State v. Akers
| Decision Date | 01 April 2019 |
| Docket Number | YRKCD-CR-16-00474 |
| Parties | STATE OF MAINE v. BRUCE AKERS, Defendant. |
| Court | Maine Superior Court |
ORDER DENYING MOTION TO SUPPRESS
Hearing was held on March 12, 2019 on defendant's motion to suppress. Defendant was present and represented by Attorneys Kristine Hanley and Valerie Randall. The State was represented by Assistant Attorney General Robert Ellis. The court heard testimony from two witnesses, Sergeant Steven Thistlewood and Deputy Robert Carr of the York County Sheriffs Office; and received in evidence numerous exhibits. Based on the testimony and evidence presented, and after consideration of legal memoranda submitted by counsel, the court hereby finds, concludes, and orders as follows.
1. On the evening of June 9, 2016, Bruce Akers called the York County Sheriffs Office. He spoke with Sergeant Steven Thistlewood. They had known each other for over four years principally through the local volunteer fire department; and had a friendly relationship.
2. Akers reported that he was missing some items, including tools and a six-pack of Smirnoff Ice. He suspected his neighbor, Douglas Flint, whom Akers had taken to the store earlier that day. Thistlewood offered to come out. Akers said he was all set and there was no need to respond. Akers did not call back.
3. Around 6:45 pm the following day, June 10th, Thistlewood learned of a report of a missing person that had come into the Sanford Regional Communications Center. The missing person was identified as Douglas Flint of 546 Ossipee Trail in Limington. The caller was Flint's brother, Lloyd.
4. Thistlewood and Deputy Robert Carr went to the Flint home. Upon arriving, they met and spoke with Douglas Flint's daughter, Amanda; her boyfriend, Brian Bouffard; Douglas Flint Jr., Flint's son; and Aaron Flint, a cousin.
5. The family was very worried. When one of them tried calling Flint the prior evening, June 9th, he did not answer. Amanda said she works at the house during the day and had been there on June 9th. Her father was there. He had been drinking. She also said that Flint had recently become unemployed and was depressed to the point where they were concerned he might be suicidal. That was the reason the family had been checking in with him regularly.
6. Amanda also said that her father and the neighbor, Bruce Akers, had a longstanding feud. Flint felt that Akers had been encroaching on his (Flint's) property, and once discovered Akers in his (Flint's) pool. She said her father had cautioned her about Akers, whom Flint had described as "odd."
7. Thistlewood and Carr searched Flint's house. In the kitchen they observed that the TV was on, food was on the table, and his cigarettes and cell phone were there as well. They saw no sign of foul play.
8. Out of concern for Flint's well-being, and in particular the concern about his being potentially suicidal, Thistlewood and Carr conducted a grid search of the woods surrounding his house with attention to tree limbs overhead in case Flint may have hung himself. Their search brought them within sight of the abutting properties owned by Akers and by another neighbor.
9. The Akers property borders the Flint property; and the two parcels share a common driveway. Along the driveway leading into the Akers property after it splits off from the common driveway, there is a sign that reads, "Private Driveway Please Do Not Enter." There is no other evidence that the Akers property was posted for trespassers.
10. Thistlewood and Carr walked over a worn footpath through brush and along the edge of the woods to the Akers property. It was still daylight. As they went, they called out for Akers by name ("Bruce") multiple times. There was no response.
11. The path lead directly to two trailers (one white, one red) in close proximity and surrounded by piles of scrap metal, refuse, and miscellaneous materials. The white trailer was a "Chateau" brand Camper ("Camper"). A red pick-up truck was parked at the end of the dirt driveway, close to the red trailer. State's Exhibits 5-12 depict the relative positions of the Camper, the red trailer and the red pick-up truck from various distances and angles.
12. Thistlewood thought he heard a noise, perhaps from a small animal, corning from within the Camper. He paused; the noise stopped. The door to the Camper was locked by a padlock on the outside. A tarp hung over the door. Thistlewood knocked on the door. There was no response. He looked in a window but was unable to see anything.
13. Carr inspected the red trailer. Its door was also padlocked from the outside. Carr attempted to look in a window but was unable to see anything. He knocked on the door and got no response.
