Joseph v. State

Appellant Junior Maxine Joseph timely appeals a conviction of grand theft auto. We reverse, finding the State failed to present sufficient evidence to prove Joseph possessed the allegedly stolen vehicle.

This case arose when Rafael Hernandez reported his vehicle stolen to the police. He described it as a red two-door sport model Ford Explorer with grey interior, a five-speed transmission and a worn cruise control switch. Two days later, a police officer observed Joseph driving a red two-door Ford Explorer. When Joseph ran a stop sign and began exceeding the posted speed limit, the officer ran…