State v. Lee
| Decision Date | 07 June 2013 |
| Docket Number | CR-11-1865,CR-11-1866,CR-11-1867 |
| Parties | State of Alabama v. Natasha Rae Lee State of Alabama v. Justin Andrew Bailey State of Alabama v. Jennifer Leigh Clayton |
| Court | Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals |
Notice: This opinion is subject to formal revision before publication in the advance sheets of Southern Reporter. Readers are requested to notify the Reporter of Decisions, Alabama Appellate Courts, 300 Dexter Avenue, Montgomery, Alabama 36104-3741 ((334) 229-0649), of any typographical or other errors, in order that corrections may be made before the opinion is printed in Southern Reporter.
Appeal from Montgomery Circuit Court
Natasha Rae Lee and codefendants Justin Andrew Bailey and Jennifer Leigh Clayton filed separate pretrial motions to suppress evidence from two warrantless searches conducted by the police on January 7, 2011, and January 28, 2011.1 After a hearing, the trial court granted the motions to suppress. The State appeals.2
On November 9, 2011, the trial court held a hearing on the motions to suppress. At the hearing, Officer James Taylor, an employee with the Montgomery Police Department, testified that between 12:00 and 1:00 a.m. on January 7, 2011, he responded to a dispatch regarding an anonymous call about a methamphetamine lab at a particular apartment on Stonehenge Drive in Montgomery. After Officer Taylor arrived at the apartment complex and got out of his vehicle, he smelled an "ammonia like" odor that, from his training and experience, appeared to be from a methamphetamine lab. Officer Taylor admitted on cross-examination that he did not know exactly which apartment the smell was coming from. Officer Taylor testified that shortly thereafter Sgt. John Hall, along with members of the Montgomery Fire Department, arrived on the scene. Officer Taylor and Sgt. Hall knocked on the door of the apartment that was the subject of the anonymous call, and Bailey opened the door. Officer Taylor said he noticed that, after Bailey opened the door, the odor he had smelled earlier got stronger. Officer Taylor testified that he did not see any fire or smoke inside the apartment. Officer Taylor testified that he and Sgt. Hall advised Bailey that they hadreceived several calls about a methamphetamine lab in his residence and that Bailey denied any illegal activity and stated that "it must have been a prank call." (R. 23.) Officer Taylor testified that the fire chief advised him and Sgt. Hall that members of the fire department were not going to "clear" the apartment.3 Officer Taylor testified that he and Sgt. Hall thereafter entered the apartment; Officer Taylor testified, on cross-examination, that Bailey had given him permission4 to enter the apartment. Officer Taylor testified that Clayton and two children who appeared to be two to four years old were inside the apartment and that the apartment appeared to be safe. After Officer Taylor left the apartment, he detained Bailey and learned, after running a warrant check, that Bailey had two misdemeanor warrants. After OfficerTaylor ran the warrant checks he also found a bag of marijuana in Bailey's pocket, and he later took Bailey to the city jail. Officer Taylor testified that members of the fire department later advised him that they had found an inactive methamphetamine lab in the apartment.
Sgt. Hall testified that on January 7 he responded to a dispatch regarding a possible active methamphetamine lab at an apartment on Stonehenge Drive. Sgt. Hall testified that as he approached the building, he smelled a strong, pungent odor that, through his training and experience, indicated that there was a methamphetamine lab. Sgt. Hall testified that he could not tell from which particular apartment the smell was coming but that the odor became much stronger after Bailey opened the door to the apartment. Sgt. Hall did not observe any smoke or fire, and he and Officer Taylor thereafter entered the apartment at the request of the fire department.5 Sgt. Hall admitted, on cross-examination, that he did not obtain a warrant before entering the apartment. Sgt. Halltestified that he was in the apartment between 5 and 10 minutes. Sgt. Hall testified that while in the apartment he felt like he was in immediate danger because of the odor he smelled; Sgt. Hall explained, on cross-examination, that "[m]eth labs are known to explode as well as produce noxious fumes that can harm people." (R. 64-65.) Sgt. Hall testified that members of the fire department later showed him what they believed to be an active methamphetamine lab inside the apartment. Sgt. Hall testified that he followed all "protocols" regarding the methamphetamine lab.6
Detective Joel Roberson testified that on January 7 he along with members of the hazardous-material squad of the fire department, responded to a 911 call reporting a methamphetamine lab in an apartment on Stonehenge Drive. Det. Roberson testified that on January 7, he entered the apartment and noticed a smell he associated with a methamphetamine lab; Det. Roberson later explained, on cross-examination, that,with regard to those who could be affected by the hazards of a methamphetamine lab,"[i]f you can smell it, you're at risk." (R. 150.) Det. Roberson found precursor elements to a methamphetamine lab in the apartment, including lithium batteries, a funnel, and some plastic bags. Det. Roberson testified that the methamphetamine lab appeared to be inactive at that time.7 Roberson testified that no individuals were taken into custody on January 7.
