Henderson v. People

879 P.2d 383, 18 Brief Times Rptr. 1006, 1994 Colo. LEXIS 511, 1994 WL 257148
CourtSupreme Court of Colorado
DecidedJune 13, 1994
Docket93SC339
StatusPublished
Cited by33 cases

This text of 879 P.2d 383 (Henderson v. People) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Colorado primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Henderson v. People, 879 P.2d 383, 18 Brief Times Rptr. 1006, 1994 Colo. LEXIS 511, 1994 WL 257148 (Colo. 1994).

Opinions

Justice ERICKSON

delivered the Opinion of the Court.

We granted certiorari to review People v. Henderson, 847 P.2d 239 (Colo.App.1993), which involved the observations of a police officer from a television news helicopter of marijuana plants on residential property. The court of appeals held that the helicopter flight over the defendant’s property was not a search and that the warrant to search the defendant’s property was supported by probable cause. On appeal, the defendant claims that the court of appeals erred in determining that the news reporter who flew the helicopter could assert the Colorado statutory newsperson’s privilege and therefore was not required to testify at a suppression hearing. We affirm the judgment of the court of appeals.

I

In July, 1989, Officer Greg Bohlen, an undercover narcotics investigator for the South Metro Task Force, received an anonymous telephone call. The caller informed Officer Bohlen that Bernard Henderson had recently cultivated and sold marijuana from his residence at 4466 West Bowles Avenue in Littleton. The caller also stated that he observed $5,000 in cash, scales that are commonly used to weigh marijuana, and a number of weapons. Based on this information, Officer Bohlen placed the residence under surveillance for several days but did not observe any illegal activity.

On September 7, 1989, Detective Daniel F. Rupp received an anonymous call implicating Henderson in illegal activities. The caller indicated that Henderson lived at 4466 West Bowles Avenue, that there was Chevy pickup truck and a Harley Davidson motorcycle parked at the residence, and that marijuana was being grown in a shed behind the house. Detective Rupp conveyed this information to Officer Bohlen and the two officers went to the residence, walked around it, but saw nothing unusual.

Prior to September 8,1989, Officer Bohlen had attempted to secure the use of a helicopter for a fly-over of another location in an unrelated investigation. When he was unable to obtain a law-enforcement helicopter, Officer Bohlen entered into an agreement for the use of a helicopter operated by television station KUSA Channel 9. KUSA agreed to provide a helicopter to Officer Bohlen and Agent Dan Johnson so that the officers could take photographs of the location in exchange for the right to report on the drug investigation.

On September 8, the morning Officer Boh-len was to participate in the fly-over of the unrelated property, he received another anonymous telephone call from the same call[386]*386er regarding the alleged drug activity at 4466 West Bowles. The informant again indicated that he had been to the property and that Henderson was growing marijuana in a shed behind his house. The informant stated that Henderson retrieved a five-foot-tall marijuana plant from the shed and sold it to the informant’s companion for $500. Additionally, the caller informed Officer Bohlen that he was aware of a substantial drug deal that took place at Henderson’s residence a week prior to the call and that Henderson had automatic weapons in his house. As a result of the calls of the anonymous informant, Officer Bohlen asked the helicopter pilot for KUSA, Peter Peelgrane, if Peelgrane would fly him over Henderson’s house. Peelgrane agreed to fly over Henderson’s house after flying over the property that was the subject of the unrelated investigation.

Officer Bohlen, Peelgrane, Agent Johnson, and a photographer for KUSA made four or five passes over Henderson’s residence during a period of approximately five minutes. Officer Bohlen observed a shed to the south of the residence with a plastic roof “with green plant material growing underneath the plastic.” Officer Bohlen stated that the helicopter stayed between 500 and 700 feet in altitude. He based his altitude estimate on his experience flying in helicopters. Although he could not describe the plants in detail, based on his special education in drug identification and on his law enforcement experience, Officer Bohlen concluded that the plants were marijuana. Photographs were taken by the two police officers. Additionally, video tape was taken by the KUSA news photographer and was subsequently used in a news broadcast.

At about four o’clock on that same day, the anonymous caller telephoned again and told Officer Bohlen that Henderson had seen the helicopter fly over his residence and had ended his illegal gardening pursuits by uprooting and moving the marijuana plants.

