United States v. Mason, Case No. 3:13–cr–00298–01–SI.
Decision Date | 06 January 2014 |
Docket Number | Case No. 3:13–cr–00298–01–SI. |
Citation | 993 F.Supp.2d 1308 |
Court | U.S. District Court — District of Oregon |
Parties | UNITED STATES of America, v. George Allen MASON, Jr., Defendant. |
OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE
S. Amanda Marshall, U.S. Attorney, and Pamala R. Holsinger, Assistant U.S. Attorney, District of Oregon, Portland, OR, Fara Gold, Trial Attorney, Criminal Section, U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, Washington, D.C., for United States of America.
James F. Halley, James F. Halley, P.C., Portland, OR, for Defendant.
A grand jury indicted Defendant George Allen Mason, Jr. (“Mason”), alleging that he “willfully caused bodily injury and, through the use of a dangerous weapon, attempted to cause bodily injury to D.B., who is gay, because of D.B.'s actual and perceived sexual orientation,” in violation of the Hate Crimes Prevention Act, 18 U.S.C. § 249(a)(2). Dkt. 1. The indictment further alleges that Mason “employed a dangerous weapon that had traveled in interstate and foreign commerce, to wit, the metal tool he used to strike D.B.” and that the assault “occurred during the course of and as a result of travel in a motor vehicle, a channel, facility, or instrumentality of interstate or foreign commerce.” Id. Mason has moved to suppress statements made by him and things seized from him (Dkt. 47) and to dismiss the charge against him as beyond the proper exercise of Congress' power under the Commerce Clause (Dkt. 48).1 The Court held an evidentiary hearing on December 18, 2013. Based on the following findings of fact and conclusions of law, the Court DENIES Mason's motions to suppress and to dismiss (Dkts. 47 and 48).
1. At approximately 3:30 p.m. on Friday, March 1, 2013, several Hillsboro Police Officers, including Officer James Weed, Officer Pete Allenbaugh, and Officer Jordan Schreiner, responded to a call regarding a possible assault that had just occurred near the intersection of 185th Avenue and Town Center Drive in Hillsboro, Oregon. The victim (“D.B.”) and other witnesses on the scene reported the following: On March 1, 2013, D.B. and his boyfriend J.M. were walking their poodle, which was dyed pink. The two men were standing at a crosswalk on the corner of 185th Avenue and Town Center Drive, waiting to cross the street. Mason, accompanied by his wife Gardner, was driving a blue Land Rover. Mason made a left-hand turn through the intersection and, allegedly, yelled: D.B. and J.M. said nothing in reply and began to cross the street. Mason then allegedly made a U-turn back toward D.B. and J.M., at which point D.B. pulled out his cell phone to call 9–1–1. D.B. held out his cell phone toward Mason to show Mason that D.B. was calling 9–1–1. Mason allegedly got out of his car, ran to D.B., and started punching him. D.B. backed away, but was hit by Mason on D.B.'s left shoulder. D.B. held up his arms to block additional punches and told Mason that he “hit like a girl.”
2. Mason went back to his car and retrieved what witnesses described as a metal tool with a red handle. Mason allegedly approached D.B. for a second time and began to hit D.B. with the tool in the back of D.B.'s head and on his forearm. Several witnesses in the area were in their cars and started honking their horns in an apparent effort to stop the attack. Mason allegedly ran back to his car and drove quickly away from the scene.
3. D.B. and other witnesses described the attacker, later identified by witnesses as Mason following a photographic “lay down.” The witnesses also described a passenger who looked “obese,” sitting in the front seat of the car. Witnesses stated that the passenger never got out of the car but yelled “you fucking fags” from the window. The passenger was later identified as Gardner. One witness followed the blue Land Rover as it pulled away and recorded its license plate number. Law enforcement determined that the license plate number was registered to Mason, and several officers knew Mason as a transientwho was known to camp with his wife Gardner in a blue Land Rover in the parking lot of the nearby Target store on Evergreen Parkway.
4. Later in the evening on March 1, 2013, Officer Weed and Officer Allenbaugh returned to area where the alleged assault occurred to look for Mason. As the officers approached the Target store in the shopping complex near where the assault occurred, they noticed the blue Land Rover parked in the Target parking lot. The officers also observed a male matching Mason's description walking in the parking lot. By the time the officers arrived in the parking lot, however, the male was gone. Officer Weed called for additional units to join him at the scene and waited to approach the vehicle. Several officers responded, including Officer Ryan Johnson, Officer Lindybeth Wilkin, Officer Alonzo Garcia, Officer Jordan Schreiner, Officer Mark Vertner, and Sergeant Debra Case. Officer Garcia was the first to arrive. Officer Weed and Officer Garcia approached the Land Rover in their vehicles and blocked it from leaving by parking their marked police vehicles both in front and in back of the Land Rover.
