State v. Martin, No. 45964-3-I

• Decision Date: 25 June 2001
• Docket Number: No. 46879-1-I., No. 45964-3-I, No. 46579-1-I
• Citation: 25 P.3d 488,106 Wash.App. 850
• Parties: STATE of Washington, Respondent, v. Ralph Matthew MARTIN, Appellant. State of Washington, Respondent, v. Lonnie D. McKinney, Appellant. City of Everett, Respondent, v. Randal Dale Schroeder, Petitioner.
• Court: Washington Court of Appeals

25 P.3d 488

106 Wash.App. 850

STATE of Washington, Respondent, v. Ralph Matthew MARTIN, Appellant.

State of Washington, Respondent, v. Lonnie D. McKinney, Appellant.

City of Everett, Respondent, v. Randal Dale Schroeder, Petitioner.

Nos. 45964-3-I, 46579-1-I, 46879-1-I.

Court of Appeals of Washington, Division 1.

June 25, 2001.

Reconsideration Denied July 26, 2001.

Christopher Gibson, Nielsen, Broman & Assoc., PLLC, Sharon Jean Blackford, Seattle, Christian Walter Smith, Jon Thomas Scott, Everett, for Appellants.

Endel R. Kolde, Daniel Clark, Seattle, Mark Thormod Soine, Everett City Atty., Scott R. Santoro, Asst. City Atty., Everett, for Respondent.

Traci A. Sammeth, Perkins Coie, Seattle, for American Civil Liberties Union of WA, Amicus Curiae.

Pamela Beth Loginsky, Olympia, for Amicus Curiae Wash. Ass'n of Prosecuting Attys.

COLEMAN, J.

These three cases were linked in this court for oral argument and have been consolidated for purposes of this opinion for consideration of a shared legal issue; namely, whether under article I, section 7 of the Washington State Constitution, drivers have a reasonable expectation of privacy in their Department of Licensing (DOL) records that precludes law enforcement officers from searching those records without an individualized suspicion of the driver's involvement in criminal activity. Although it is well established that this State's constitution provides greater protection of personal privacy than the federal Constitution, we conclude that Washington drivers do not have a reasonable expectation of privacy in their DOL records. Furthermore, the practice complained of in the cases presently before the court—i.e., the dissemination of individual licensing information to law enforcement officers—is specifically authorized by statute. For these reasons, we affirm the decisions entered below.

FACTS

Ralph Martin

In early June 1999, Seattle police received information from a citizen regarding drug activity in his neighborhood. He gave police an address and the license plate number of a van he suspected was involved. When Seattle Police Officer Zylak ran the license number through the DOL database, he learned that the van was registered to appellant Ralph Martin. When Officer Zylak cross-referenced the Washington Criminal Information Center (WACIC) database, he discovered that Martin had two outstanding warrants. Officer Zylak and several other officers contacted Martin at the address listed in the DOL records and placed him under arrest. When officers searched Martin in the booking process at the precinct, they discovered a small silver box containing cocaine in his pants pocket.

Before trial on the drug possession charge, Martin moved to suppress the cocaine, arguing that it was discovered as a result of an unlawful search of the DOL database. The trial court denied the motion, stating that drivers do not have a right to privacy in their "identity as the registered owner of a vehicle." The court pointed to the requirement that all vehicles must have license numbers prominently displayed and noted that "the purpose of having the number of the license plate is so that you can track who the car belongs to." Following a bench trial on stipulated facts, Martin was found guilty of possession of cocaine and sentenced to three months of electronic home detention.

Lonnie McKinney

At 3:40 A.M. on January 19, 2000, Federal Way Police Officer Hoag was on routine patrol on Pacific Highway South when he noticed a red Ford Explorer parked in front of an AM/PM market. Officer Hoag ran the Explorer's license plate number through the DOL database and learned that the registered owner had a suspended license in the third degree. From the physical description of the car's owner in the DOL database, Officer Hoag identified appellant Lonnie McKinney as the driver. After observing McKinney drive the Explorer out of the market's parking lot, Officer Hoag pulled him over and arrested him for driving with a suspended license. Officer Hoag placed McKinney in his patrol car and was returning to the Explorer when he noticed a woman lying down in the truck's back seat. From the woman's driver's license, Officer Hoag was able to identify her as McKinney's wife. After a computer check revealed two active "no-contact orders" prohibiting McKinney from having contact with his wife, Officer Hoag cited McKinney for violating the orders.

