United States v. St. Patrick Stewart
| Decision Date | 17 June 2021 |
| Docket Number | CRIMINAL NO. 3:18-cr-00310 |
| Parties | UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, v. GILROY ST. PATRICK STEWART, Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Middle District of Pennsylvania |
(JUDGE MARIANI)
Here the Court considers Defendant's Motion to Suppress Evidence (Doc. 68). With the pending motion, Defendant seeks suppression of all tangible evidence seized from him or from the vehicle he was driving on August 28, 2018, as a result of the traffic stop which occurred on that date, all statements he made at the time or subsequent to the stop, and the related testimony of law enforcement officers, their agents, and all other persons involved in the traffic stop and subsequent search of the vehicle. (Doc. 68 at 17.) Defendant was the driver and sole occupant of the vehicle from which the Pennsylvania State Police seized approximately twenty kilograms of cocaine as a result of the August 2018 traffic stop. The twenty kilograms of cocaine were found in a hidden compartment located inside the vehicle. On September 11, 2018, a federal grand jury sitting in Scranton, Pennsylvania, returned a one-count indictment charging Defendant with Possession with Intent to Distribute in Excess of Five Kilograms of Cocaine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(A). (Doc. 4.)
The Court conducted a hearing on the motion on April 28, 2021. (Hr'g Tr., Doc. 77.) The Government presented two witnesses: George Tessitore, the Pennsylvania State Police Trooper who conducted the initial traffic stop on August 28, 2018, and Anthony Doblovasky, a Pennsylvania State Police Corporal assigned to the Pennsylvania State Police Canine Unit. (Id.) Defendant did not present any witnesses. (Id.) At the close of the proceedings, a post-hearing briefing schedule was established. (Id. at 165-67.) The parties have now filed their post-hearing briefs (Docs. 80, 81), and the motion is ripe for disposition. For the reasons that follow, the Court will deny Defendant's motion.
On August 28, 2018, Trooper Tessitore was in a stationary position monitoring traffic at mile marker 275.4 of Interstate 80 located in Carbon County, Pennsylvania. (Hr'g Tr. 7:14-25, Doc. 77 at 7.) He observed a Chrysler van displaying a New York registration to have heavily tinted front windows, dark rear windows, and a large license plate frame which obscured part of the license plate. (Hr'g Tr. 8:1-14, Doc. 77 at 8.) Trooper Tessitore testified that both the window tint and the license plate frame would be violations of the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code, sections 45.24(e)(1) and 1332(b)(3) respectively. (Hr'g Tr. 8:14-17, Doc. 77 at 8.)
Trooper Tessitore followed the van westbound in his marked patrol car and initiated a traffic stop. (Hr'g Tr. 8:18-22, Doc. 77 at 8.) His car was equipped with a Mobile Video Recorder ("MVR") which, upon activation of the emergency lights, backs up about thirtyseconds and then records audio and visual with the Trooper wearing a microphone and a dash-mounted camera facing forward to record the video. (Hr'g Tr. 11:9-18, Doc. 77 at 11.)
Submitted as Government Exhibit 5, the MVR recording shows that Trooper Tessitore exits his patrol car and approaches the van on the passenger side at 18:28:16.1 Trooper Tessitore then identifies himself and asks Defendant, who was alone in the vehicle, for his driver's license. Defendant provides the license and says the he lives at the Cleveland, Ohio, address displayed on the driver's license. Trooper Tessitore also asks for the vehicle's registration and insurance information, which Defendant produces. Trooper Tessitore then explains the reasons for the traffic stop, stating that the vehicle has excessively dark tinted windows and that the large plate frame around the license plate of the vehicle prevetns the state of issuance - in this instance "New York" - from being clearly visible. Trooper Tessitore asks whether Defendant was on his way back to Cleveland, and Defendant replies "yes." When asked where Baldwin, New York (the place where the vehicle was registered) is located, Defendant laughs and says "you know where Baldwin is." Trooper Tessitore responds that he does not know where Baldwin, New York, is and receives no further response. Defendant also said that the vehicle is registered to his "aunt" and that he is returning to Cleveland from New York. Trooper Tessitore asks how long Defendant had been in New York, and Defendant initially replies "huh?" and then states"just a couple days." Defendant further explains that he had just taken his daughter back to school and is using the vehicle "temporarily." He tells Trooper Tessitore that he is taking the vehicle back.
