People v. Darling

Opinion

HOLMDAHL, J. A jury found appellant Jerry Lee Darling guilty of burglary. (Pen. Code, § 459.)1 On appeal he argues it was error to admit evidence he was carrying a screwdriver when apprehended. For the following reasons, we affirm.

Factual and Procedural Background

On August 21, 1987, at approximately 5:30 p.m., Roger Menefee arrived home, entered his house, and left the garage door open. At 7 p.m., [912]Menefee’s friend, Michael Doane, drove up and saw appellant stepping out of Menefee’s garage carrying a briefcase. Doane asked appellant what he was doing and appellant responded that he wasn’t stealing anything.

Menefee came out of the house and identified his briefcase, which he had left sitting on a desk in the garage. Appellant complied with a request to empty his pockets, and produced a calculator and adapter cord, taken from a drawer in Menefee’s desk. A screwdriver fell from appellant’s pocket.

Neither Doane nor Menefee noted a smell of alcohol on appellant’s breath, nor did they notice bloodshot eyes or difficulty walking or speaking. Officer Butler responded to Menefee’s call to the police. She noted that appellant appeared to be a street person, with a light odor of alcohol on his breath. She did not think he was intoxicated, and stated that he was able to care for himself and find his way home.

Appellant testified that he found the screwdriver in a trash dumpster that morning in the downtown area of San Francisco. He recalled being near 7th and Market Streets in the afternoon, but had no recollection of the events at Menefee’s home, due to alcohol and heroin intoxication. Appellant did not know where Menefee’s neighborhood was, and could not recall how he got there.

On September 21, 1987, appellant was charged with burglary, and three prior convictions. (§ 667.5, subd. (b).) He pleaded not guilty. On October 27, 1987, the court denied an in limine motion to exclude evidence that appellant was carrying a screwdriver. On October 29, 1987, the jury found him guilty of burglary. The trial court subsequently found the allegations regarding appellant’s prior convictions to be true and sentenced appellant to a total of five years in prison.

Discussion

The sole issue raised on appeal is that the court erred in denying appellant’s motion to exclude evidence regarding the screwdriver. Appellant contends that the evidence was irrelevant because the burglary was not accomplished by means of a screwdriver. Lacking this connection, he claims that the evidence is nothing more than improper character evidence that appellant was the type of person who carried burglar tools.