United States v. Owens
| Decision Date | 23 October 2015 |
| Docket Number | Docket No. 2:15-cr-55-NT |
| Parties | UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, v. GREGORY OWENS, Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Maine |
Defendant Gregory Owens is charged with Interstate Domestic Violence in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2261(a)(1), (b)(2) and Discharge of a Firearm During and in Relation to a Crime of Violence in violation of 18 U.S.C. 924(c)(1)(A)(iii). This matter comes before the Court on the Defendant's motion to dismiss (ECF No. 40) and two motions to suppress (ECF Nos. 41 & 43).1 I have considered the testimony, evidence, and arguments presented at the hearing on September 9, 2015, as well as both parties' supplemental briefs. For the reasons stated below, the Defendant's motions are DENIED.
The charges against the Defendant arise out of a shooting that occurred in the early hours of December 18, 2014 at a home on Hillview Avenue in Saco, Maine. Iglean these facts from the testimony of Officer Randy Dyer, Sergeant Marc Beaudoin, and Detective Frederick Williams and from the exhibits offered by the parties.
On the night of the shooting Steven and Carol Chabot, the owners of the home, were hosting their longtime friend Rachel Owens, the Defendant's wife. At 2:47 a.m., Steven Chabot called 911 to report a shooting in his home. Def.'s Ex. B ¶ 3 (ECF No. 54-1). When officers arrived, they learned that both Steven Chabot and Rachel Owens had been shot. Def.'s Ex. B ¶ 3. Carol Chabot was found unharmed. Def.'s Ex. B ¶ 3.
During the ensuing investigation at the Chabot residence, Rachel Owens was unresponsive, but Steven Chabot was able to speak. He told investigators that he had heard a noise coming from downstairs while he was in bed with his wife in their second floor bedroom. Def.'s Ex. B ¶ 5. When they went into the hallway to investigate, Steven Chabot saw an individual walking up the stairs holding a gun. Def.'s Ex. B ¶ 5. Steven Chabot described the subject as 5' 9" tall with a medium build and wearing all black clothing, including a black ski mask. Def.'s Ex. B ¶ 5.
Carol Chabot did not see the subject but saw the look of fear on her husband's face when he saw the individual ascending the stairs. She ran to a nearby bedroom to hide. The intruder initially tried—but failed—to gain entry into the bedroom where Carol Chabot had barricaded herself. Thereafter, Carol Chabot heard Rachel Owens screaming, followed by gunshots and moaning. Def.'s Ex. B ¶ 6. After shooting Rachel Owens three times, the intruder attempted to enter the locked bedroom where Steven Chabot was hiding. Def.'s Ex. B ¶ 5. The intruder fired several shots through thebedroom door, striking Steven Chabot in the torso three times. Def.'s Ex. B ¶¶ 3-5. The intruder then fled, and Steven Chabot called the police. Def.'s Ex. B ¶ 5.
The police discovered several 9mm bullet castings, large spots of what appeared to be blood on a carpet, and signs of forced entry through a glass door that had been broken in the back of the Chabot's garage. Def.'s Ex. B ¶ 4. The police also discovered and took casts of boot prints at the scene. Def.'s Ex. A ¶ 10 (ECF No. 54).
At approximately 4:20 a.m., Detective Fred Williams of the Saco Police Department contacted the Londonderry Police Department for assistance in locating the Defendant. Officer Randy Dyer and Officer Keith Lee of the Londonderry Police Department were dispatched to the Defendant's residence to check if the Defendant's motor vehicles were present. They were specifically instructed not to make contact with the Defendant. Officer Lee, who had a personal relationship with the Defendant, was aware that the Defendant possessed firearms, and as a result, the officers approached the home cautiously.
The Defendant's split-level house is at the end of a dead-end street lined with several other houses. There are no streetlights on the road. Officers Dyer and Lee arrived at 5:24 a.m., parked at the far end of the street, and walked toward the Defendant's home.