Officer Raquel Sansing testified that around 12:00 to 1:00 a.m. on January 28, 2011, she responded to a dispatch regarding a possible methamphetamine lab at the same apartment on Stonehenge Drive that had been the subject of the January 7 call. Officer Sansing testified that after she arrived at the apartment, she observed Bailey, Clayton, and Lee coming down the stairs from the apartment. Officer Sansing testified that the door to the apartment had been left open and that she smelled a "strong, bitter ammonia-type smell." (R. 82.) Officer Sansing testified that while Officer Michael Andersonand members of the fire department searched the apartment she detained Bailey, Clayton, and Lee. Officer Sansing testified that while she was detaining Bailey, Clayton, and Lee, she conducted a patdown search of Clayton and found a pill bottle containing a Xanax tablet, some non-prescription medication, and a pipe used for smoking methamphetamine. Officer Sansing said that when she felt those items during the patdown, she knew that they were not weapons. Officer Sansing testified that she observed an officer perform a patdown search of Lee that produced two or three pipes used for smoking methamphetamine, a bag containing a substance believed to be marijuana, and a grinder containing marijuana substance; Officer Sansing testified that a patdown search of Bailey revealed two or three pipes used for smoking methamphetamine.
Officer Anderson testified that on January 28 he was sent by dispatch to Stonehenge Drive to investigate a possible methamphetamine lab. After Officer Anderson arrived at the apartment building, he encountered Bailey, Clayton, and Lee outside the apartment and asked them where they were going, to which they replied that they were going to do laundry despite not having any laundry detergent or "anything like that thatwould really kind of sell that to make me believe that they were going to go--all running to do laundry at 1:20 in the morning." (R. 115-16.) Officer Anderson testified that while he was standing at the bottom of the stairs, he noticed an "ammonia" smell that, having previously encountered methamphetamine labs during his training and experience as a police officer, he would relate to a methamphetamine lab. Officer Anderson along with members of the fire department notified residents in adjacent apartments according to the standard procedure for a fire in an apartment complex. Officer Anderson testified that the fire chief indicated that he wanted the apartment to be "cleared" before he allowed members of the fire department to enter the apartment. Officer Anderson testified on cross-examination that a "haze smoke" inside the apartment was visible to him from outside the apartment. Officer Anderson and another officer thereafter equipped themselves with oxygen tanks and masks and entered the apartment. Officer Anderson admitted on cross-examination that no search warrant had been obtained before he entered the apartment. After Officer Anderson entered the apartment, he observed components he recognized as being usedin a methamphetamine lab, but he did not touch anything. Officer Anderson observed that the source of the "haze smoke" was coming from a bubbling, pink liquid substance inside a two-liter bottle located in the back bedroom of the apartment.
Det. Roberson also testified that on January 28 he, along with members of the hazardous-material squad of the fire department, responded to a 911 call about a methamphetamine lab at the same address. Det. Roberson entered the apartment and observed a two-liter bottle containing a red substance that, he said, looked like "broken-down" pseudoephedrine pills. Det. Roberson testified that he also saw two cans of butane, table salt, lithium batteries, pliers, and a marijuana cigarette. Det. Roberson testified that the evidence confirmed to him the presence of an active methamphetamine lab. Det. Roberson testified that, based on his observations, Lee, Bailey, and Clayton were taken into custody. Det. Roberson admitted on cross-examination that there was not a search warrant and that permission to enter the apartment had not been granted.
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