Drug manufacturer’s conviction affi rmed
San Jacinto News- Times - August 2008

COLDSPRING -- The 13th Court of Appeals, Corpus Christi, Texas, affi rmed the conviction Tuesday of Rodney Cline for the manufacture of methamphetamine in San Jacinto County. On April 6, 2005, Charles Clack, Deputy Constable, along with two other offi cers, was attempting to serve a felony probation violation warrant on Catherine Starling at a home near Coldspring. During the attempt to serve the warrant offi cers discovered two methamphetamine labs, one in a shed and the other in the bedroom of the residence. John Cline, Rodney’s older brother initially stated both labs belonged to Rodney Cline. The raid resulted in fi ve indictments for manufacturing a controlled substance. John Cline and Catherine Starling pled guilty to manufacture of a controlled substance. John Cline received fi ve years in prison. Starling received fi ve years community supervision in return for her testimony against Rodney Cline at trial. Rodney Cline was tried before a jury and was found guilty of manufacture of methamphetamine. The amount of methamphetamine recovered from the two labs was over 400 grams.

On November 30, 2006, the trial court sentenced Cline to 15 years in prison and he appealed. San Jacinto County Criminal District Attorney Bill Burnett, fi led the State’s answer to Cline’s appellate brief and Burnett argued the case before the 13th Court of Appeals December 6th, 2007. According to Burnett the case was transferred from the 9th Court of Appeals in Beaumont to the 13th Court of Appeals in Corpus Christi. However, when oral argument was granted the 13th Court of Appeals traveled to Beaumont and heard the oral arguments in the Cline case there. Cline was represented on appeal by appellate attorney Steve Taylor. Cline raised legal and factual suffi ciency of the evidence on appeal.

The 13th Court of Appeals found that the accomplice witness testimony of Catherine Starling was suffi ciently corroborated by other non-accomplice testimony and evidence, and the court determined that the evidence was legally and factually suffi cient to support the conviction. Burnett said, “I am pleased that the 13th Court of Appeals affi rmed the case. I believed that the accomplice witness testimony was suffi ciently corroborated and I am pleased that they agreed with my assessment of the evidence on appeal.” Burnett also noted that Rodney Cline’s brother, John Cline, was eventually paroled on the manufacture case but subsequently garnered another felony drug possession case and recently pled guilty and was assessed a 12 year sentence in San Jacinto County.

“Now, both brothers are serving signifi cant time for their drug activity. Hopefully, if we are persistent we will be able have some impact on this terrible drug problem in our community,” Burnett said.