United States v. McCray
| Decision Date | 15 June 2017 |
| Docket Number | CRIMINAL ACTION FILE NO. 1:15-cr-212-WSD/AJB |
| Parties | UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. WILLIAM CALVIN McCRAY, a/k/a "Skrill Will," Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Northern District of Georgia |
Defendant William Calvin McCray ("McCray") is charged in a second superseding indictment with conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1594(c) (Count One); the substantive offense of sex trafficking of a minor, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1591(a), (b)(1) and (b)(2) (Count Two); transportation of a minor, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2423(a) (Count Three); and obstructing the enforcement of § 1591(a), in violation of 15 U.S.C. § 1591(d) (Counts Four and Five). [Doc. 71]. He has moved (1) to suppress evidence and for return of property, [Docs. 15, 20, 21], (2) to suppress statements, [Doc. 13], and (3) to dismiss Counts Four and Five, [Docs. 66, 83].1 The Court held an evidentiary hearingon the suppression motions, [Doc. 32 (hereinafter "T___")], after which the parties filed briefs, [Docs. 37 (McCray), 41 (Govt.), 42 (McCray)].
For the following reasons, the undersigned RECOMMENDS that the motions be DENIED.2
McCray seeks to suppress the fruits of the search of a vehicle he was operating at the time of his November 12, 2014 arrest, and the Government challenges his standing3 to contest the seizure and search of the vehicle.
The facts concerning McCray's standing are as follows. The vehicle, a red 2013 Nissan Altima, had been rented from Hertz by Amanda Freeman, McCray's fiancée and mother of his child. T9-10.4 Freeman had rented the Nissan three weeks before McCray's arrest on a week-to-week basis; only her name was on the rental contract, and she used it to go to and from work. T10-11, 14, 17, 22. She paid for the vehicle and personally renewed the term of the rental period, although the Government suggests that the victim in this case, known by the initials "A.B.," may have renewed it on Freeman's behalf on at least one occasion. T15, 23. Since May 2014, Freeman had rented other vehicles that she let McCray drive. T30. Although McCray did not give Freeman any money towards the rental of the Nissan, he had given her some money towards the rental of other vehicles, T31, and since they were living together, McCray gave Freeman money for general living expenses that could be said to have included money for rental vehicles. T33. When Freeman let McCray use the rental car, he would drop her off at her workplace and their daughter at the babysitter's. T17-18. Freeman knew that he was driving the Nissan from Nashville, Tennessee, where theylived, to Atlanta. T11-12, 32. On this occasion, she had friends help her get to work and drive her daughter. T18.
After McCray's arrest, Freeman contacted Hertz, who charged her for two drivers, retroactive to the start of the rental period. T12-13. At the time she initially rented the Nissan, Freeman did not inform Hertz that another person would be driving the vehicle because she could not afford the increased cost and, she testified (unbelievably, in the Court's opinion), at the time of the rental, only she was going to drive it. T18, 19. However, she conceded that she allowed McCray to drive the vehicle five to six times in the three weeks after she rented the vehicle. T20.
Freeman also testified that until his trip to Atlanta, which ostensibly was for McCray's music business, he had used the car on previous occasions locally to look for a job. T20. At the time the vehicle was seized, McCray had possessed the vehicle for two days and was scheduled to bring it back to Freeman by 2:00 p.m. on the day that he was arrested so that she could get to work. T23, 26. As a result of his not returning the vehicle, Freeman did not go to work and did not take her daughter to daycare. T26.
Although there were portions of Freeman's testimony that belie belief, it is apparent to the Court that McCray had Freeman's permission to use the vehicle and to drive it to Atlanta.
The facts giving rise to McCray's arrest and the seizure and search of the red Nissan are as follows. On October 27, 2014, Coweta County Sheriff's Office Criminal Investigator Ryan Foles5 began investigating a case involving a runaway juvenile, referred to as "A.B.," who had been brought to Coweta County following a report of suspicious persons at an address in Tucker, Gwinnett County. T37-38; Govt. Ex. 1. Gwinnett County Police Department ("GCPD") officers had responded to the Tucker location and made contact with A.B., McCray, and Alfredo Lopez-Monzon. T39; Govt. Ex. 1. A.B., who at first claimed her name was "Amanda Freeman," eventually told the investigating officers her true name and stated that Lopez had attempted to rape her and had placed a pillow over her face; the officer suspected that McCray was A.B.'s pimp. T39-40; Govt. Ex. 1. During the investigation at Tucker address, McCray remained in the driveway in a red Nissan with New York plates (GGL6795). T40, 41; Govt. Ex. 1. McCray asked for gas money, and A.B. provided it to him. T40. GCPD officers were told that McCray had brought her to the location and was waiting for herto exit the house so that they could leave together. T40. GCPD officers advised McCray that A.B. was underage. T52; Govt. Ex. 1.
