Nathan v. State

• Decision Date: 29 August 2002
• Docket Number: No. 61, No. 42
• Citation: 805 A.2d 1086,370 Md. 648
• Parties: Corinthious James NATHAN, v. STATE of Maryland. State of Maryland, v. Horace Shaw, Jr.
• Court: Maryland Court of Appeals

805 A.2d 1086

370 Md. 648

Corinthious James NATHAN, v. STATE of Maryland.

State of Maryland, v. Horace Shaw, Jr.

Nos. 42, 61, Sept. Term, 2001.

Court of Appeals of Maryland.

August 29, 2002.

Peter F. Rose and Julia Doyle Bernhardt, Assistant Public Defenders (Stephen E. Harris, Public Defender, on brief) Baltimore, for petitioner.

Kathryn Grill Graeff, Assistant Attorney General (J. Joseph Curran, Jr., Attorney General of Maryland, on brief) Baltimore, for State.

Paul R. Kramer and Granger G. Maher, III (Paul R. Kramer, P.A., on brief) Baltimore, for Respondent/Cross-Petitioner.

Argued before BELL, C.J., ELDRIDGE, RAKER, WILNER, CATHELL, HARRELL and BATTAGLIA JJ. RAKER, Judge.

In this case, we again address the constitutional limitations on searches and seizures conducted during the course of a traffic stop. Petitioner Corinthious James Nathan and respondent Horace Shaw, Jr. were convicted of multiple drug possession and importation charges in the Circuit Court for Wicomico County, following the court's denial of their motions to suppress evidence seized as the result of a traffic stop and search of the van that Nathan was driving and in which Shaw was a passenger.

The trial court denied the motions to suppress on the grounds that the scope of the initial investigative detention was reasonable, that Shaw consented to the search of the van, and that the officer had reasonable and articulable suspicion for the continued detention and investigation of Nathan and Shaw and probable cause for the search of the van's ceiling. Because we agree that the initial traffic stop was valid and that the police had reasonable suspicion for the continued detention of Nathan and Shaw and probable cause for the search of the van's ceiling, we shall hold that the search and seizure of the evidence from the vehicle was lawful.

I.

On July 14, 1999, at approximately 8:15 p.m., Nathan was driving a 1988 Dodge van owned by Shaw, who was a passenger in the van at the time. Nathan and Shaw were traveling south on U.S. Route 13 near Salisbury, Maryland, where Police Sergeant Mike Lewis and Trooper First Class Robert Penny were parked in an unmarked police cruiser.

While seated in the parked car, Sgt. Lewis heard what he described as the sound of a vehicle traveling at an apparent high rate of speed. Sgt. Lewis and Tfc. Penny pursued the vehicle along the Route 13 bypass, pacing it at approximately seventy miles per hour in a marked sixty-miles-per-hour zone. Sgt. Lewis testified that he observed the vehicle drift across the shoulder of the roadway on two occasions and that he noted that the left brake lamp was out on the van.¹

Sgt. Lewis activated his emergency equipment and stopped the van. While effecting the stop, Sgt. Lewis noticed that there was a passenger in the rear of the vehicle who raised and lowered his head.

Sgt. Lewis approached the vehicle on the passenger side and asked the driver, Nathan, for his license and registration. The officer testified that, when Nathan lowered the passenger side window, the odor of air freshener coming from the interior of the vehicle was overwhelming. He testified that he observed a conversion ceiling in the roof of the van that appeared to be lower than normal. The blue fabric around the ceiling of the eleven-year-old van appeared to be new and extremely tight, with no evidence of fading or sagging.

Sgt. Lewis observed the passenger in the back of the van, Shaw, lying beneath a couple of light travel bags and a blanket. Sgt. Lewis asked him to move to the front of the van. Sgt. Lewis testified that Shaw acted like he was asleep and that when asked if he had identification, Shaw provided him with the vehicle registration, which was in Shaw's name, and some additional documentation.

Sgt. Lewis asked Nathan to exit the vehicle and to move to the rear of the van. Sgt. Lewis testified that he noticed that Nathan's carotid artery was pounding on both sides of his neck, that his chest was palpitating, and that his hands were trembling. He testified that Nathan would not make eye contact with him and that he was unable to produce a driver's license or other form of identification.

Sgt. Lewis questioned Nathan about the origin of his trip. Nathan first told him that he was coming from New York, then said that he actually was coming from New Jersey. Nathan said that he and Shaw were in New Jersey to pick up the van and that they were taking it back to get the oil checked. Sgt. Lewis testified that Nathan answered many of his questions with questions, which in his experience indicated deception.

