 2000, pet. refd). Until we get “guidance,” I suspect we will continue the trend to throw out convictions when we, if we had been the trial court, would not have allowed the evidence to be admitted.
Finding no error in admitting the evidence, I respectfully dissent.