GCPD's investigation revealed that A.B. was a juvenile runaway from Bibb County and that she had become a ward of the state in Coweta County. From Tucker, she was returned to her foster home in Coweta County, but she quickly absconded from that residence, which is when Foles was assigned the investigation. A.B.'s foster mother told Foles that she saw from her telephone caller identification that A.B. had made a telephone call from the foster home before she disappeared again. T41-43. A.B.'s foster mother further told Foles that she had received information that A.B. possibly was being advertised for prostitution in Backpage.com, with the date of the advertisement being October 24, 2014, and the phone number listed in the ad to call being a 615 area code number, the same number that A.B. had dialed from the foster home. Further investigation revealed that this telephone number had been used by McCray. T46-47; Govt. Ex. 3.
Foles then reviewed A.B.'s Facebook page and saw a reference to Jasmine Dillard. A.B.'s foster mother knew Dillard, and Foles arranged for the foster mother to call Dillard. During that conversation, Dillard reported that A.B. was running away from the foster home and may be in the company of "Will." The telephone number thatDillard provided for "Will" was the same telephone number listed in the Backpage.com ad as well as the one that A.B. had called before she absconded the foster home. T48.
On November 3, 2014, A.B. was located in DeKalb County. T48. Foles interviewed her, and she disclosed that she had been taken by "Will" to Tennessee for prostitution. T48; Govt. Ex. 4. A.B. told Foles that she had met McCray weeks prior to the interview and that she ended up in an apartment with him one night, where they discussed that she would be a prostitute. She stated that he forced her into prostitution with violence. T49-50. She stated that they traveled around Atlanta to various locations where she was prostituted, which she called "doing plays." After being prostituted, she stated that McCray raped her in an apartment in DeKalb County. She also gave information that was corroborated by the investigation in Gwinnett County, including that she and McCray traveled in a red Nissan. A.B. explained that she ran away from her foster home in Coweta County, that she used the utility bill from that location to direct McCray where to pick her up, and that she had memorized McCray's phone number. After he picked her up, they went to an Atlanta nightclub where she used Freeman's identification to buy drinks, and then they drove to Tennessee for one week, where she performed three acts of prostitution. T50-51. A.B. also reported that she used Freeman's name and her identification to rent cars for McCray. T154.A.B. further stated that she became Facebook "friends" with one of the johns. A.B. stated that she got sick and wanted to go home, but McCray wanted to take her to Miami or New Orleans for prostitution. He dropped her off at a DeKalb County apartment complex, and she called her mother. Thereafter, A.B. was apprehended on a runaway warrant. T50-51.
As a result of A.B. stating that they had gone to Tennessee, Foles began searching the Backpage.com ads in the Nashville, Tennessee, area, and he located an ad almost identical to the one containing A.B.'s photograph that had run in the Atlanta edition, except that the telephone number was different. T52-53. Foles searched electronically and located other escort ads tied to this telephone number. T53. He then located a YouTube account that was linked to that telephone number and contained "Skrill Will" rap music videos. Since Foles had a copy of McCray's driver's license photo, he was able to identify "Skrill Will" as McCray. T54. With this information, on November 7, 2014, Foles applied for and received an arrest warrant in Coweta County, charging McCray with violating O.C.G.A. § 16-15-46, trafficking persons for sexual servitude. T54; Govt. Ex. 5.
During the investigation, A.B. had pointed out various addresses, including the specific unit at the Clifton Glen Apartments in Stone Mountain, Georgia(504 Three Oaks Bend, Apt. 4), where she alleged that McCray raped her. Police also received information that the red Nissan was observed at that apartment complex. T55-56, 151-52 (discussing report of neighbor that vehicle had been parked in front of the apartment for the last few days, that a white girl was seen in the car, and...
To continue reading
Request your trial