Alex Bernard Johnson v. The State of Texas--Appeal from 155th District Court of Waller County

IN THE

TENTH COURT OF APPEALS

No. 10-93-145-CR

ALEX BERNARD JOHNSON,

Appellant

v.

THE STATE OF TEXAS,

Appellee

From the 155th District Court

Waller County, Texas

Trial Court # 7144

O P I N I O N

This is an appeal by defendant Johnson from his conviction for burglary of a building, enhanced by a prior felony conviction, for which he was assessed six and one-half years in the Institutional Division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

Defendant appeals on one point: "There is insufficient evidence of Appellant's guilt; accomplice-witness testimony not corroborated by evidence tending to connect the appellant with the offense committed."

Defendant cites and relies on Cox v. State, (Tex. Crim. App.) 830 S.W.2d 609, which holds that where the State relies on an accomplice-witness testimony, the evidence is insufficient unless the testimony of the accomplice is corroborated by other evidence which tends to connect the defendant with the offense committed. Tex. Code Crim. Proc. Ann. art. 38.14.

Gregg Ortega testified that a house he owned and was preparing to move into was broken into, and a dryer and lawn mower he had placed there were stolen on the night of June 23, 1992. He further testified that the sheriff came to his house in the middle of the night of June 23 and told him of the burglary; that he went with the sheriff and picked up his property; and that the property had been taken from his house without his consent.

Hempstead Police Chief Trahan testified that on June 24 two of his patrolmen caught three men who had burglarized a house in Hempstead and placed them in jail; that all three men gave statements and told where the dryer was; that defendant Johnson was one of the three apprehended; that Johnson gave him a statement; and that Johnson signed the statement. Chief Trahan further testified that he interviewed the man from whom the property was recovered, and interviewed the owner of the property, Gregg Ortega. Chief Trahan further identified Johnson's statement which he took, and the court admitted such statement into evidence. Chief Trahan read from the statement wherein defendant admitted he helped load the dryer into his pickup truck and drove it to a "Mexican's home" and sold the dryer to the "Mexican" for $40.

Officer Hamilton testified that he was on patrol the night of June 23 and received a report that a residence had been burglarized; that he responded to the call; that he observed a door torn off at the hinges at the address of the reported burglary; that he and the reportee stopped a vehicle near the scene of the burglary and apprehended the defendant and the other two suspects and carried them to the jail.

The witness Collin Ragston testified that on June 23, he, Lonnie Davis and the defendant had been getting high on rock cocaine; that he and Davis took a washer and dryer from the old Rose Walle house; that defendant was asked by Davis and himself to haul the washer and dryer and sell them; that the three loaded the washer and dryer from Rose Walle's house and transported them to a Spanish man's house where they sold the washer and dryer to the Spanish man for $40; that they went back toward the dope house to buy more drugs and that was when the law stopped them.

The testimony of the accomplice Ragston is corroborated by an abundance of evidence which tends to connect defendant with the offense committed, including the confession of the defendant.

Defendant's point is without merit and is overruled. The judgment is affirmed.

FRANK G. McDONALD

Chief Justice (Retired)

Before Chief Justice Thomas,

Justice Vance, and

Chief Justice McDonald (Retired)

Affirmed

Opinion delivered and filed January 19, 1994

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