Colocado v. State

251 So. 2d 721, 1971 Fla. App. LEXIS 6214
District Court of Appeal of Florida·Decided March 16, 1971·No. No. O-109·Published·Cited by 3 cases

Opinion

WIGGINTON, Acting Chief Judge.

Appellant seeks review of a judgment of conviction and sentence based upon a jury verdict finding him guilty of the unlawful possession of a narcotic drug, to wit, cannabis sativa.

By his first point on appeal appellant challenges the correctness of the trial court’s ruling which admitted into evidence over appellant’s objection a statement given by him to the arresting officer that he was in control and charge of the premises described in the search warrant, a search of which premises produced the evidence on which appellant was convicted.

Based upon information furnished by a confidential informant, the police officers obtained a search warrant to search the premises on which appellant was found. Upon entering the dwelling the officers found therein appellant and two other individuals. The officers identified themselves and inquired as to who was in charge of the premises. In response to this general inquiry appellant responded that he was, whereupon the search warrant was read, a search of the premises made, and a large quantity of cannabis sativa found.

It is appellant’s position that his admission of being the one in charge of the premises was highly incriminating and was made in response to interrogation by the officers before they had informed him of his constitutional right to counsel and to remain silent as required by Miranda v. Arizona.1 Based upon this contention appellant insists that the court erred in permitting the officer to testify as to his admission of control of the premises where the illegal contraband was found.

It is our view that appellant’s position is without merit and must be rejected. The statutes of this state relating to the issuance and execution of search warrants require that when such a warrant is executed, a copy thereof shall be delivered by the of[723] ficer either to the person named in the warrant or, in his absence, to some person in charge of or living on the premises. The statute further requires that if property is taken under the warrant, the officer shall deliver to such person a written inventory of the property and a receipt therefor.2 When the officer in the case sub judice inquired of the three occupants of the premises which one was in charge or control thereof, he was merely discharging his statutory obligation of determining the identity of such person in order that a copy of the warrant and inventory could be read and delivered to him. The inquiry did not in any sense constitute an in-custody interrogation of one suspected of crime while in a police dominated atmosphere. The Miranda decision itself exempts from its operation general on-the-scene questioning which is customarily made by investigating officers during the fact finding process. It was necessary that the search warrant be executed as it was before an investigation of the suspected crime could be commenced. At that stage of the proceedings the investigation had not yet focused on .the appellant as a suspect. The warnings spoken of in Miranda do not attach until that point in time when the process shifts from investigatory to accusatory — when its focus is on the accused and its purpose to elicit a confession.3 Such point had not been reached when the challenged inquiry regarding control of the premises was made, and the inculpatory answer given.

By his last point on appeal, appellant urges that the trial court erred by imposing upon him a sentence beyond the maximum limits prescribed by law. The record reveals that appellant was sentenced to imprisonment at hard labor in the state prison for a period of five years, which is the maximum sentence which may be imposed under the statute for one convicted of possessing the drug involved in this case.4 In addition, the court sentenced appellant to pay a fine of $5,000.00, and in default of payment of said fine to be imprisoned by confinement at hard labor in the state prison for a period of one year to run consecutively with the previous sentence imposed; to pay to the State of Florida for the use of Escambia County the costs of the prosecution assessed at $150.00, and in default of payment of said costs to be imprisoned by confinement at hard labor in the state prison for an additional three months; to pay Florida Police Academy costs of $1.00 or one day additional. From the sentence imposed it is required that appellant, who was an adjudged indigent, must, in addition to the five years imprisonment for which he is sentenced, serve an additional one year to run consecutively with the five year sentence if he defaults in the payment of the $5,000.00 fine imposed upon him, and serve an additional period of three months and one day in the event of his default in payment of the court costs assessed against him.

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Colocado v. State, 251 So. 2d 721, 1971 Fla. App. LEXIS 6214 (Fla. Ct. App. 1971).

251 So. 2d 721 (Colocado v. State) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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