McKinney was charged with domestic violence felony violation of a court order on January 25, 2000. In March 2000, McKinney moved to dismiss the charges against him on the ground that the evidence relating to his alleged violation of the no contact orders was obtained pursuant to an illegal search of his DOL records. The trial court denied McKinney's motion, reasoning that "it's not a violation of a person's right to privacy for a police officer ... to go into a database for purposes of enforcing driving laws in this state." After a bench trial on stipulated facts, the trial court found McKinney guilty of violating the no-contact orders.

Randal Schroeder

As part of his routine patrol assignment, Everett Police Officer Fifield regularly drove through the parking lot of the south Everett Travelodge to check for stolen vehicles. Officer Fifield knew the Travelodge to be a location where car thieves often left stolen vehicles. It was Officer Fifield's practice to randomly select vehicles from the parking lot and run their license numbers through the DOL database. After learning the name of a vehicle's registered owner, Officer Fifield often ran that information through the WACIC database to check for outstanding warrants and other criminal information.

On the evening of August 14, 1999, Officer Fifield drove through the Travelodge parking lot and ran the license numbers of a Chevy Nova and a Chevy truck that were parked next to each other. From the DOL database, Officer Fifield learned that the registered owners of the vehicles were Donna Schroeder and appellant Randal Schroeder, respectively. By entering this information into the WACIC database, Officer Fifield learned that the two parties were married and that there was an active protection order prohibiting Mr. Schroeder from having contact with his wife. Officer Fifield contacted the motel's manager and learned that Mr. Schroeder was registered at the motel and that he had checked in with a guest. After waiting for one of his fellow officers to arrive, Officer Fifield proceeded to Schroeder's room and found him there with his wife.

Schroeder was arrested and charged with violating the protection order. Schroeder moved to dismiss the charge on the ground that Officer Fifield's use of the DOL database constituted an improper search in violation of Schroeder's right to privacy. The motion was denied and after a trial on stipulated facts, Schroeder was convicted of the crime as charged. Schroeder's conviction was affirmed in an appeal to Snohomish County Superior Court. This court granted discretionary review on August 17, 2000.

DISCUSSION

Each of the appellants in these cases argues that a police officer's search of the DOL database absent probable cause or reasonable suspicion of criminal activity violates the expectation of privacy guaranteed by article I, section 7 of the Washington State Constitution. That section provides that "[n]o person shall be disturbed in his private affairs, or his home invaded, without authority of law." This provision differs significantly from the parallel provision of the federal constitution:

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.

U.S. Const. amend. IV. The most notable difference between these two provisions is that unlike the federal constitution, our state constitution expressly provides protection for a citizen's "private affairs." State v. Gunwall, 106 Wash.2d 54, 65, 720 P.2d 808, 76 A.L.R.4th 517 (1986). Based on this difference, the Washington Supreme Court has held that article I, section 7 of the state constitution has broader application than does the Fourth Amendment as it "clearly recognizes an individual's right to privacy with no express limitations." State v. Simpson, 95 Wash.2d 170, 178, 622 P.2d 1199 (1980); see also State v. Ladson, 138 Wash.2d 343, 348, 979 P.2d 833 (1999)

.

It being established that this state's constitution provides for broad protection of privacy rights, the question presented in these cases is whether the action complained of infringes on those rights. Our Supreme Court has defined the scope of article I, section 7's right of privacy as encompassing "those privacy interests which citizens of this state have held, and should be entitled to hold, safe from governmental trespass absent a warrant." State v. Myrick, 102 Wash.2d 506, 511, 688 P.2d 151 (1984); see also In re Personal Restraint of Maxfield, 133 Wash.2d 332, 339, 945 P.2d 196 (1997)

. "The assessment of whether a cognizable privacy interest exists under Const. art. I, § 7 is thus not merely an inquiry into a person's subjective expectation of privacy but is rather an examination of whether the expectation is one which a citizen of this state should be entitled to hold." City of Seattle v. McCready, 123 Wash.2d 260, 270, 868 P.2d 134 (1994).

In each of these cases, law enforcement action began with the officer's knowledge of the target vehicle's license number, which was openly displayed as required by law. See RCW 46.16.240 (requiring that license plates "be attached conspicuously at the front and rear of each vehicle ... in such a manner that they can be plainly seen and read at all times[.]"). With the license number, the officer was able to access information about the vehicle's...