People v. Manzo

• Decision Date: 28 December 2018
• Docket Number: Docket No. 122761
• Parties: The PEOPLE of the State of Illinois, Appellee, v. Jorge MANZO Jr., Appellant.
• Court: Illinois Supreme Court

2018 IL 122761

129 N.E.3d 1141

432 Ill.Dec. 598

The PEOPLE of the State of Illinois, Appellee,

v.Jorge MANZO Jr., Appellant.

Docket No. 122761

Supreme Court of Illinois.

Opinion filed December 28, 2018

JUSTICE THOMAS delivered the judgment of the court, with opinion.

¶ 1 The defendant, Jorge Manzo Jr., was charged with unlawful possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver ( 720 ILCS 570/401(a)(2)(B) (West 2008) ) and unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon ( 720 ILCS 5/24-1.1(a) (West 2008) ) following a search of his residence pursuant to warrant. Prior to trial, defendant filed a motion to quash the search warrant and suppress evidence on the ground that there was no probable cause to search his residence. The circuit court of Will County denied defendant's motion. Following a jury trial, defendant was found guilty of unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon but was acquitted of unlawful possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver. Defendant was sentenced to 36 months' intensive probation.

¶ 2 On appeal, defendant again argued that the circuit court erred in finding probable cause to search his residence. The Appellate Court, Third District, affirmed, with one justice dissenting. 2017 IL App (3d) 150264, 418 Ill.Dec. 934, 91 N.E.3d 894. This court then allowed defendant's petition for leave to appeal. Ill. S. Ct. R. 315 (eff. July 1, 2017).

¶ 3 BACKGROUND

¶ 4 On June 11, 2009, Officer Jeremy Harrison of the Joliet Police Department filed a sworn complaint for a search warrant to search the person of Ruben Casillas, as well as a black Ford Explorer and the premises located at 701 West Marion Street, Joliet, Illinois. The complaint for a search warrant did not target defendant, but 701 West Marion Street was defendant's residence. Defendant lived at 701 West Marion Street with Leticia Hernandez, his then girlfriend and later his wife. Casillas was Hernandez's cousin. Officer Harrison requested the search warrant for the purpose of seizing cocaine, United States currency including official advanced funds, proof of residency, proof of identification, drug records, drug packaging, drug paraphernalia, and any other evidence of the crimes of unlawful possession of a controlled substance and unlawful possession of a controlled substance with the intent to deliver.

¶ 5 In support of the complaint for a search warrant, Officer Harrison stated that he had probable cause to believe that the listed items were located upon Casillas or the property. Officer Harrison explained that he had purchased cocaine from Casillas three times over the past 20 days¹ and two of those purchases occurred in the vicinity of 701 West Marion Street.

¶ 6 On May 20, 2009, Harrison placed an outgoing telephone call and spoke with Casillas about purchasing $150 of cocaine. Casillas directed Harrison to meet him at the Gonzalez Supermarket, at 652 Collins Street, Joliet, Illinois. At the supermarket, Harrison observed Casillas walking away from a black Ford Explorer. Casillas motioned for Harrison to come inside the store. Casillas placed a clear plastic bag containing suspected cocaine onto a store shelf and told Harrison that it was right there. Harrison retrieved the bag and handed Casillas $150 in United States currency. Officer Simonich watched Casillas exit the store and reenter the black Ford Explorer. Harrison conducted a field test on the substance in the plastic bag, which was positive for the presumptive presence of cocaine. The suspected cocaine weighed 3.7 grams. Harrison checked the registration on the black Ford Explorer and determined that it was registered to Leticia Hernandez at 701 West Marion Street in Joliet.

¶ 7 On May 28, 2009, Harrison made a series of telephone calls and text messages to purchase $300 worth of cocaine from Casillas. Casillas directed Harrison to meet him inside Stang Kelly Liquor Store located at 712 West Jefferson Street in Joliet. Harrison met Casillas in an aisle inside the liquor store. Casillas pointed toward some liquor bottles on a store shelf and said, "they are right there." Harrison retrieved two clear plastic bags containing suspected cocaine and handed Casillas $300 in United States currency. A field test was positive for the presumptive presence of cocaine. The suspected cocaine weighed 7.9 grams.

