## Facts

- Gregory Brian Porter drove on U.S. Highway 281 in the early morning of March 10, 1995 and collided head-on with a pickup driven by Michael Gourley.
- The collision occurred in Gourley’s lane, and Gourley died.
- Porter was transported to a hospital; during transport, an EMT found a spoon and syringe in Porter’s sock and provided them to law enforcement.
- At the hospital, a DPS sergeant arrested Porter for DWI and ordered a statutory blood draw; a urine sample was also collected during treatment.
- Toxicology testing reported multiple drugs in Porter’s system, including methamphetamine and benzodiazepines in blood, and amphetamine and cocaine indicators in urine.
- Days later, investigators obtained an answering-machine tape from an acquaintance that purportedly contained Porter’s voice from the night before the crash.

## Issues

1. Whether the evidence was legally sufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Porter recklessly caused Gourley’s death.
2. Whether the trial court erred by admitting the answering-machine tape despite claims the device could “skip” or “drag voices” and the State allegedly failed to establish reliability.
3. Whether the trial court abused its discretion by denying a motion for new trial based on alleged improper jury discussions during deliberations.

## Decision

- The court affirmed the conviction and twenty-year sentence.
- The court held the evidence was legally sufficient for manslaughter, including proof of recklessness and causation.
- The court held the answering-machine tape was properly admitted; alleged recording imperfections went to weight, not admissibility.
- The court held the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying a new trial for alleged jury misconduct because prejudicial misconduct was not shown.

## Legal Principles

- Legal sufficiency review considers whether, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict, a rational jury could find each element beyond a reasonable doubt; appellate courts do not reweigh credibility.
- Manslaughter requires proof that the defendant recklessly caused death; recklessness may be established by circumstantial evidence, including driving conduct and evidence of drug intoxication.
- Audio recordings are admissible if the proponent shows a predicate sufficient for a reasonable factfinder to conclude the recording fairly and accurately represents what it purports to be; perfect device operation is not required.
- Alleged defects in a recording typically affect the weight of the evidence for the jury rather than admissibility when basic authentication is shown, including voice identification and handling of the recording.
- A motion for new trial based on jury misconduct requires proof of misconduct and probable harm; denial is reviewed for abuse of discretion, with the trial judge resolving credibility disputes about deliberations.

## Conclusion

The court upheld Porter’s manslaughter conviction because the head-on collision in the victim’s lane, combined with evidence of multiple drugs and related paraphernalia, allowed a rational jury to find reckless causation; it also found the tape sufficiently authenticated despite possible imperfections and found no showing of harmful jury misconduct warranting a new trial.


Porter v. State, 969 S.W.2d 60 (Tex. App.—Austin 1998, pet. ref’d)