Danzi v. State

In Danzi v. State, 101 S.W.3d 786, 787 (Tex. App.--El Paso 2003, pet. ref'd), Plano Police Officer Ronald Kress testified that, while "investigating an apparent burglary of a motor vehicle," he observed a vehicle traveling approximately ten to fifteen miles per hour in a thirty miles per hour zone. After failing to properly stop at a stop sign, Officer Kress pulled the vehicle over. Id. Officer Kress immediately recognized Danzi, the driver, based on previous arrests for possession of criminal instruments. Id. In the vehicle, Officer Kress found a slim jim and items in the trunk were identified as stolen during the earlier burglary. Id. When asked, Danzi admitted that the items were stolen, but professed to buying the items from a friend who was "car-jacking." Id. at 788. Even in light of the items recovered from the burglary, the court concluded the evidence was legally insufficient to support that Danzi possessed the slim jim for use in a criminal offense because "the only evidence that relates to this issue is Officer Kress's testimony that a slim jim is a 'criminal instrument frequently used to conduct BMVs, or burglary of motor vehicles.'" Id. at 793.