5. Officers Weed and Garcia approached the Land Rover. As he came closer to the car, Officer Weed recognized Gardner inside the Land Rover. The officers also noticed two dogs in the back of the Land Rover. Officer Weed identified himself to Gardner and began asking her questions. Officer Weed asked Gardner where Mason was, and Gardner told Officer Weed that Mason went into the Target store. Officer Weed next asked where Gardner was earlier in the day and whether she was with Mason. Gardner allegedly responded that she had not been in the Land Rover earlier that day. Officer Weed told Gardner that he had spoken to witnesses who identified Gardner as being in the Land Rover earlier in the day, to which Gardner allegedly responded, “Police always lie to me so why shouldn't I lie to you?”
6. Officer Weed advised Gardner that he just wanted to know the truth about what happened earlier in the day and that he wanted to hear both sides of the story. Gardner then allegedly told Officer Weed, “We told those guys we liked their dog, and they started flipping shit at us and flipped us off.” When Officer Weed asked Gardner when the confrontation got physical, she responded, Officer Weed then told Gardner that several witnesses had seen the confrontation get physical. Gardner allegedly said, “I'm going to lie so my husband doesn't get arrested.”
7. At this point, Officer Weed read Gardner her Miranda rights from a department issued resource guide.2 Officer Weed asked Gardner if she understood her rights, and she responded “yeah.”
8. While police officers were talking with Gardner in the parking lot of the Target store, Officer Ryan Johnson, who had arrived at the scene in response to Officer Weed's request for additional support, was attempting to locate Mason. Officer Johnson was performing an “area check” when he saw a person who seemed to match Mason's description near the Nordstrom Rack store. Officer Johnson rolled down the window of his police car and shouted at Mason. As Officer Johnson pulled his car over, Mason began to sprint away. Officer Johnson yelled at Mason to stop, but Mason continued to run. Although Officer Johnson lost sight of Mason, shortly after Officer Johnson drove out of the shopping complex in pursuit of Mason, he found Mason lying on the ground at the bottom of a steep, twenty-foot bank on the side of the road.
9. At approximately 12:14 a.m. on March 2, 2013, Officer Johnson handcuffed Mason and placed him under arrest. Because Mason complained of an injured leg, Officer Johnson called for medical assistance. While Officer Johnson and Mason were waiting for the medical team, Sergeant Case, Officer Schreiner, Officer Allenbaugh, and Officer Wilkin arrived at the scene. Officer Wilkin read Mason his Miranda rights from a prepared card, and Mason told the officers that he understood his rights.
10. Officer Schreiner told Mason that he was under arrest for assault and asked Mason if he owned a Land Rover. Mason responded that he did. Officer Schreiner then asked Mason where he was at approximately 3:30 p.m. on March 1, 2013. Mason said that he was in Portland on 82nd Avenue. Officer Schreiner told Mason that witnesses had identified Mason at the intersection of 185th Avenue and Town Center Drive in Hillsboro. At this point, Mason said, “I want a lawyer.” The interrogation then stopped.
11. A medical team arrived at 12:26 a.m. and left with Mason for the hospital at 12:34 a.m. Mason was given no medication en route and reported a pain level of “six out of ten.” Upon arriving at the hospital, Mason was treated for a “pulled muscle in his leg.”
12. At approximately 12:28 a.m., before the medical team transported Mason to the hospital, Sergeant Case instructed Officer Weed to attempt to obtain consent from Gardner to search the Land Rover. In the absence of consent, the police discussed among themselves their plan to impound the car and seek a search warrant. Sergeant Case was standing near Mason, and Officer Weed was in the parking lot of the Target store near Gardner, so the officers communicated over the radio and by cell phone. Mason appears to have overheard a portion of the conversation between Sergeant Case and Officer Weed, and Mason allegedly told Sergeant Case, “You can search for anything you are looking for.” 3 Sergeant Case then told Officer Weed about Mason's consent, and Officer Weed advised Gardner. When Gardner stated that she did not believe that Mason had given consent for the search of the car, the officers put their cell phones on “speaker phone” and had Mason talk to Gardner. After this conversation, Gardner got out of the car with the two dogs and stood by a nearby curb. Officer Weed then searched the car. He...
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