Bates v. State

1952 OK CR 163, 251 P.2d 810, 96 Okla. Crim. 202, 1952 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 249
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma
DecidedDecember 17, 1952
DocketA-11622
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 1952 OK CR 163 (Bates v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bates v. State, 1952 OK CR 163, 251 P.2d 810, 96 Okla. Crim. 202, 1952 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 249 (Okla. Ct. App. 1952).

Opinion

BRETT, P. J.

Plaintiff in error, Robert G. Bates, defendant below, was-charged by information in the common pleas court of Tulsa county, Oklahoma, with the offense of unlawful possession of intoxicating liquor, allegedly committed on or about the 3rd day of April, 1950. To this charge the defendant entered, his plea of not guilty. Thereafter he filed his motion to suppress the evidence, alleging that the same was obtained by an unlawful search and seizure. On September 5, 1950, the defendant waived a jury and consented to the trial of the case to the judge, Honorable Stanley C. Edmister. By stipulation it was agreed that the evidence on the motion to suppress might be considered as the evidence on the merits of the case. Upon hearing the evidence, the trial judge overruled the motion to . suppress, and thereafter, on May 29, 1950, adjudged the defendant guilty, fixing his punishment at 30 days in jail and a fine of $100, and entered judgment accordingly. The motion for new trial was overruled on June 1, 1950, and the appeal perfected herein, including briefs by the plaintiff in error and the state on August 14, 1952.

The decisive question necessary for determination of the issues herein is Did the trial court err in overruling the defendant’s motion to suppress the evidence? The evidence discloses that four officers, Whisenhunt, Roy Raines, Bell and Eloyd Jordan, were cruising around Tulsa on November 3, 1950. In their cruise, while driving north, they passed the defendant’s house located at 123-South 68th East Avenue. The defendant was a known bootlegger; his house was located on the east side of the street with a garage and driveway north of the house. The garage was located about 50 or 60 feet from the center of the street. The defendant’s automobile was parked near the garage but slightly north and off of the driveway. The automobile was headed east, and two of the officers testified was turned slightly at an angle to the south. Officers Eloyd Jordan and Roy Raines were the only officers to testify. It is interesting to note in this connection that Officer Whisenhunt who was supposed to have discovered the whiskey did not testify. Officer Eloyd Jordan testified that as they drove by the defendant’s residence and reached a point about even with -the south side of the defendant’s driveway, Officer Whisenhunt said, “There is some whiskey sticking out of Bob’s ear.” Officer Raines testified he believed it was AVhisenhunt who said, “Looks like some lugs of whiskey in there.” Erom where the officers placed their car when the remark about whiskey was made, we are of the belief it would have been impossible to have seen the packages, and if not, certainly impossible to identify them from that position and distance. Both Officers Jordan and Raines testified the right-hand door of the defendant’s car was wide open, and the whiskey was sitting on the front seat. Officer Jordan testified it was “right out on the edge, could have been a little farther out. We could see the front part of the lugs; yes”. He likewise testified he did not know it was whiskey, and repeatedly testified what he saw was wrapped in br'own paper. Notwithstanding, at one place he testified that he could see the necks of the bottles. Officer Raines likewise relied on the sight and remark of Officer Whisenhunt as hereinbefore set forth. He said after they backed up from where he was that from where they were parked he thought what he saw was whiskey. He admitted, however, he did not know it was whiskey. Officer Jordan testified that they drove into the driveway. On this point Officer Raines testified that they did not drive into the driveway but got out and walked into the driveway. Officer Jordan testified that the defendant was around the back painting some boxes and that he came to the front. When he appeared they asked the defendant Bates what he had in the car, whereupon the defendant asked if they had a search warrant, and he was informed *204 that they did not, to which the defendant he said replied, “Do you police have a right to come in here without a search warrant”. Officer Floyd testified that Whisenhunt said in reply to that, “We saw the whiskey from the street”. The whiskey was seized without a search warrant but the defendant, Bates, was not arrested. The officers removed the whiskey to the courthouse, and later filed charges against Bates and told him to report to them for the purpose of arrest.

The search and seizure herein is sought to be sustained upon the proposition the offense was committed in the officers’ presence and hence such being the case a lawful search and seizure was made incident thereto. In connection with this contention the state cites Griffin v. State, 90 Okla. Cr. 90, 210 P. 2d 671; Farmer v. State, 86 Okla. Cr. 308, 192 P. 2d 716; Franklin v. State, 71 Okla. Cr. 115, 109 P. 2d 239; Nott v. State, 70 Okla. Cr. 432, 107 P. 2d 366; Matthews v. State, 67 Okla. Cr. 203, 93 P. 2d 549; Young v. State, 71 Okla. Cr. 112, 108 P. 2d 1028; Edwards v. State, 83 Okla. Cr. 340, 177 P. 2d 143. These cases are distinguishable from the case at bar and therefore are not in point; therein the facts supposed the commission of an offense in the officers’ presence. From the foregoing evidence herein, it clearly appears that neither of the officers who testified knew what they saw from the street was whiskey. This conclusion is borne out first by the fact that they relied on the hearsay conclusion of Ofifcer Whisenhunt that it was whiskey (an altogether unlawful and unwarranted evidentiary premise upon which to predicate a conviction. No man would be safe from unlawful search and seizure if such a precedent was established), and, second, by the further fact that they did not know it was whiskey and, third, by the testimony of Officer Jordan to the effect that they asked the defendant what he had in the car. It would not have been necessary for the officers to have inquired what was in the car if they had known the lugs on the front seat wrapped in heavy brown paper actually contained whiskey. Furthermore, the testimony of Officer Jordan to the effect that he could see the necks of the fifths is reduced to an absurdity, for if such had been the ease and with the door wide open as the officers testified it was, they would have seen the Government stamps thereon, hence, it would not have been necessary to have inquired what was in the car, for by their knowledge and experience they would have recognized from the unbroken Government stamps that the contents of the bottles was whiskey. Moreover, if they were all 'in lugs, three fifths to the lug, and 6 pints to the lug, covered with brown paper, as they testified, then of course they could not have absolutely known what they saw was whiskey, regardless of however strong may have been their suspicion. Then, too, with the car facing east as the officers testified it was as they drove north, parked as they said at a slight angle to the southeast and if the lugs of whiskey sitting on the front seat, even right out on the edge, it would have been impossible for them to determine from the street that what they saw was whiskey. Even, as it was impossible for them to determine what they were looking at was whiskey, when they came alongside of the car and asked the defendant what was in the ear. It is apparent what the officers knew was this, that a bootlegger lived there and the very sight of his car aroused their suspicions and they determined to go upon his premises even as trespassers without a search warrant, where they had the conversation with the defendant as hereinbefore related and thereafter searching the automobile found the liquor.

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Related

State v. Kehlenbach
232 A.2d 769 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 1967)
Harrell v. State
1963 OK CR 22 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1963)
Merwin v. State
1954 OK CR 111 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1954)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
1952 OK CR 163, 251 P.2d 810, 96 Okla. Crim. 202, 1952 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 249, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bates-v-state-oklacrimapp-1952.