U.S. v. Mendez
| Decision Date | 26 April 2001 |
| Docket Number | No. CRIM 3:00CR195 AVC.,CRIM 3:00CR195 AVC. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Connecticut |
| Parties | UNITED STATES of America, v. Angel MENDEZ. |
Thomas V. Dailey, Ronald Scott Apter, U.S. Attorney's Office, Hartford, CT, for Plaintiff.
Thomas G. Dennis, Federal Public Defender's Office, Hartford, CT, for Defendant.
RULING ON THE DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO SUPPRESS
The defendant, Angel Mendez, is charged in a one count indictment with being a felon in possession of a firearm in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1). The charge arises out of his arrest on July 31, 2000 in Hartford, Connecticut, when he was found to be in possession of a Heritage Stealth Shadow 40 caliber pistol ("the handgun").
The defendant now moves to suppress all items seized from a search of his automobile at the time of his arrest, including the handgun, and to suppress various incriminating statements he gave to police. The issues presented are: (1) whether police had probable cause to search the glove box of the defendant's vehicle; (2) whether the search of the glove box was constitutionally permissible under the search-incident-to-arrest doctrine; (3) whether the inevitable discovery doctrine saves the handgun and other incriminating evidence found in the glove box from Fourth Amendment impunity; and (4) whether the incriminating statements the defendant gave to police at the time of his arrest should be suppressed because the defendant was not advised of his rights under Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966).
For the reasons hereinafter set forth, the court concludes that: (1) police did not have probable cause to search the glove box of the vehicle; (2) the search of the glove box was not constitutionally permissible under the search-incident-to-arrest doctrine; (3) the inevitable discovery doctrine nevertheless saves the handgun and other incriminating evidence from Fourth Amendment impunity; and (4) because the government does not object to the defendant's motion to suppress the incriminating statements given to police prior to a Miranda advisement, such statements shall be suppressed.
On July 31, 2000, at approximately 10:50 p.m., Officer Edward Foster of the Hartford police department was on duty and in uniform in a marked police cruiser in the Frog Hollow section of Hartford. At this time, Foster observed the defendant leaning into the open, passenger side window of a red Chevrolet Beretta automobile ("the Chevrolet" or "the vehicle") that was parked in the lot of a Mobile gas station/convenience store located at the intersection of Washington street and Jefferson street. An unidentified Hispanic male was sitting in the driver's seat. Foster knew the defendant because of several prior interactions with him while on patrol. In addition, Foster knew that the defendant: (1) was a member of the Los Solidos gang; (2) had prior narcotics convictions; and (3) was wanted for stealing a car in West Hartford, Connecticut.
Foster approached the Mobile station in his police cruiser, and observed the defendant leaning into an open passenger side window of the Chevrolet. Foster then observed the defendant stand-up and look directly toward him, making eye contact. The defendant then quickly ducked back into the car, putting his whole torso back through the open passenger side window, then quickly removed himself from inside the car and walked quickly into the convenience store. Foster could not see the defendant's hands, but perceived his actions as "suspicious," and believed that the defendant might be trying to get rid of something by throwing it into the car.
Foster parked his police cruiser in front of the convenience store and walked into the store. Inside the store, the defendant said, "What's up, Foster." Foster then advised the defendant that he had a warrant for his arrest, placed him under arrest and handcuffed him, and then walked him out of the store and into the rear seat of his police cruiser. At this time, Foster noticed that the Hispanic male who had been in the driver's seat of the Chevrolet had left the scene and, after inquiring about his whereabouts, an unidentified passerby told Foster that the man had fled.
Without first advising the defendant of his rights under Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966), Foster asked the defendant if he owned the Chevrolet. The defendant responded that the Chevrolet belonged to him, and that he had just bought it. The defendant also told Foster that the car was not registered or insured. Foster then ran the license plate displayed on the Chevrolet through the Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicle ("DMV") computer system and a report came back stating that the plate had been registered to another car, and canceled prior to the subject date. Foster also checked the vehicle identification number displayed on the Chevrolet with the DMV computer system and it revealed that the car was registered to another license plate that was not on the vehicle.
Another Hartford police officer, Heriberto Resto, arrived at the Mobile station as Foster was placing the defendant in his cruiser. Foster told Resto that the defendant had made a quick movement into the Chevrolet and that he believed the defendant might have thrown something into it. Resto, who believed that the Chevrolet would be towed, decided to conduct an inventory search of the Chevrolet. During the search, Resto found a handgun in the unlocked glove box that is the subject of the indictment, a loaded Heritage Stealth Shadow .40 caliber pistol. After Resto turned the handgun over to Foster, Foster secured the weapon, walked over to the Chevrolet and searched the glove box himself, finding one heat-sealed packet of heroin, and the car's bill of sale, stating that, indeed, the defendant owned the vehicle.
Foster advised the defendant that the Chevrolet would be towed and, without advising him of rights under Miranda, asked him whether there was anything he would like to get from the car before it was towed. The defendant indicated that he wanted some items from the glove compartment. The firearm and heroin had already been found in the glove compartment prior to that request.
Foster told the defendant that a firearm had been found in the glove box, and again, without giving a Miranda advisement, began questioning the defendant about the handgun and heroin. While initially acting surprised, the defendant ultimately admitted to Foster that the handgun was his. The defendant also provided a written statement admitting that he had purchased the handgun for $400.
Because the defendant admitted to being the owner of the car, and no one was present at the time of the arrest to take custody of the Chevrolet, Foster ordered the car towed and impounded pursuant to Hartford police department policy. See Hartford Police Department General Order 7-45¶ III A.3. Further, in circumstances where an unattended car is sitting at a gas pump at a very busy convenience store, Hartford police department practice would call for the car to be towed.
It is also Hartford police department practice that prior to impounding or towing a car, a "tow slip" must be completed that notes, among other things, the make, year and model of a car, condition of the car and, in a section entitled "Vehicle Condition," officers must record whether the vehicle contains various accessories, such as a radio or tape deck, and by checking a box designated "other," officers record any valuables found. Hartford police officers are trained that in order to properly fill out the tow slip they must perform an inventory search of the car, and search the interior and compartments which includes searching the glove compartment. There is, however, no written Hartford police department policy specifically setting forth a requirement that inventory searches of cars be conducted prior to towing. In this case, Foster conducted an inventory search of the Chevrolet and filled out a tow slip, but did not check the "other" box or record that police had found the handgun, the heroin, or the bill of sale.
The exclusionary rule prohibits the government from offering evidence at trial that is obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution. United States v. Leon, 468 U.S. 897, 906, 104 S.Ct. 3405, 82 L.Ed.2d 677 (1984). The purpose of the Fourth Amendment exclusionary rule is to deter unreasonable searches, no matter how probative their fruits. Dunaway v. New York, 442 U.S. 200, 216-217, 99 S.Ct. 2248, 2258-59, 60 L.Ed.2d 824 (1979). By excluding evidence discovered in violation of the Fourth Amendment, the rule "compel[s] respect for the constitutional guarantee in the only effectively available way, by removing the incentive to disregard it." Elkins v. United States, 364 U.S. 206, 217, 80 S.Ct. 1437, 1444, 4 L.Ed.2d 1669 (1960). The court now turns to the issues presented, that is, whether evidence discovered by Officers Foster and Resto must be suppressed as tainted fruit under the exclusionary rule.
The defendant moves to suppress the handgun and heroin on grounds that: (1) the police officers lacked probable cause to search the Chevrolet's glove box; (2) the search was not constitutionally permissible under the search-incident-to arrest doctrine; and (3) the inevitable discovery doctrine does not save the handgun from Fourth Amendment impunity. The court considers each argument in order.
The defendant first argues that the search violated his rights as secured by the Fourth Amendment because police did not have probable cause to search the glove box, in that: (a) neither Foster nor Resto observed the defendant commit any criminal offense; (b) the defendant did not attempt to flee upon spotting the police; and (c) Foster did not see anything in the defendant's hands when the defendant...
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U.S. v. Mendez
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