Marquis Rashad Maddox was found guilty by a jury of possession of cocaine and marijuana found hidden in a car in which he was a passenger. He was also found guilty of giving false information to a police officer. Maddox appeals claiming: 1 that the evidence was insufficient to support his conviction for constructive possession of the cocaine and marijuana, and 2 that the trial court erred by denying his request to instruct the jury that, where there is evidence that another occupant of the car had equal access to and jointly possessed the contraband, but the State did not charge the other occupant, the State had the burden to prove that he was in sole constructive possession of the contraband. For the following reasons, we find no error and affirm.
The State presented the following evidence in support of the charges. A uniformed police officer investigated a car backed into the driveway of an abandoned house at midnight. As he approached, the officer saw four occupants in the car, one in the front passenger seat, and three in the back seat. The man in the front passenger seat, later identified as Maddox, exhibited a shocked expression when he saw the officer and quickly exited the car. The officer instructed Maddox to get back in the car and told the other occupants to stay in the car and show their hands. The officer asked all the occupants for identification for the purpose of checking for outstanding warrants. At that point, the officer could smell the odor of marijuana coming from the interior of the car. Maddox and at least one of the other occupants provided the officer with false identification information. After other officers arrived, all of the occupants were told to get out of the car and a search of Maddox revealed that he was carrying two separate bundles of cash—a $181 bundle consisting of five $20 bills, two $10 bills, nine $5 bills, and sixteen $1 bills, and a $500 bundle consisting of nineteen $20 bills, nine $10 bills, three $5 bills, and fifteen $1 bills. Maddox was also carrying two cell phones. In the center console, located between the front passenger seat and the driver’s seat, police found a bag of suspected crack cocaine, a bag of suspected marijuana, and an electronic weighing device. The investigating officer, who was trained and experienced in narcotics investigations, testified that the amount of cash, the denominations of the bills, and the multiple cell phones found on Maddox’s person, were items commonly associated with persons possessing and selling narcotics. The officer testified that the electronic weighing device was commonly used in the sale of narcotics. One of the rear seat occupants was carrying a loaded handgun, which the officer testified was also commonly associated with illegal drugs. According to the investigating officer, the center console, which opened from the front to the back of the car, was easily accessible from the front passenger and driver seats, but was not easily accessible from the car’s back seat. Police observed no one in the driver’s seat of the car, but evidence showed that a woman at the scene owned the car and that her boyfriend had driven the car. Tests conducted at the State Crime Lab showed that the substance in the bag of suspected cocaine tested positive for cocaine. Tests conducted by a police officer trained in marijuana testing and identification showed that the substance in the bag of suspected marijuana tested positive for marijuana. As proof of similar transactions, the State presented evidence that Maddox had one prior conviction for possession of marijuana and two prior convictions for possession of cocaine.
