State v. Belden
| Decision Date | 03 December 2009 |
| Docket Number | No. 35284.,35284. |
| Citation | 220 P.3d 1096 |
| Parties | STATE of Idaho, Plaintiff-Respondent v. Robin J. BELDEN, Defendant-Appellant. |
| Court | Idaho Court of Appeals |
Molly J. Huskey, State Appellate Public Defender; Sarah E. Tompkins, Deputy Appellate Public Defender, Boise, for appellant. Sarah E. Tompkins argued.
Hon. Lawrence G. Wasden, Attorney General; Kenneth K. Jorgensen, Deputy Attorney General, Boise, for respondent. Kenneth K. Jorgensen argued.
SUBSTITUTE OPINION
THE COURT'S PRIOR OPINION DATED NOVEMBER 16, 2009, IS HEREBY WITHDRAWN
Robin J. Belden appeals from his judgment of conviction for possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver. Specifically, Belden challenges the district court's order denying his motion to suppress. For the reasons set forth below, we vacate Belden's judgment of conviction.
An unnamed confidential informant (CI) began working with police in 2007 in order to reduce the CI's pending drug charge. The CI told officers that she believed she could obtain marijuana from a man by the first name of Robin who lived in the area and was participating in the sheriff's labor program. Officers provided the CI with photographs of men with the first name of Robin who had recent criminal charges, and the CI identified the photograph of Robin Belden as the man from whom marijuana could be purchased.
The CI and her car were searched for drugs, and she was wired with a recording device. The CI was supplied with money for a controlled drug buy with Belden at a residence in a mobile home park. An officer monitoring the drug transaction visually observed the CI enter a residence and emerge sometime later with marijuana. The observing officer later told another officer that the drug sale had taken place inside a mobile home located at space 23. In addition, the CI provided officers with a description of the layout of the home at space 23. Based on the information received from the observing officer and the CI, the officer applied for a warrant to search the home at space 23. The magistrate granted a warrant to search the home at space 23.
The officer who applied for the warrant and other officers entered the home at space 23. Upon entering, the officer determined that the layout did not match the CI's description of the home where the drug sale occurred. The officer also noticed that a bill near the phone did not belong to Belden. The police then immediately left. After leaving space 23, the officer spoke with the manager of the mobile home park and determined that Belden lived at the home in space 25. The officer then returned to the same magistrate, seeking a warrant to search the home at space 25. After hearing the officer's testimony, the magistrate granted the search warrant for space 25. A search of the home at space 25 resulted in the discovery of marijuana, packaging materials, and a scale.
Belden was charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver. I.C. § 37-2732(a)(1)(B). He filed a motion to suppress the evidence found at his home in space 25, asserting that the magistrate did not have probable cause to issue the warrant for his residence. The district court held a hearing and denied Belden's motion to suppress.1 Belden proceeded to trial and was found guilty by a jury. He appeals, challenging the district court's denial of his motion to suppress.
In general, Belden argues that the district court erred when it denied his motion to suppress the evidence of drug distribution found in his home. More specifically, Belden claims the district court applied the wrong legal standard, the state intentionally or with reckless disregard presented false information to the magistrate to obtain a warrant, the warrant lacked probable cause because there was insufficient indicia of reliability or veracity to support the claims of the CI, and there was no nexus presented between the drug sale and Belden's residence. This Court will only address Belden's argument that the magistrate's finding of probable cause was not supported by substantial evidence.
The standard of review of a suppression motion is bifurcated. When a decision on a motion to suppress is challenged, we accept the trial court's findings of fact that are supported by substantial evidence, but we freely review the application of constitutional principles to the facts as found. State v. Atkinson, 128 Idaho 559, 561, 916 P.2d 1284, 1286 (Ct.App.1996). At a suppression hearing, the power to assess the credibility of witnesses, resolve factual conflicts, weigh evidence, and draw factual inferences is vested in the trial court. State v. Valdez-Molina, 127 Idaho 102, 106, 897 P.2d 993, 997 (1995); State v. Schevers, 132 Idaho 786, 789, 979 P.2d 659, 662 (Ct.App.1999).
When probable cause to issue a search warrant is challenged on appeal, the reviewing court's function is to ensure that the magistrate had a substantial basis for concluding that probable cause existed. Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. 213, 239, 103 S.Ct. 2317, 2333, 76 L.Ed.2d 527, 548-49 (1983); State v. Josephson, 123 Idaho 790, 792, 852 P.2d 1387, 1389 (1993); State v. Lang, 105 Idaho 683, 684, 672 P.2d 561, 562 (1983). In this evaluation, great deference is paid to the magistrate's determination. Gates, 462 U.S. at 236, 103 S.Ct. 2317, 76 L.Ed.2d at 546-47; State v. Wilson, 130 Idaho 213, 215, 938 P.2d 1251, 1253 (Ct.App.1997). The test for reviewing the magistrate's action is whether he or she abused his or her discretion in finding that probable cause existed. State v. Holman, 109 Idaho 382, 387, 707 P.2d 493, 498 (Ct.App.1985). When a search is conducted pursuant to a warrant, the burden of proof is on the defendant to show that the search was invalid. State v. Kelly, 106 Idaho 268, 275, 678 P.2d 60, 67 (Ct.App.1984).
The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution states:
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Article I, Section 17, of the Idaho Constitution is virtually identical to the Fourth Amendment, except that "oath or affirmation" is termed "affidavit." In order for a search warrant to be valid, it must be supported by probable cause to believe that evidence or fruits of a crime may be found in a particular place. Josephson, 123 Idaho at 792-93, 852 P.2d at 1389-90. When determining whether probable cause exists:
The task of the issuing magistrate is simply to make a practical, commonsense decision whether, given all the circumstances set forth in the affidavit before him, including the "veracity" and "basis of knowledge" of persons supplying hearsay information, there is a fair probability that contraband or evidence of a crime will be found in a particular place.
Gates, 462 U.S. at 238, 103 S.Ct. at 2332, 76 L.Ed.2d at 548; see also Wilson, 130 Idaho at 215, 938 P.2d at 1253.
Belden asserts that the evidence presented to the magistrate was insufficient to demonstrate a nexus between Belden's home at space 25 and illegal activity. The state contends that probable cause existed to search the home at space 25 because the officer determined that Belden lived there, a drug transaction occurred nearby, and space 23 had been eliminated. The state further argues that Belden's home was subject to search because of his status as a "drug dealer."
Probable cause to search requires a nexus between criminal activity and the item to be seized, and a nexus between the item to be seized and the place to be searched. U.S. CONST. amend. IV; State v. Yager, 139 Idaho 680, 686, 85 P.3d 656, 662 (2004). Most courts require that a nexus between the items to be seized and the place to be searched must be established by specific facts, and an officer's general conclusions are not enough. Yager, 139 Idaho at 686, 85 P.3d at 662. Although probable cause to believe that a person has committed a crime does not necessarily give rise to probable cause to search that person's home, magistrates are entitled to draw reasonable inferences about where evidence is likely to be kept, based on the nature of the evidence and the type of offense. State v. Molina, 125 Idaho 637, 642, 873 P.2d 891, 896 (Ct.App. 1994).
To support his argument that there was not a nexus between the drug sale and his residence, Belden relies on State v. Mische, 448 N.W.2d 415 (N.D.1989). In that case, Mische sold drugs to an undercover officer at his...
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