Sgt. Lewis then questioned Shaw concerning the origin of his trip. Shaw responded that he and Nathan were coming from New York and that they had driven to New York in a rental vehicle to pick up the van. Sgt. Lewis testified that he noticed Shaw's hands trembling while he was talking to him, his carotid artery pounding, and a nervous twitch above his eye. He asked Shaw if he would consent to a "quick check" of his vehicle for guns and drugs. Shaw agreed and stepped from the van.² Sgt. Lewis patted Shaw down for weapons.

Sgt. Lewis entered the van on the driver's side. He hit the ceiling over the driver's seat with his hand and observed that it was solid and hard, with no flexibility. Sgt. Lewis testified as to his experience with false compartments and their significance to him. The Court of Special Appeals summarized his testimony as follows:

"He stated that the fact that the ceiling was solid and had no `give' at all suggested that it had been reinforced by steel. Sgt. Lewis testified that, since 1995, he had searched approximately nine to twelve hydraulically controlled false compartments in van ceilings. Although he found traces of narcotics in all of these compartments, he found a quantity of narcotics only in [Shaw]'s. He located guns and currency in some cases, and he stated that `many were empty.' In Sgt. Lewis' experience, this type of construction is only used for hydraulic compartments, and these compartments are only used for transporting contraband. Sgt. Lewis believed that no one would have a legitimate reason to have such a reinforced ceiling put in a conversion van. Thus, once he had knocked on the ceiling of the van, he became quite convinced that there was a compartment."

Sgt. Lewis testified that some of the hidden compartments that he had searched concealed guns and currency, and some were empty, but each one contained traces of narcotics. He attempted to shift the console and found that he was unable to pull it down. He testified that he believed that it was affixed permanently with steel plates or rods.

Sgt. Lewis testified that he left the van to get a flashlight to examine the ceiling. Upon returning, he tried and failed again to move the console. He left the van again and returned with a screwdriver to attempt to pry open the console. When he was unable to move the console, he returned to his vehicle and called for backup and requested information on the vehicle and its occupants.

Sgt. Lewis went over to Nathan and Shaw to tell them that the tags on the van indicated that it was stolen. He handcuffed Nathan and Shaw and placed them in "investigative detention." Sgt. Lewis admitted that he had no information that the vehicle was stolen and that his only purpose in securing Nathan and Shaw was to prevent a physical confrontation. Once he had placed handcuffs on Nathan and Shaw, Sgt. Lewis told them that he knew that there was a secret compartment in the van and asked them for the code to open it. He advised both men that, if they did not tell him the code, he would have to rip open the ceiling. Nathan and Shaw did not respond, and Sgt. Lewis then tore open the ceiling where he subsequently discovered a secret compartment containing 4.8 kilograms of cocaine and 193 grams of pure heroin wrapped in gray duct-taped packages. At approximately 8:34 p.m., nineteen minutes after stopping the vehicle, Sgt. Lewis placed Nathan and Shaw under arrest, advised them of their Miranda rights, and transported them to the Maryland State Police Barracks in Salisbury.

Prior to trial, Nathan and Shaw filed motions to suppress the physical evidence found at the scene of the traffic stop on the grounds that it was seized illegally in violation of the Fourth Amendment and Article 26 of the Maryland Declaration of Rights. The trial court denied their motions to suppress on the grounds that the scope of the initial investigative detention of Nathan and Shaw was reasonable, that Shaw freely and voluntarily consented to the search of the van, and that the officer had reasonable and articulable suspicion for the continued detention of Nathan and Shaw in order to investigate possible criminal activity at the time that Shaw was asked to exit the vehicle and probable cause to believe that weapons and drugs were present in order to search the van's ceiling.

Following separate jury trials, Nathan and Shaw were found guilty of ten counts relating to the importation and possession of cocaine and heroin. Both men noted appeals to the Court of Special Appeals.

The Court of Special Appeals affirmed Nathan's convictions in an unreported opinion. Judge Ellen Hollander, writing for the panel, found that, by the time the detention had been prolonged beyond the permissible scope of the initial traffic stop, Sgt. Lewis had the requisite reasonable, articulable suspicion necessary to prolong his investigation, in light of his observations and training, which led him to believe that he had detected a hidden compartment that was being used for an illicit purpose. The intermediate appellate court also found, based on the totality of the circumstances, that Sgt. Lewis had probable cause to believe that the roof of the van contained contraband, which rendered his warrantless search of the van lawful. A different panel of the Court of Special Appeals reached a contrary conclusion and, in an unreported opinion,...