Johnson v. Commonwealth

522 S.W.3d 207, 2017 WL 2605215, 2017 Ky. App. LEXIS 261
CourtCourt of Appeals of Kentucky
DecidedJune 16, 2017
DocketNO. 2016-CA-000903-MR
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 522 S.W.3d 207 (Johnson v. Commonwealth) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Kentucky primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Johnson v. Commonwealth, 522 S.W.3d 207, 2017 WL 2605215, 2017 Ky. App. LEXIS 261 (Ky. Ct. App. 2017).

Opinion

OPINION

LAMBERT, D., JUDGE!:

• Sinclair Johnson, who stands convicted by virtue of a conditional guilty plea, brings this appeal of a denial of a suppression motion entered by the Madison Circuit Court. He. asks us to review the propriety of the detention following the traffic stop leading to his arrest, Having reviewed the record and finding no error, we affirm.

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Officer Erik Stallworth staked out a Richmond bar, the “Paddy Wagon,” watching for criminal activity. He observed a vehicle for several minutes, during which' time an individual exited the passenger side and walked away while the driver remained. Stallworth followed the car as it left. After having observed the suspicious vehicle make two turns without signaling, Stallworth activated his light bar, in an attempt to pull it over. Only after Stall-worth “chirped” his siren, did the vehicle eventually pull over. Johnson was its only occupant,

Stallworth noticed Johnson’s bloodshot eyes, dilated pupils, and nervous demean- or, testifying in a suppression hearing that those facts led him to believe Johnson may be under the influence. Stallworth observed Johnson repeatedly stick his hands into his pockets. Johnson also failed to provide his registration and insurance information, and refused to open the vehicle’s glove compartment to look for them.

Stallworth asked Johnson to step out of the vehicle for a sobriety test. Johnson initially refused to exit the vehicle, but upon Stallworth opening the door and asking again, he complied. Stallworth testified that Johnson was still reaching into his pockets, and, for officer safety, he briefly handcuffed Johnson to pat him down for [209]*209weapons. The search having yielded no weapons, Stallworth removed the handcuffs and proceeded with the field sobriety tests..

Stallworth directed Johnson to perform several of the most commonly-used testing methods, and concluded that each indicated Johnson to be intoxicated. During the horizontal line nystagmus test, Johnson exhibited a lack of smooth pursuit, and two of the six indicators of intoxication. Johnson swayed while performing the one-leg-stand test. Johnson also lost his balance during the walk-and-turn test, and stepped off the line. At that point, Stallworth informed Johnson that he would be placed under arrest for suspected DUI, and Stall-worth called for a K-9 unit to assist in searching the vehicle.

The K-9 unit arrived as Stallworth was still in the process of arresting Johnson. Goku, the drug dog, indicated the presence of controlled substances in the rear of the vehicle, and a search of the rear bumper revealed methamphetamine and heroin. A search of Stallworth’s person revealed $3,455 in cash.

A grand jury indicted Johnson on drug charges. He moved to suppress the products of the search, arguing that Stallworth had impermissibly extended the traffic stop without probable cause or a reasonable suspicion of criminal activity. The trial court conducted a hearing on the motion and denied it.

Johnson entered a conditional guilty plea, reserving his right to this appeal. He stands convicted of two counts of trafficking in controlled substances in the first degree, and one count of DUI. Johnson received two concurrent five year sentences on the felonies, and a fine, two days to serve, and a thirty-day license suspension for the DUI conviction.

Johnson offers two arguments on ap-: peal, first that the actions of Stallworth in extending the traffic stop violated the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution, and Section 10 of the Kentucky Constitution, and second, that the results of the drug sweep by the dog are invalid for lack of a current certification.

II. ANALYSIS

A. STANDARD OF REVIEW

Examining a trial court’s ruling on a motion to suppress'evidence involves a two-step review. First, the reviewing court must determine whether the trial court’s factual findings were conclusive, which is the case if the findings are supported by substantial evidence. Dixon v. Commonwealth, 149 S.W.3d 426 (Ky. 2004). If the factual findings are conclusive, the application of the law to those findings is reviewed de novo. Ornelas v. United States, 517 U.S. 690, 116 S.Ct. 1657, 134 L.Ed.2d 911, (1996); Commonwealth v. Jones, 217 S.W.3d 190 (Ky. 2006); Commonwealth v. Whitmore, 92 S.W.3d 76 (Ky. 2002). The ruling of the trial court should not be disturbed unless clearly erroneous. Commonwealth v. Neal, 84 S.W.3d 920 (Ky. App. 2002).

B. THE EXTENSION OF THE TRAFFIC STOP DID NOT VIOLATE JOHNSON’S FOURTH AMENDMENT RIGHTS

Johnson argues before this Court that Stallworth’s actions in extending the traffic stop lacked either probable cause or a reasonable articulable suspicion. For this reason, the detention was unlawful as a violation of his constitutional rights and the fruits of any searches should be excluded. We disagree.

“It has long been considered reasonable for an officer to conduct a traffic stop if he [210]*210or she has probable cause to believe that a traffic violation has occurred.” Commonwealth v. Bucalo, 422 S.W.3d 253, 258 (Ky. 2013). The record indicates that Stallworth observed Johnson commit two traffic violations, which justified the initial stop. Johnson’s challenge focuses on the lack of adequate cause for extending the stop.

Johnson argues that law enforcement must not detain a vehicle or its occupants beyond the intrusion reasonably necessary to affect the purpose of the stop. Davis v. Commonwealth, 484 S.W.3d 288, 292 (Ky. 2016) (quoting Turley v. Commonwealth, 399 S.W.3d 412 (Ky. 2013) (quoting U.S. v. Davis, 430 F.3d 345 (6th Cir. 2005))). However, that position ignores a crucial second part of the rule of Davis v. Commonwealth: that even though an officer cannot detain a vehicle or its occupants beyond the accomplishment of the goal of the initial stop, the detention may be lawfully extended when “something happened during the stop to cause the officer to have a reasonable and articulable suspicion that criminal activity [is] afoot.” Id. (quoting Turley at 421, (quoting U.S. v. Davis at 353)).

Thus, our analysis hinges on whether the trial court’s findings reflect a correct conclusion that Stallworth had adequate cause to suspect criminal activity beyond the traffic violations. “Probable cause exists when the totality of the evidence then known to the arresting officer creates a ‘fair probability that the arrested person committed the [offense].” White v. Commonwealth, 132 S.W.3d 877

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Bluebook (online)
522 S.W.3d 207, 2017 WL 2605215, 2017 Ky. App. LEXIS 261, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/johnson-v-commonwealth-kyctapp-2017.