Photographs of the Defendant's house and yard, admitted as Defendant's Exhibits 3 and 4, show that the house sits back about forty feet from the street. As one faces the house from the street, on the ground floor of the left side of the house is a garage. A driveway runs from the garage straight to the street. A paved walkconnects the driveway to the Defendant's front steps. At the foot of the driveway there is a mulched bed containing a mailbox and several bushes. To the left of the driveway is a side yard with a row of evergreen trees that sit back approximately 10-20 feet from the street and run parallel to the street. In front of the evergreen trees is a lawn area. There are no fences or signs posted on the Defendant's property.
As Officers Dyer and Lee approached they noticed lights on in the Defendant's house. At this point, a New Hampshire state trooper arrived with his cruiser's blue lights on. The officers stopped the trooper and asked him to turn off his lights. Around this time, the lights in the Defendant's home went off.
The police observed a vehicle parked on the upper part of the driveway with its nose facing the garage. At this point, Officer Dyer crossed the lawn in front of the evergreen trees, walked toward the vehicle, touched the hood, and determined that the engine was warm. He then retreated back to the evergreen trees, joined Officer Lee and the state trooper, and they all returned to their vehicles to sit watch.
Between around 6:00 and 6:30 a.m., the Defendant left his home and went to a nearby Circle K gas station. The officers followed and made contact with the Defendant at the gas station where they informed him that his wife had been shot. The officers noticed what appeared to be blood on the Defendant and along the driver's side armrest and steering wheel of the Defendant's vehicle. Def.'s Ex. B ¶ 8. Around this time, Sergeant Marc Beaudoin of the New Hampshire State Police arrived at the Circle K gas station. By this time, Sergeant Beaudoin had learned that two people had been seriously injured in a shooting in Saco and that there was asuspect in Londonderry. Sergeant Beaudoin understood that the authorities in Maine did not know if the victims were going to live or die.
The Defendant agreed to go to the Londonderry Police Department for questioning. Sergeant Beaudoin, along with Sergeant Nicholas Pinardi of the Londonderry Police Department, conducted a recorded Mirandized interview. When Sergeant Beaudoin told the Defendant that his wife had been shot, the Defendant asked about his wife's status. When told his wife was alive but in surgery, the Defendant briefly lost his composure and then asked about her prognosis. The Defendant then asked what had happened, and Sergeant Beaudoin told the Defendant that the police were investigating. Def.'s Exhibit 1A, 2:29-3:08.
The Defendant told Sergeant Beaudoin that Carol Chabot had picked Rachel Owens up on Monday, December 15th to take her to Maine for a visit. His wife had been staying with the Chabot's—who are close family friends—for a few days. When asked about his whereabouts over the last day, the Defendant stated that:
Later on in the interview, the Defendant gave a somewhat different account of what happened in the evening of December 17th into the early morning of December 18th.
Sergeant Beaudoin left the interview around this point and Detective Jeff Cook of the Saco Police Department eventually took his place. The Defendant told Detective Cook about his midnight trip to the Circle K gas station and his early morning trip to Dunkin Donuts. Def.'s Ex. 1A, 1:24:56-1:27:18.
During the interview, Sergeant Beaudoin asked whether the Defendant owned any firearms, and the Defendant said he had an entire arsenal at his house. Def.'s Ex. 1A, 18:10-18:14. The Defendant explained that he had a rack of pistols becausehe trains with departments that work with 9mm handguns, GLOCK .40 handguns, and the new M&P .40. Def.'s Ex. 1A, 18:18-18:32. Sergeant Beaudoin then specifically asked the Defendant whether he owned any 9mm handguns, and the Defendant said that he owned two. Def.'s Ex. 1A, 19:40-19:44. Sergeant Beaudoin was aware that 9mm casings were recovered at the scene of the crime.
The officers also inquired about the amount of time it normally takes the Defendant to travel to Maine. The Defendant said that it normally takes him 2 hours and 10 minutes to drive from his home in Londonderry to Saco and it would take him longer if the weather was poor. Def.'s Ex. 1A, 25:28 - 25:46. However, the Defendant had told the officers earlier in the interview that it takes him about 90 minutes to travel to his wife's parents' home on Portland Road in Saco. Def.'s Ex. 1A, 6:10-6:26.
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