¶ 8 On June 8, 2009, Harrison sent a series of text messages to Casillas about purchasing $150 of cocaine. While Harrison was texting Casillas, Officers Simonich and Prochaska conducted surveillance on 701 West Marion Street. Casillas directed Harrison to meet him at Stang Kelly Liquors again. Officer Simonich observed Casillas exit the residence at 701 West Marion Street on foot. Officer Prochaska conducted uninterrupted surveillance of Casillas as he walked to meet Officer Harrison. While Casillas was walking, he directed Officer Harrison to meet him inside the Martinez grocery store located at 704 West Jefferson Street, Joliet, rather than at Stang Kelly Liquors. Harrison proceeded to the store and met Casillas in an aisle. Casillas pointed to a store shelf and said, "it's right there." Harrison retrieved a clear plastic baggie containing suspected cocaine from the shelf and handed Casillas $150 in United States currency. A field test indicated that the suspected cocaine, which weighed 3.6 grams, had a positive reaction for the presumptive presence of cocaine.

¶ 9 Harrison's complaint for a search warrant stated that he had positively identified Casillas from an Illinois Secretary of State driver's license photograph. In addition, Harrison stated that law enforcement records showed that Casillas was an associate of Leticia Hernandez who resided at 701 West Marion Street in Joliet.

¶ 10 The warrant judge issued the warrant the same day the complaint was filed. The search warrant was executed the next day, June 12, 2009. Officers seized several items from 701 West Marion Street, including a bag containing 348 grams of cocaine, a handgun, ammunition, a digital scale, a box of plastic bags, over $9000 in United States currency, and proof of residency for both defendant and Casillas. The cocaine, the handgun, the ammunition, the digital scale, and the box of plastic bags were found in a safe inside the master bedroom closet. The cash was found in the pockets of two jackets in the master bedroom closet. Defendant's proof of residency at 701 West Marion Street was found in a bedroom drawer and elsewhere in the house. None of the paperwork concerning Casillas's residency indicated that 701 West Marion Street address was Casillas's address.

¶ 11 Prior to trial, defendant filed a motion to quash arrest and suppress evidence, arguing that the officers lacked probable cause to search his home. The motion argued that, prior to the execution of the search warrant, no corroborating information was sought or found by the responding police officers to verify that Casillas ever resided at 701 West Marion Street. Further, Officer Harrison ran Casillas's driver's license information, which showed that Casillas was not a legal resident of 701 West Marion Street, nor did Casillas use that address as his address. Defendant also argued that, although there were three alleged drug transactions committed by Casillas, none of the transactions took place at 701 West Marion Street. Further, although the warrant indicated that the officers saw Casillas walk out of 701 West Marion Street on one occasion, the officers did not verify whether Casillas actually resided there or was just a casual visitor. No information was provided concerning how long Casillas was at the residence prior to meeting Officer Harrison.

¶ 12 Defendant contended that Officer Harrison, who supplied the information for the search warrant, was only aware that Casillas was in possession of contraband on three separate occasions. No contraband or illegal activity was observed at 701 West Marion Street, indicating that Officer Harrison never corroborated that Casillas was selling illegal contraband from 701 West Marion Street or that illegal activity was being conducted at that location. The only activity that responding officers corroborated was that Casillas was conducting illegal drug activity away from the residence. Consequently, the four corners of the search warrant completely lacked sufficient probable cause to conduct the search that led to defendant's arrest and to the seizure of certain items of purported evidence. For that reason, defendant argued that the seizure of property at defendant's residence violated defendant's rights and should be excluded from evidence.

¶ 13 In response, the State noted that defendant's entire argument rested on the allegation that Casillas, the subject of the search warrant, was not a resident of 701 West Marion Street and that Harrison should have known that. The State argued that there is no requirement that the subject of a search warrant reside at the address to be searched, nor that the suspect have legally changed his address or driver's license to include that address. The State contended that there was sufficient probable cause to obtain a search warrant based on the facts relating to 701 West Marion Street set forth by Officer Harrison in his complaint. Casillas was driving a car registered to Leticia Hernandez at 701 West Marion Street at the time Casillas sold narcotics to Harrison on May 20, 2009. On June 8, 2009, Officer Harrison sent and received text messages from Casillas about purchasing cocaine, while officers conducting surveillance observed Casillas exit the residence at 701 West Marion Street and walk to the location where Casillas exchanged cocaine with Officer Harrison for United States currency. The officers conducting surveillance never lost sight of Casillas during his walk. The State argued that, based on all the facts contained within the four corners of the search warrant and the complaint for a search warrant, probable cause existed for the search of the...