14. Thistlewood was aware that Akers raised dogs. He and Carr walked down another foot path toward the dogs to see if Akers might be there, continuing to call out defendant's name as they went. They encountered another neighbor with whom they spoke briefly; then returned to the area where the two trailers were located.
15. Approaching the trailers, Thistlewood again briefly thought he may have heard the same noise coming from inside the Camper. Carr did not hear it.
16. Thistlewood and Carr walked back to the Flint property. They put police tape on the door. By this point, they had been on site for about an hour.
17. Both officers left to attend to other calls but returned again to the Flint property just after midnight in the early morning hours of June 11th. They encountered another family member, intoxicated and visibly upset. Sergeant Matt Nadeau was radioed for back-up. The police tape on the Flint home door was intact, indicating that Flint had not returned.
18. Thistlewood, Carr, and Nadeau walked over to the Akers property again via the same footpath. It was dark so they used flashlights to illuminate the path. They announced their presence, calling out for Akers. There was no response. The red pickup truck was still at the end of the driveway where it had been parked earlier in the evening.
19. Thistlewood heard a noise coming again from inside the Camper-this time a distinct, loud thud which did not sound like a small animal but perhaps a person inside. Carr also heard the noise and came to assist. They did not know that it was Akers. The door to the Camper was still padlocked from the outside. The officers still did not know the whereabouts of Flint.
20. At this point, Thistlewood and Nadeau were at the front of the Camper, which had a large window with a hinged weather cover in the down position. They lifted the cover and shined a flashlight through the window into the Camper. Thistlewood saw a person on the floor in a sleeping bag beginning to get up.
21. Carr was on the side of the Camper, to the right. Through a window he could see in the beam of the flashlight the figure of a man beginning to stand up from behind a half wall.
22. Thistlewood recognized the man as Akers; called out, "Bruce; identified himself; told Akers he needed to talk with him; and asked if Akers would come outside.
23. Akers agreed to come outside; said he needed to get dressed and get some things; and also said he was unarmed. As Akers got up and dressed, Thistlewood kept the flashlight on him to assist. There were no lights in the Camper.
24. Akers looked for the keys to unlock the padlock on the door. He grabbed his phone and phone charger.
25. Akers was unable to find the keys and said he would have to force the door. He tried prying the door with a hammer from the inside but was unsuccessful. He asked Thistlewood to help and gave him the hammer. Thistlewood was able to pry off the padlock from the outside.
26. The officers held up the tarp in front of the door and Akers came outside. The area around the Camper was cluttered. It was dark. There were no lights.
27. Thistlewood began recording the event on his cell phone from this point forward.
28. A portion of this recording was entered into evidence. State's Exhibit 1 consists of the first 28 minutes and 30 seconds recorded, beginning at the point Akers emerged from the Camper and running up to his arrival at the Limington substation. The recording captures the interaction between Akers and the officers throughout this time period. The first several minutes of the recording contain the interaction between Akers and Thistlewood after Akers exited the Camper. Akers was alert, calm, composed, cogent, rational, and responsive.
29. After Akers came out of the Camper, Thistle wood asked, "Which way do you want to go, Bruce?" Akers indicated a direction, Thistlewood turned around and used his flashlight to assist. They walked about 30 feet to a flatbed trailer. Thistlewood asked, Akers responded, "I guess so."
30. Akers sat down on the flatbed. Thistlewood asked, "Can I sit next to you?" Akers said, "Sure." Carr and Nadeau remained standing, about 10 feet away in an area open enough to spread out.
31. Thistlewood asked, "You know why we're over here, right?" When Akers did not respond, Thistlewood asked again and Akers replied,
32. Thistlewood asked, "Where is he?" Akers did not respond.
33. Thistlewood then asked, "Can I ask you something?" Akers said, 'Yeah." Thistlewood asked, "Is he alive?" Akers shook his head, indicating no.
34. Thistlewood then said that he was going to get some paperwork and make a phone call. He asked Akers, "Can you bring us to him?" Akers said, "I can."
35. The total time that had elapsed from his exit from the trailer to the point he gave the...
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