The authorities subsequently obtained a no-knoek search warrant and seized evidence, including roots, stalks, leaves, and other remnants of marijuana as well as cultivation equipment and fertilizer. Guns, scales, plastic bags, a pipe, and a bag of marijuana were found inside the house.

On October 31, 1989, a felony complaint was filed in Arapahoe County Court charging Henderson with one count of cultivation of marijuana,1 and one count of conspiracy to cultivate marijuana.2 Henderson pleaded not guilty on April 20, 1990.

Prior to trial, Henderson issued a subpoena to Peelgrane in an attempt to elicit testimony from him at a hearing on a motion to suppress evidence. Counsel for KUSA and Peelgrane moved to quash the subpoena, invoking the newsperson’s privilege set forth in section 13-90-119, 6A C.R.S. (1993 Supp.). The trial court held that the privilege applied and quashed the subpoena. At the conclusion of the suppression hearing, the trial court denied Henderson’s motion to suppress.

Trial to a jury commenced on August 22, 1990, and on August 30, 1990, the jury returned a verdict of guilty on both charges. On December 19, 1990, the trial court sentenced Henderson to eight years on the substantive count and four years on the conspiracy count with the sentences to run concurrently.

Henderson appealed and the court of appeals affirmed the convictions. The court of appeals held that the fly-over by the KUSA helicopter did not constitute a search under either the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution or article II, section 7 of the Colorado Constitution, that the search warrant issued was not infirm, and that Peel-grane was protected from giving testimony by the newsperson’s privilege. People v. Henderson, 847 P.2d 239 (Colo.App.1993).

II

The court of appeals held that the fly-over was not a search under the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution and did not violate article II, section 7 of the Colorado Constitution. Henderson, 847 P.2d [387]*387at 241. Under the facts of this case, we agree.

A

The Fourth Amendment protects: “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures.” U.S. Const, amend. IV. “The basic purpose of this Amendment ... is to safeguard the privacy and security of individuals against arbitrary invasions by government officials.” Camara v. Municipal Court, 387 U.S. 523, 528, 87 S.Ct. 1727, 1730, 18 L.Ed.2d 930 (1967). Therefore, warrants are generally required before a governmental agency or official may conduct a search. See United States v. Karo, 468 U.S. 705, 714-15, 104 S.Ct. 3296, 3303, 82 L.Ed.2d 530 (1984) (stating that warrantless searches are presumptively unreasonable).

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

v. Alemayehu
2021 COA 69 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2021)
v. Tafoya
2019 COA 176 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2019)
Glenn R. Funk v. Scripps Media, Inc.
570 S.W.3d 205 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 2019)
People v. Triplett
411 P.3d 1054 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2016)
State v. Davis
2015 NMSC 034 (New Mexico Supreme Court, 2015)
People v. Webb
2014 CO 36 (Supreme Court of Colorado, 2014)
People v. Glick
250 P.3d 578 (Supreme Court of Colorado, 2011)
People v. Zamora
220 P.3d 996 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2009)
State v. Bryant
2008 VT 39 (Supreme Court of Vermont, 2008)
People v. Schall
59 P.3d 848 (Supreme Court of Colorado, 2002)
People v. Masters
33 P.3d 1191 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2001)
Gordon v. Boyles
9 P.3d 1106 (Supreme Court of Colorado, 2000)
People v. Outlaw
998 P.2d 20 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2000)
People Ex Rel. Ac
991 P.2d 304 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 2000)
People v. Mason
989 P.2d 757 (Supreme Court of Colorado, 1999)
People v. Shepard
983 P.2d 1 (Supreme Court of Colorado, 1999)
Quigley v. Rosenthal
43 F. Supp. 2d 1163 (D. Colorado, 1999)
People v. Meraz
961 P.2d 481 (Supreme Court of Colorado, 1998)
People v. Altman
960 P.2d 1164 (Supreme Court of Colorado, 1998)
People v. Altman
940 P.2d 1009 (Colorado Court of Appeals, 1997)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
879 P.2d 383, 18 Brief Times Rptr. 1006, 1994 Colo. LEXIS 511, 1994 WL 257148, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/henderson-v-people-colo-1994.