These events took place during the first two minutes of the stop—from approximately 18:28:40 to 18:30:04. Thereafter, Trooper Tessitore tells Defendant that he will be back in a few minutes and returns to his patrol car, attempting to look through the windows of the van along the way. At 18:34:20, Defendant exits from the driver's side of his vehicle and walks around to the rear of the van to view the license plate. Trooper Tessitore then exits his patrol car and tells Defendant that he is not supposed to get out of the van. (MVR 18:34:31.) Trooper Tessitore then directs Defendant to stand next to the front passenger door of the police car and returns to his vehicle. At 18:35:02, he asks Defendant how he came to possess the van since Defendant lives in Cleveland and the van is registered to his aunt in Baldwin, New York. Defendant responds that his aunt "lives in Cleveland too." Defendant states, "she has that car, I took my daughter to New York," and that he is now "bringing the car back, that's all." Defendant laughs and explains that his aunt goes back and forth (between Cleveland and New York) and that his aunt owns a nursing home in Cleveland, adding that it is very hard to own anything in New York. (MVR 18:35:02 - 18:35:41). Trooper Tessitore then asks whether Defendant is from New York or Cleveland, and Defendant responds that he lives in Cleveland. Trooper Tessitore again inquires as to when Defendant went to New York, and he replies, "I told you, a couple days ago, to bringmy daughter back to school." When Trooper Tessitore asks where he stayed in New York, Defendant replies that "she stays at the University." Trooper Tessitore responds, "yeah that's where she stays, but where did you stay out in New York?" Defendant replies, "I have family in New York," and again laughs. (MVT 18:36:22.) Trooper Tessitore can then be heard on the MVR entering and receiving information.
At 18:40:10, Trooper Tessitore asks whether the registered owner of the vehicle resides at Defendant's address. After receiving a negative response, Trooper Tessitore then asks for the owner's address in Cleveland and, Defendant provides the address 664 South Green Road. More "beeps" can be heard on the patrol car computer.
At 18:42:10, Trooper Tessitore informs Defendant that he is going to issue him a "warning" for the vehicle code violations. At 18:44:18, Trooper Tessitore asks whether Defendant has his own vehicle and how he gets around. He replies that he does not have his own car but his girlfriend helps him get around. Defendant indicates that he had a car, but his daughter crashed it, so he had to sell it. Trooper Tessitore then asks what his daughter is going to school for, and Defendant replies, "right now, I mean she's doing her second year . . . she told me. . . oh, I want to be an accountant, then she wants IT . . . and I'm like, you're on a scholarship, I don't care, just graduate."
At 18:46:10, Trooper Tessitore asks what kind of work Defendant does, and he replies that he has a mechanic shop and also buys and sells cars at auctions. Defendant then talks about his daughter crashing his car in the summer and talks about buying anothervehicle, perhaps a truck. Defendant then asks Trooper Tessitore about kids and engages in small talk, telling Trooper Tessitore that he is going through a divorce and likes to work out to stay in shape.
At 18:47:49, Trooper Tessitore states that he needs to verify some numbers on the vehicle and approaches the windshield of the van. While at the front of the van, Trooper Tessitore can be seen speaking into his radio and heard saying "Five to Fern Ridge." On his way back to the patrol car, Trooper Tessitore again looks at the tint on the windows of the van and comments "that's dark . . . you got tint on your tint." Defendant responds that the windows are "factory issue." Trooper Tessitore again looks at the rear window and says "I don't know . . . that's dark."
Trooper Tessitore then re-enters his patrol car and, at 18:49:05, again contacts the Fern Ridge State Police Barracks for back-up. He repeats his request and, shortly thereafter, the dispatcher can be heard indicating that another unit is being sent to the scene.
At 18:52:14, Defendant asks, "so it's just a warning for [the plate frame] and the tint?" Trooper Tessitore responds in the affirmative. At 18:57:42, Trooper Tessitore tells Defendant, "It will just be a couple more minutes, I'm just waiting for some information to come back." At 18:59:01, Trooper Tessitore asks for the specific name of the person to whom the van is registered. Defendant replies, "I just told you that, Hazel, my aunt.
At 18:59:34, Trooper Tessitore exits the patrol car. A back-up State Police unit has arrived on scene. Trooper Tessitore hands Defendant the warning saying "there's your stuff, that's the warning I printed out." Trooper Tessitore then asks Defendant whether there is anything illegal in the vehicle. Defendant responds, "hell no!" Trooper Tessitore asks whether there are any weapons, drugs or large amounts of money in the vehicle, and Defendant responds to each question in the negative. At this point, Trooper Tessitore asks for Defendant's consent to search the van.
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