The State of Texas v. Grady Jack Barber

Summary

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals held that the statutory phrase "presence or view" in warrantless-arrest provisions requires that the officer perceive the offense through one of the officer's senses and excludes an officer who arrived after the offense was complete. The court disavowed State v. Woodard to the extent it construed that requirement otherwise, reversed the Ninth Court of Appeals, and remanded for further proceedings. The opinions also discuss the execution of a blood-testing warrant, the Article 38.23 exclusionary rule, the objective-good-faith exception, and standing.

Holdings

1. When a warrantless-arrest statute requires that an offense occur within an officer's presence or view, the requirement is not satisfied merely because the officer later develops probable cause through a post-incident investigation. The officer must have perceived the offense through one of his senses, and an officer who arrived after the offense was complete did not observe the intoxication manslaughter, DWI, or public-intoxication offenses on this record.
2. State v. Woodard is disavowed to the extent it can be read to hold that the statutory presence-or-view requirement does not mean what its text literally says.
3. The Court declined to decide whether Barber had standing under Article 38.23(a) or whether Article 38.23(b)'s objective-good-faith exception applies, leaving those issues for the court of appeals on remand.

Questions Presented

1. Whether an offense occurs within an officer's statutory presence or view when the officer arrives after the offense is complete and develops probable cause through a post-incident investigation without personally perceiving the offense.
2. Whether State v. Woodard should be disavowed to the extent it can be read to eliminate or disregard the statutory presence-or-view requirement.
3. Whether the officer's authority to execute the blood-search warrant and the applicability of the Texas statutory exclusionary rule's standing and objective-good-faith provisions should be addressed by the Court of Criminal Appeals or on remand.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded