United States v. Gustavo Diaz-Segovia

Decision Date29 August 1978
Docket NumberCrim. A. No. N-78-0307.
PartiesUNITED STATES of America v. Gustavo DIAZ-SEGOVIA, Francisco Diaz, William P. Trolinger, III, a/k/a Patrick W. Connors, a/k/a Concho, Michael S. Breiding, a/k/a Michael Brandon, a/k/a Pat Connors, William Troy, a/k/a William R. Gregg, Robert Palm, Paul Friedman, Fred Fillingham, Alfonso J. Joseph, John Connelly, John B. Lanham, III, April L. Jacobs, Larry G. Van Dyke and Virginia Lanham.
CourtU.S. District Court — District of Maryland

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Russell T. Baker, Jr., U. S. Atty., D. Md., and Catherine C. Blake, Kurt L. Schmoke, Asst. U. S. Attys., Baltimore, Md., for the Government.

J. Flowers Mark, Alexandria, Va., and John P. Coale, Washington, D. C., for defendant Trolinger.

Paul G. Evans, Baltimore, Md., for defendant Breiding.

Myron L. Wolfson, Towson, Md., and James M. Lowe, Alexandria, Va., for defendant Troy.

Bruce Armstrong, Washington, D. C., for defendant Joseph.

Thomas J. Morgan, Miami, Fla., for defendant Connelly.

John Kenneth Zwerling, Alexandria, Va., for defendant John Lanham.

Marvin Miller, Alexandria, Va., for defendant Jacobs.

Frank A. Mika, Washington, D. C., for defendant Van Dyke.

NORTHROP, Chief Judge.

The United States has charged various of these defendants with conspiracy to violate several laws outlawing the trafficking in marijuana. On August 14 and 15, 1978, this Court held evidentiary hearings on defense motions to suppress evidence seized by government agents. The relevant facts relating to these seizures are summarized below.

I. Facts

In May 1978, Agent Boyce Blume of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) received information from the Ocean City, Maryland police force that several individuals had been arrested in Ocean City for possession of marijuana. These individuals were identified as Michael Breiding, Maureen Breiding and Mindy Lou Breiding. Agent Blume was familiar with Michael Breiding since he had allegedly been involved in suspected smuggling activities at or near Solomon's Island, New Jersey in June 1977.

On May 15, 1978, Agent Blume was shown passports, address books, and other personal effects which had been seized by the Ocean City police pursuant to the Breidings' arrests. One of these papers contained directions leading to Route 4, Box 487, Easton, Maryland. Another paper contained the name of Gustavo Segovia. Segovia was known to Agent Blume as a suspected wholesale supplier of drugs, based in Santa Marta, Columbia, South America. Subsequent investigation revealed that the Easton property was leased in the name of William P. Trolinger III. Agent Blume stated that he was aware of Trolinger's criminal record, which included a conviction for possession of 100 pounds of marijuana.

On May 19, 1978, aerial photographs were taken of the Easton property. Agent Blume then contacted the Maryland Marine Police and the United States Customs Service and requested assistance in keeping the property under surveillance. On June 1, 1978, Agent Blume had a meeting with Customs patrol officers and advised them that he suspected that the Easton property was involved in illegal smuggling activities.

Although several photographs were taken on June 5, 1978, actual surveillance of the property by Customs patrol officers did not begin until June 9, 1978. On that day, CPO Rahr and a member of the Maryland Marine Police proceeded into the woods abutting the Trolinger property and observed the property. The next day, joined by CPO Robert Porter, the officers again took up surveillance with the use of binoculars.1 The officers left at approximately midnight.

The next morning, June 11, 1978, the officers returned to the woods. They then copied down the license numbers of several vehicles on the property. Surveillance continued until late that night.

In the meantime, CPO Charles Albertson accompanied by CPO Fry had been maintaining surveillance on a high speed racing boat which had been initially observed in the boathouse of the Trolinger residence on June 5, 1978. Surveillance began on the evening of June 9, 1978, at Ocean City, Maryland. The boat had previously been seen that day enroute from Easton to Ocean City. The vessel was transported over land in a trailer.

Officer Larkin was dispatched to begin surveillance on the vessel, identified as a Corsa racer with Virginia registration 9917 CC. Officer Larkin reported that the boat left Ocean City and headed out into the ocean at approximately 7:25 p. m. It was followed by a similar boat with Maryland registration approximately 20 minutes later. The surveilling officers maintained visual contact for about five miles. The Maryland Corsa returned at approximately 3:30 a. m. on June 10, 1978. The Virginia Corsa returned at approximately 4:15 a. m Surveillance was continued on the two vessels and they were observed to again depart, 20 minutes apart, the evening of the 10th. Both boats returned in the early morning hours of June 11, 1978. On June 11, 1978 the boats again left in the early evening, separated by some 20 minutes, and returned in the early morning hours of June 12, 1978.

On June 12, 1978, at approximately 10:30 a. m., the Virginia Corsa was put back on the trailer, and the boat, trailer, and car towing them departed Ocean City. At that time Customs officers had received an anonymous tip that several high speed boats may have been tying contraband beside buoys located off Crisfield, Maryland. The officers decided to follow the Virginia Corsa and see if it was heading for Crisfield. This decision was reached after discussions of searching the boat in Ocean City had taken place.

The Corsa was followed for approximately 30 miles until it became apparent that it was not heading for Crisfield. The officers then stopped at the Salisbury Police Department and requested assistance in stopping the Corsa. The car, trailer, and vessel were subsequently pulled over by a Maryland State trooper.

The Corsa was then searched, and Officer Fry swept 1.2 grams of marijuana residue from the bulkheads and cracks in the boat's hull. The boat, trailer, and car were then seized and transported to the State Police Barracks.

The above information was relayed to Officer Porter via radio while he maintained surveillance at the Easton property. Officer Porter and two other Customs patrol officers had begun surveillance that day (June 12) at approximately 4:30 p. m. They observed several automobiles and individuals enter and exit the property.

Around 8:30 that night, after it had grown dark, the officers crossed a fence and entered the Trolinger property. They remained inside the wooded area, roughly 150 feet from the Trolinger house. Approximately 10 minutes later a Pontiac drove onto the property, and a white male and a white female entered the house.

The Trolinger residence consisted of a house, an attached garage, and a separate boathouse. From the officers' vantage point, the garage was nearest to them, blocking their view of the house. The driveway to the garage ran perpendicular to the officers' line of sight, with the front of the residence facing left. Located on the far side of the driveway, 20 feet from the intersection between the garage and house was an electric light affixed to a metal pole.

The officers noticed that at approximately 10:00 p. m. the electric light was flashed on and off several times. A vehicle was immediately seen to enter the driveway and park facing the garage. Two individuals exited from the vehicle, which was a dark-colored van, and entered the house. About 10 minutes later, an individual came out of the house, entered the van, and returned to the house carrying a package.

Ten minutes later the Pontiac left with two individuals, and another individual walked from the house toward the boathouse. The officers heard noises coming from the boathouse and a vehicle was driven from the vicinity of the boathouse, up the driveway, and parked end to end with the van in front of the garage. At that time a second individual had come out of the house and was standing behind the van. The driver of the second vehicle, which was a pickup truck with a camper, opened the back of the truck and threw several items out of the back, including a spare tire. Simultaneously, the individual who had opened the van began to remove packages from the back of the van and hand them to the individual inside the truck.

The packages were approximately two to three feet square and apparently wrapped in polyurethane. The officers then decided to move in closer. Officer Porter stated that, from what he had seen and knew, he believed that the packages contained marijuana.

The officers then crawled across the lawn to a point near the garage. Officer Porter was approximately eight to ten feet from the vehicles, and the other officers were several yards behind him. At that point, Officer Porter detected the odor of marijuana.

The Pontiac then returned, and the occupants of the Pontiac approached the van. After a brief conversation, one of them went into the house and returned carrying a small rug. He shook out the rug very close to where the officers were hiding, and Officer Porter again detected the odor of marijuana.

The individual then rolled up the rug and began walking back towards the garage. He dropped the rug in front of Officer Porter, and thinking he had been discovered, Officer Porter whispered, "Pssst, come here." In response, the individual screamed and ran.

As might be imagined, much activity ensued at this point. The Customs officers jumped up, identified themselves as federal officers, and commanded the individuals to halt. The various individuals near the van scattered, the officers giving chase. Officer Porter made a sharp right turn across the front of the garage and saw an individual running across the front yard of the house. An individual identified as defendant Larry Van Dyke stopped near the van and had his...

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