Ahmad v. State

719 S.E.2d 563, 312 Ga. App. 703, 2011 Fulton County D. Rep. 3803, 2011 Ga. App. LEXIS 1032
CourtCourt of Appeals of Georgia
DecidedNovember 18, 2011
DocketA11A1174
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 719 S.E.2d 563 (Ahmad v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ahmad v. State, 719 S.E.2d 563, 312 Ga. App. 703, 2011 Fulton County D. Rep. 3803, 2011 Ga. App. LEXIS 1032 (Ga. Ct. App. 2011).

Opinion

Phipps, Presiding Judge.

A jury found Joseph Mitwalli Ahmad guilty of trafficking in methamphetamine; trafficking in 3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphet-amine (also known as ecstasy); possession of ecstasy; possession of methamphetamine; violation of the Georgia Controlled Substances Act for possessing trifluoromethylphenyl, piperazine, and benzyly-piperazine; driving with a suspended license; and driving with no [704]*704insurance. On appeal, Ahmad contends the trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress, failing to give his requested charge on the defense of mistake of fact, and sentencing him separately for trafficking in methamphetamine and trafficking in ecstasy. Finding no error, we affirm.

1. Ahmad contends the trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress because it was not reasonably necessary to impound his vehicle and the resulting inventory search was unlawful. We disagree.

While the trial court’s findings as to disputed facts in a ruling on a motion to suppress will be reviewed to determine whether the ruling was clearly erroneous, where the evidence is uncontroverted and no question regarding the credibility of witnesses is presented, the trial court’s application of the law to undisputed facts is subject to de novo appellate review.1

Ahmad and the state agree that the evidence is uncontroverted and no question regarding the credibility of witnesses is presented; as such, this court will review the trial court’s application of the law to the undisputed facts de novo.

The evidence shows that as the arresting officer was talking to the driver (Ahmad’s wife) of a car stopped for a tag violation, Ahmad parked his car in a nearby parking lot and approached the officer on foot. The officer (who, prior to the stop, had telephoned the dispatcher and confirmed Ahmad’s license was suspended) advised Ahmad that his license was suspended, and asked him why he was driving with a suspended license. Ahmad was unable to produce a driver’s license and was placed under arrest. Having obtained information from the Georgia Crime Information Center that neither vehicle had insurance coverage, the officer requested officer assistance to conduct inventory searches of the vehicles for impound. Before searching Ahmad’s vehicle, however, the officer asked Ahmad whether he had a preference regarding a wrecker service; Ahmad replied that it did not matter. A search of Ahmad’s vehicle revealed a bag of pills, a bottle of pills, and $427 in cash.

Ahmad contends that it was not reasonably necessary to impound his vehicle because it was parked on private property and that the policy of the sheriffs office to impound all uninsured vehicles regardless of the attendant circumstances is unreasonable as a matter of law.

[705]*705Justification for an inventory search is premised upon the validity of the impoundment of the vehicle.2 A police officer is authorized to make an inventory of the contents of a vehicle that has been impounded.3 “The ultimate test for the validity of the police’s conduct in impounding a vehicle is whether, under the circumstances then confronting the police, their conduct was reasonable within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment.”4

[A] police seizure and inventory is not dependent for its validity upon the absolute necessity for the police to take charge of property to preserve it. They are permitted to take charge of property under broader circumstances than that. Inventory searches have two purposes: to protect the vehicle and the property in it, and to safeguard the police or other officers from claims of lost possessions.5 The decisive evidentiary issue in cases involving inventory searches is the existence of reasonableness rather than the existence of exigent circumstances.6

“The argument that an automobile must be an impediment to traffic before it can be lawfully impounded has been rejected.”7

In Duvall v. State,8 after arresting the defendant for driving without a license and insurance, the officer impounded the vehicle and conducted an inventory search. The search revealed a gun, drug paraphernalia, and cocaine.9 That defendant argued that, because his vehicle was legally parked, it was unnecessary to remove it and that an alternative to impoundment existed because his companion could have driven the vehicle.10 We found that it was reasonable for the officer to impound the vehicle because there was potential liability involved in allowing the vehicle to remain unattended in a parking lot of a business.11 We also found that it was not unreasonable for the [706]*706officer to refuse to allow the defendant’s companion to drive the vehicle, as there was no proof that the vehicle was insured.12

Ahmad’s reliance on State v. Bell,13 is misplaced. In that case, a defendant was arrested for violating a municipal ordinance completely unconnected to the operation of his vehicle.14 In this case, Ahmad’s arrest was directly related to the impounded vehicle.

Nobody could have legally driven Ahmad’s vehicle from the location of arrest because it was uninsured.15 When given an opportunity, Ahmad expressed no preference regarding towing companies and allowed the arresting officer to make the towing arrangements.16 Therefore, it was necessary for the police to exercise at least temporary dominion over the vehicle.17 Under the circumstances, it was reasonable for the police to impound the vehicle and inventory its contents to protect Ahmad’s property and to protect against claims of lost or stolen property while the vehicle was in the possession of the police or its contractors.18 Thus, the court did not err in denying Ahmad’s motion to suppress.19

The legislature having recognized that “uninsured vehicles pose a threat to the public safety and health,”20 we cannot say that where a person is arrested for a crime directly related to the operation of his vehicle, the policy of the sheriffs office to impound the arrestee’s uninsured vehicle is unreasonable as a matter of law.

2. Ahmad contends the trial court erred by failing to give his requested jury charge on the defense of mistake of fact. We find no merit in Ahmad’s assertions.

With respect to the affirmative defense of mistake of fact, “[a] person shall not be found guilty of a crime if the act or omission to act constituting the crime was induced by a misapprehension of fact which, if true, would have justified the act or omission.”21

As a rule, the trial court must charge the jury on an affirmative defense such as mistake of fact if the defense is [707]*707raised by the evidence. The trial court is not, however, required to charge the jury on mistake of fact if the charge is not authorized by the evidence. . . ,22

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Bluebook (online)
719 S.E.2d 563, 312 Ga. App. 703, 2011 Fulton County D. Rep. 3803, 2011 Ga. App. LEXIS 1032, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ahmad-v-state-gactapp-2011.