Carpenter v. State, 80-356

• Decision Date: 02 September 1981
• Docket Number: No. 80-356,80-356
• Citation: 403 So.2d 1047
• Parties: Zachary CARPENTER, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.
• Court: Florida District Court of Appeals

Page 1047

403 So.2d 1047

Zachary CARPENTER, Appellant, v. STATE of Florida, Appellee.

No. 80-356.

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fourth District.

Sept. 2, 1981.

Rehearing Denied Oct. 14, 1981.

Sheldon M. Schapiro of Law Offices of Sheldon M. Schapiro, Hollywood, for appellant.

Jim Smith, Atty. Gen., Tallahassee, and Robert L. Bogen, Asst. Atty. Gen., West Palm Beach, for appellee.

PER CURIAM.

The appellant entered a plea of nolo contendere to the charge of possession of cocaine reserving his right to appeal the trial court's denial of his motion to suppress evidence. He appeals from an order withholding adjudication and placing him on a period of probation. We affirm the denial of his motion to suppress.

Detective Callahan observed the appellant sitting in the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport Terminal for approximately one and one-half hours. Callahan testified that the appellant appeared to be nervous. The appellant left the terminal and quickly entered a vehicle which had just arrived to pick him up. He returned to the terminal twenty minutes later, exited the same vehicle, and proceeded to the ticket counter to exchange his airline ticket for an earlier flight. Callahan informed deputy Burk of her observations. Burk, who also observed the appellant displaying a nervous demeanor, stood immediately behind the appellant at the ticket counter. Burk observed that the defendant's ticket was made out to "Z. Carpenter", but that appellant put the name "Z. Baum" on the luggage ticket which was attached to the small piece of luggage which he checked through to his destination, Atlanta, Georgia.

After the appellant checked his luggage, Deputies Brennan and Burk approached him at the terminal escalator and asked him for some identification. The appellant produced identification which indicated his name was Zachary Carpenter, thus reaffirming Burk's suspicion that the appellant had used an alias on his luggage. In response to a request, the appellant said he had no objection to a search of his luggage. About this time, Callahan also approached the appellant. Burk pulled the luggage from the conveyor belt and carried it to where the appellant, Brennan and Callahan were standing. The appellant unequivocally denied that the bag belonged to him. The appellant thereupon acquiesced to the officers' request that he accompany them to their airport office which was housed in a different, nearby building of the airport. The appellant was never advised that he had a right to refuse to cooperate.

Even though the officers were absolutely certain that the luggage was the same one which the appellant had checked through at the ticket counter, the appellant continued to disclaim ownership. Although appellant contradicted the officers, each of them testified that a single "doggie lineup" was conducted with the use of a trained narcotics detector dog. The dog "alerted" to the appellant's luggage. Thereupon Detective Callahan completed a sworn affidavit in support of a search warrant and proceeded to obtain a search warrant...