State v. Shipman, 77-1493
| Citation | 370 So.2d 1195 |
| Decision Date | 02 May 1979 |
| Docket Number | No. 77-1493,77-1493 |
| Parties | STATE of Florida, Appellant, v. Arthur SHIPMAN and Frederick A. Pierce, Appellees. |
| Court | Court of Appeal of Florida (US) |
Michael J. Satz, State's Atty. and William W. Herring and Patti Englander, Asst. State's Attys., Fort Lauderdale, for appellant.
Fred Haddad, of Sandstrom & Haddad, Fort Lauderdale, for appellees.
This appeal from an order granting a motion to suppress involves the legality of an arrest made by a municipal police officer outside his territorial jurisdiction.
On December 21, 1976, Fort Lauderdale police officer Puleo, working undercover and acting on information supplied by an informant, met with Dennis Dalicandro at Meyer's Pizza Restaurant in Pompano Beach to set up a drug buy. Puleo purchased an ounce of marijuana from Dalicandro and arranged for the purchase of one hundred (100) pounds of marijuana on the following night. The Broward County Sheriff's Office agreed to assist in monitoring the transaction. The next night, Puleo, accompanied by fellow Fort Lauderdale Officer Dionisi, met Dalicandro at Meyer's Pizza. Puleo was wired with a body bug which was being monitored by two other Fort Lauderdale police officers. Puleo and Dionisi were taken by Dalicandro to a 7-11 store in Pompano Beach, where Dalicandro placed numerous phone calls to "somebody." At 11 p. m. Dalicandro announced that "the stuff is ready" and directed the officers to a residence in Pompano Beach.
Upon arrival, Puleo was requested to take Michael Knieper outside to the trunk of Puleo's car to show Knieper the money to be used for the purchase. Appellee Frederick Pierce arrived shortly thereafter and was also taken outside to see the money. While Puleo and Pierce were outside, appellee Arthur Shipman arrived and carried a large plastic bag into the residence. Puleo and Pierce were directed to follow. Once inside, Puleo opened up the bag and found a large quantity of marijuana. At that point, two other alleged participants in the drug deal, James Morris and James Gelski, ran into the room, yelling "the cops are here" and all six subjects began fleeing the apartment out the rear door. Puleo chased after and forcibly brought Dalicandro back into the house.
Puleo then opened the front door and let Deputy Sheriff Lillard and other police officers inside. The other five alleged offenders were then brought back inside, apparently by a combined force of Ft. Lauderdale police officers and sheriff's deputies. Puleo at first conceded that he had made the arrests, but then testified that Deputy Lillard was the first to formally advise the subjects that they were under arrest. Shipman was then searched by Deputy Lillard and approximately an ounce of cocaine was discovered and seized along with the marijuana in the plastic bag. Puleo testified that at no time prior to the arrest of the subjects had he announced his authority as a police officer.
The lower court concluded that the Fort Lauderdale Police Department had no jurisdiction to carry on an investigation and arrest which started and ended in Pompano Beach and granted appellees' motion to suppress the drugs seized.
The state contends that Officer Puleo made a lawful citizen's arrest of the appellees and that the subsequent search was incident to that lawful arrest. Before examining the state's contentions, we must first consider the trial court's finding of fact that it was Officer Puleo and not Deputy Lillard of the Broward County Sheriff's Office who effected the arrests. This finding of fact is presumed to be correct and should not be disturbed unless clearly erroneous. Cameron v. State, 112 So.2d 869 (Fla. 1st DCA 1959). We find that there was ample evidence to support the lower court's conclusion that Puleo had effected the arrest by "containing" the suspects and pointing out who he wanted arrested, and that Lillard's uttering of the...
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