U.S. v. Monie, 89-1390SI
| Decision Date | 02 July 1990 |
| Docket Number | No. 89-1390SI,89-1390SI |
| Citation | 907 F.2d 793 |
| Parties | UNITED STATES of America, Appellee, v. Orlando Rene MONIE, Appellant. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Eighth Circuit |
William A. Price, Des Moines, Iowa, for appellant.
Ronald M. Kayser, Des Moines, Iowa, for appellee.
Before McMILLIAN, Circuit Judge, HEANEY, Senior Circuit Judge, and FAGG, Circuit Judge.
Orlando Rene Monie appeals his conviction for possession with intent to distribute cocaine in violation of 21 U.S.C. Sec. 841(a)(1) (1982). Monie contends the district court erroneously denied his motion to suppress cocaine discovered during the warrantless search of two locked suitcases after a traffic stop. The district court concluded the search did not violate Monie's fourth amendment rights. We affirm.
An individual identified as B.C. hired Monie to drive a rented automobile from the West Coast to the Midwest. When the automobile was delivered to Monie, there were two locked suitcases in the trunk. B.C. kept the keys to the suitcases. Monie knew B.C. was a drug dealer and believed the suitcases contained drugs. Monie was instructed to drive to a Midwest destination, park the automobile, and fly back to the West Coast, leaving the suitcases in the trunk.
Two women and a small child accompanied Monie on his trip. One of the women was driving when a state trooper stopped the automobile for speeding on an Iowa interstate highway. The trooper making the stop became suspicious because the driver had no valid driver's license and the occupants of the automobile were unable to answer questions about their destination and the purpose of the trip. Another trooper arrived at the scene, and the driver permitted the troopers to search the automobile's passenger compartment and trunk. The search of the passenger compartment revealed nothing.
Monie voluntarily unlocked the trunk for the troopers. The troopers searched the trunk, and they opened luggage belonging to Monie and his companions. When questioned about the two locked suitcases, Monie denied ownership, disclaimed any interest in their contents, and told the troopers he did not have the keys to the suitcases. By forcing the zippers of the suitcases, the troopers looked inside and discovered eighty-six kilograms of cocaine. Monie and his companions never objected to the troopers' search of their personal luggage or the locked suitcases.
Monie does not contest the district court's finding that the troopers had consent to search the automobile and trunk, but contends the consent did not extend to a search of the locked suitcases. We need not decide this question because we agree with the district court that Monie had no "subjective privacy expectation [in] the suitcases."
Fourth amendment rights are personal, United States v. Nabors, 761 F.2d 465, 468 (8th Cir.), cert. denied, 474 U.S. 851, 106 S.Ct. 148, 88 L.Ed.2d 123 (1985), and Monie bears the burden of proving his own legitimate expectation of privacy was violated by the challenged search, United States v. Macklin, 902 F.2d 1320, 1330 (8th Cir.1990). Whether Monie has a constitutionally protected expectation of privacy involves a two-part inquiry. California v. Ciraolo, 476 U.S. 207, 211, 106 S.Ct. 1809, 1811, 90 L.Ed.2d 210, 215 (1986); McDonell v. Hunter, 809 F.2d 1302, 1306 (8th Cir.1987). The first inquiry is whether Monie exhibited an actual subjective expectation of privacy in the objects of the challenged search--in this case, the locked suitcases. Ciraolo, 476 U.S. at 211, 106 S.Ct. at 1811. The second inquiry is whether society is willing to recognize that expectation as reasonable. Id. The first inquiry is a question of fact reviewed under a clearly erroneous standard, and the second is a question of law subject to de novo review. United States v....
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
US v. Najarian
...S.Ct. 421, 427-28, 58 L.Ed.2d 387 (1978), and United States v. Morales, 737 F.2d 761, 763 (8th Cir.1984); see also, United States v. Monie, 907 F.2d 793, 794 (8th Cir.1990). As a consequence, "the defendant moving to suppress bears the burden of proving he had a legitimate expectation of pr......
-
DePugh v. Penning, C 93-0226.
...v. Kiser, 948 F.2d 418, 423 (8th Cir.1991), cert. denied, 503 U.S. 983, 112 S.Ct. 1666, 118 L.Ed.2d 387 (1992); United States v. Monie, 907 F.2d 793, 794 (8th Cir.1990); United States v. Chuang, 897 F.2d 646, 649 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 498 U.S. 824, 111 S.Ct. 77, 112 L.Ed.2d 50 (1990). Th......
-
US v. Ezeiruaku, Crim. A. No. 90-00230-01.
...whether that expectation as reasonable. Id. The first inquiry is a question of fact; the second is question of law. United States v. Monie, 907 F.2d 793, 794 (8th Cir.1990) (citing United States v. McKennon, 814 F.2d 1539, 1543 (11th Cir.1987)). The government maintains that Ezeiruaku had n......
-
United States v. Cowan
...burden of articulating how Detective Canas' use of the key fob violated his reasonable expectation of privacy. See United States v. Monie, 907 F.2d 793, 794 (8th Cir.1990) (stating burden of proof). On the other hand, the Supreme Court recently explained “Fourth Amendment rights do not rise......