The Defendant appealed a Trial Judge’s decision sustaining the charged violation of Possession of Marijuana. An officer for the Warren Police Department testified that as he approached a parked vehicle he observed the Defendant quickly exit the driver’s side and walk behind a staircase. The Officer saw the Defendant “crouch down, and then put two items down.” Additionally, the officer testified that as the Defendant then walked towards him he was “visibly nervous.” The officer went to the location where he saw the Defendant crouch down and found “two glassine plastic baggies, one of which contained a greenish brown leafy substance, which was suspected marijuana.” He conducted a field test  and determined that the substance was marijuana. The officer testified as to his training and experience in drug detection and conducting field tests. The Defendant testified that the substance that the officer found was not his. The Trial Judge found the Defendant guilty. The Defendant appealed, arguing without further explanation that “the judge did not give me a fair hearing.” 

The Appeals Panel relied upon Palange v. Palange, 243 A.3d 783 (R.I. 2021) to support its finding that the Defendant had waived any appellate issue because he did not “discuss or elaborate on [any] issue” during the trial or in his appeal. The Appeals Panel gave deference to the Trial Judge’s decision and sustained the charged violation.