State v. Hawkins

• Decision Date: 16 July 1997
• Citation: 969 S.W.2d 936
• Parties: STATE of Tennessee, Appellee, v. Rodney Pernell HAWKINS, Appellant.
• Court: Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals

Page 936

969 S.W.2d 936

STATE of Tennessee, Appellee, v. Rodney Pernell HAWKINS, Appellant.

Court of Criminal Appeals of Tennessee at Knoxville.

July 16, 1997.

No Permission to Appeal Applied

for to the Supreme Court.

Mary Katherine Longworth, Loudon, for Appellant.

Charles W. Burson, Attorney General and Reporter, Robin L. Harris, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Justice Division, Nashville, Charles Hawk, District Attorney General, Frank A. Harvey, Assistant District Attorney General, Kingston, for Appellee.

OPINION

SUMMERS, Judge.

The appellant, Rodney Pernell Hawkins, was indicted on one count of possession of cocaine with intent to sell, one count of possession of cocaine with intent to deliver, and one count of possession of an open container of alcohol in a motor vehicle. The appellant made a motion to suppress the package of cocaine seized from his vehicle and his statements given to the police. Following a hearing, the trial court denied the appellant's motion to suppress finding that the search and seizure was conducted as a result of the plain view sighting of the contraband. The appellant pled guilty to the charge of possession of cocaine with intent to sell, reserving the right under Tenn. R.Crim. P. 37(b)(2)(I) to appeal a certified question of law, dispositive of his case. The two remaining counts against the appellant were dismissed. In essence, the appellant asks this Court to determine whether the search and seizure of contraband from his vehicle was unconstitutional. We find the actions constitutional and affirm the judgment of the trial court.

FACTS

On September 20, 1994, at approximately 11:00 p.m., Officer Hamilton, a Loudon County deputy sheriff, observed the appellant awkwardly parked on a neighborhood road in Lenoir City, Tennessee. The appellant was having a conversation with a female companion who was standing outside of his vehicle. The female was drinking a beer. This caught the officer's attention. He pulled up behind the appellant's vehicle. He got out and walked up to the female. As the officer did this, he noticed an open beer sitting between appellant's legs. He also observed a white powdery substance near the vehicle's console and a plastic bag hanging from the console.

The officer asked the appellant to step out of the vehicle. He administered a number of sobriety tests. The appellant passed these tests. The officer then asked the appellant whether the plastic bag belonged to him. The appellant responded affirmatively. The officer then searched the vehicle removing the plastic bag from the console containing 10.4 grams of cocaine. He then placed the appellant under arrest.

The findings of fact and conclusions of law made by the trial court after an evidentiary hearing are afforded the weight of a jury verdict. State v. Dick, 872 S.W.2d 938, 943 (Tenn.Crim.App.1993). This Court will not set aside the judgment of the trial court unless the evidence contained in the record preponderates against its findings. Id.

The appellant makes several arguments related to Officer Hamilton's search of his vehicle. First, he argues that he was parked on private property and the police had no legitimate reason to approach his vehicle. ¹ Second, he argues that the warrantless search of the vehicle does not fall within any recognized exception to the warrant requirement and was, therefore, unconstitutional.

The state argues that the warrantless search and seizure of the appellant's property was justified under the plain view doctrine. The plain view doctrine requires proof that: (1) the objects seized were in plain view; (2) the viewer had a right to be in position for the view; (3) the seized object was discovered inadvertently; and (4) the incriminating nature of the object was immediately apparent. State v. Horner, 605 S.W.2d 835, 836 (Tenn.Crim.App.1980); Coolidge v. New Hampshire, 403 U.S. 443, 91 S.Ct. 2022, 29 L.Ed.2d 564 (1971).

Officer Hamilton testified as he approached the vehicle he noticed a beer between the appellant's legs. He also testified that he noticed a white powdery substance, which he believed to be contraband, and a plastic bag in the vehicle. ² This Court finds that these facts establish 3 of the 4 requirements mandated by Horner to allow a warrantless seizure under the plain view doctrine. The pivotal question that must be resolved by this Court is whether the officer had a right to be in a position to view the seized contraband. Therefore, whether or not the search and the subsequent seizure were valid depends on whether the initial approach of the vehicle was constitutionally permissible.

The standards for reviewing police conduct become more stringent as the degree of invasion of the citizen's privacy increases. Robertson v. State, 596 A.2d 1345, 1350 (Del.1991). For the purpose of determining which standard is appropriate, many courts now recognize a three-tier analytical mode first formulated by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in United States v. Berry, 670 F.2d 583, 591 (5th Cir.1982). The first tier of police-citizen encounters includes full scale arrests that must be supported by probable cause. Id. The second includes brief investigatory stops that must be supported by a reasonable suspicion. Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 21, 88 S.Ct. 1868 20 L.Ed.2d 889 (1968); State v. Coleman, 791 S.W.2d 504, 505 (Tenn.Crim.App.1989). The third tier includes community caretaking or public safety functions that involve no coercion or detention. Berry, 670 F.2d at 591. With regard to the community...