State v. Weber, 17698

CourtUnited States State Supreme Court of Idaho
Citation116 Idaho 449,776 P.2d 458
Docket NumberNo. 17698,17698
PartiesSTATE of Idaho, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Kenneth WEBER, James L. Hendershot and Sandra L. Hendershot, Defendants-Respondents.
Decision Date05 July 1989

Jim Jones, Atty. Gen., Lynn E. Thomas, Sol. Gen. (argued), Boise, for plaintiff-appellant.

Roark, Donovan, Praggastis & Phillips, Hailey, for defendants-respondents. Ray Keith Roark argued.

JOHNSON, Justice.

This is a criminal case. The issue presented is whether the trial court correctly suppressed evidence obtained by the police as a result of the arrest and consent of Kenneth Weber. In suppressing the evidence, the trial court ruled that at the time of Weber's arrest the police did not have probable cause to arrest him and that Weber's consent to the search of his residence was the product of the illegal arrest. We affirm.

I.

THE TRIAL COURT'S FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSIONS OF LAW.

The trial court made the following findings of fact:

1. On October 25, 1987, Officer Chuck Miller of the Sun Valley Police Department effected a traffic stop of a U-Haul truck in Sun Valley, Blaine County, State of Idaho. There were two (2) occupants in the vehicle: a driver--Rick Elliot, and a passenger--Kelly Youngstrom. The driver was arrested for Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol, I.C. Sec. 18-8004. The passenger was released. Following the arrest of Elliot, a search of the U-Haul truck revealed a large number of live marijuana plants.

2. Following his arrest, the driver, Rick Elliot, was questioned by the authorities. He told them he knew of a large marijuana growing operation near Carey, Idaho, and provided directions and a map showing the location. He gave the address of the farm as 20248 Highway 93, and said that a person named "Ken" lived there.

3. After the arrest of Rick Elliot, the Sun Valley Police Department interviewed Dennis Hildebrandt, who claimed he had knowledge of marijuana transactions by Kelly Youngstrom. Dennis Hildebrandt informed the Sun Valley Police Department that Kelly Youngstrom was going to call Dennis Hildebrandt at his room. With the consent of Dennis Hildebrandt, the Sun Valley Police Department arranged to transfer the call from Hildebrandt's dorm room to the Sun Valley Police Department. At approximately 5:35 p.m. on October 27th, 1987, Kelly Youngstrom telephoned Hildebrandt. During the course of the conversation, it was learned that in approximately ten to fifteen (10-15) minutes an unknown person would be going to Hildebrandt's room to pick up Four Hundred and no/100 Dollars ($400.00) owed to Youngstrom from a previous marijuana sale, and that this person was going to receive a percentage of the money. Kelly Youngstrom said that this person knew nothing about the marijuana transaction.

4. Officers Robinson and Miller arrived at Hildebrandt's dorm at approximately 5:50 p.m. on October 27, 1987 and observed two (2) people in the dorm. Officer Miller immediately recognized Kelly Youngstrom as the passenger in the U-Haul truck which he had stopped on October 25, 1987. Both of these individuals were subsequently arrested. During the officers' initial contact with the defendant, Kenneth Weber, the defendant incorrectly identified himself as Ken Winebender and stated that he lived at 20248 Highway 93, near Carey, Idaho. Weber was handcuffed and taken to the Sun Valley Police Department.

5. Officers Stuart Robinson of the Department of Law Enforcement and Chuck Miller of the Sun Valley Police Department had previously traveled to this location in the afternoon of October 27, 1987, and verified the location of the farm. On the premises located at 20248 Highway 93, approximately one and one-half (1 1/2) miles south of Carey, Idaho, the law enforcement officers observed several buildings, including a red house, and a red barn with black visqueen plastic to cover windows and an exhaust fan. The use of black visqueen to cover windows and an exhaust fan are common in marijuana growing operations. A check of the power bills for this location were unusually high, which Officer Robinson testified is common for marijuana growing operations.

6. At the time of his arrest on the 27th day of October, 1987, no arrest warrant had been issued or complaint filed against Kenneth Weber.

7. Kenneth Weber was arrested on the 27th day of October, 1987, by Officers of the Sun Valley Police Department for the crime of Conspiracy to Deliver a Controlled Substance.

8. At the time of his arrest upon the above described charge, the police had no evidence whatever indicating that Kenneth Weber had participated in a delivery of any controlled substance. The only evidence the police had against Ken Weber at the time of his arrest was that he was in the company of another person, Kelly Youngstrom, whom the police did have probable cause to believe had delivered a controlled substance.

9. Almost immediately after arresting Ken Weber, the police asked for and obtained his consent to search his vehicle, although the police had no reason to suspect that the vehicle contained any controlled substance or contraband.

10. At the station, Kenneth Weber was read his Miranda rights in full. Weber did not request an attorney, nor did he invoke his right to remain silent. The defendant, Ken Weber, waived his Miranda Rights. The officers then asked Weber if he would consent to a search of the Carey farm. Weber signed a written consent to search form and gave one of the officers keys to the Carey farm. Weber's consent was knowing and voluntary, and there were no threats or promises made prior to the consent. There was no appreciable lapse of time between the illegal arrest of Kenneth Weber and his "consent" to the search. This "consent" was the direct product of Kenneth Weber's arrest.

11. Nothing in the record would tend to indicate that there was any danger following the arrest of Ken Weber that evidence would be lost, concealed or destroyed should the police take time to obtain a search warrant.

12. Although there was sufficient time and apparent opportunity to do so, the police made no effort to obtain a search warrant. Furthermore, the quantum of information which the police had in their possession at the time of the arrest of Ken Weber was insufficient to justify the issuance of a search warrant without further investigation.

13. Officers Miller and Robinson conducted a warrantless search of the Carey farm. The search uncovered a large scale marijuana growing operation with more than 1600 live marijuana plants in the barn.

Based on these findings, the trial court concluded:

14. The officers did not have probable cause to arrest Ken Weber....

15. Though Ken Weber's consent to search was voluntary and knowing, since it was given a short period of time following arrest, the taint of the illegal arrest was not purged and the consent was therefore invalid.

II.

THE STANDARD OF REVIEW ON APPEAL.

The State asserts that we should review the trial court's ruling on the motion to suppress de novo to determine whether there was probable cause for the arrest of Weber. While we agree that we should freely review whether the trial court correctly applied the law to the facts, we defer to the trial court's findings of fact, unless they are clearly erroneous.

In State v. Kirkwood, 111 Idaho 623, 625, 726 P.2d 735, 737 (1986) this Court held that findings of a trial court in ruling on a motion to suppress "should be overturned only if not supported by substantial evidence." In a recent case our Court of Appeals set forth the standard of review to be applied to the ruling of a trial court suppressing evidence on constitutional grounds:

The proper standard of review is one of deference to factual findings unless they are clearly erroneous. But, we may undertake a free review of the trial court's determination as to whether constitutional requirements have been satisfied in light of facts found.

State v. Heinen, 114 Idaho 656, 658, 759 P.2d 947, 949 (Ct.App.1988), rev. den.

III.

THE POLICE DID NOT HAVE PROBABLE CAUSE TO ARREST WEBER.

The State asserts that before Weber was arrested the police learned his identity and address by questioning him as part of an investigative detention. As the State sees this case, it was Weber's address that combined with the other information the State...

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