Melton v. State

118 So. 3d 605, 2012 WL 4785151, 2012 Miss. App. LEXIS 618
CourtCourt of Appeals of Mississippi
DecidedOctober 9, 2012
DocketNo. 2011-KA-00642-COA
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 118 So. 3d 605 (Melton v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Mississippi primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Melton v. State, 118 So. 3d 605, 2012 WL 4785151, 2012 Miss. App. LEXIS 618 (Mich. Ct. App. 2012).

Opinion

IRVING, P.J.,

for the Court:

¶ 1. On March 2, 2011, a jury found Barry Lemax Melton guilty of possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell or distribute. The Harrison County Circuit Court sentenced Melton as a habitual offender to forty years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. Melton filed a motion for a new trial or, in the alternative, a judgment notwithstanding the verdict (JNOV), which the circuit court denied. Feeling aggrieved, Melton appeals and argues that the circuit court erred in: (1) admitting evidence obtained in violation of his Fourth Amendment rights, (2) denying his motion for a new trial, (3) denying his motion for a JNOV, and (4) failing to order a mistrial.

¶ 2. Finding no error, we affirm.

FACTS

¶ 3. On January 13, 2009, Officer Luis Garcia, with the Gulfport Police Department, stopped Melton’s vehicle when he made a right-hand turn without using a turn signal. When Officer Garcia approached Melton’s vehicle, he requested Melton’s driver’s license. Melton informed Officer Garcia that his driver’s license had been suspended. Officer Garcia instructed Melton to exit his vehicle. After Melton exited his vehicle, Officer Garcia asked Melton if he had any weapons. Melton responded that he had a knife and reached toward his jacket pocket. Officer Garcia told Melton not to reach for the knife and ordered him to place his hands on the vehicle. Officer Garcia then removed Melton’s knife and frisked him. He felt a bulge in Melton’s left pocket, which turned out to be a black pouch. Officer Garcia removed the pouch, opened it, and found two glass pipes. After placing Melton under arrest, Officer Garcia called a tow truck to take Melton’s vehicle to the police impound lot. At some point prior to the tow truck’s arrival, Officer Tim Adams of the Gulfport Police Department arrived on the scene to conduct an inventory search of Melton’s vehicle. Officer Adams testified that the search was conducted according to the Gulfport Police Department’s policy.

¶ 4. During the inventory search, Officer Adams discovered a black pouch on the floor next to the driver’s seat. Officer Adams opened the pouch and found two clear tubes containing a white substance and three empty plastic “baggies.” He approached Melton, who was by then secured in Officer Garcia’s vehicle, read him his Miranda1 rights, and asked Melton to identify the white substance. Melton told Officer Adams that the white substance was methamphetamine. Melton was then taken to the Gulfport Police Department and booked for possession of a controlled substance.

¶ 5. At the police department, Sergeant Aaron Fore interviewed Melton. During the interview, Melton stated that he had made seven grams of methamphetamine that day. He said that he had sold approximately two grams, given some away, and used approximately .5 grams before Officer Garcia arrested him. Melton also confirmed that he told Officer Garcia that his driver’s license had been suspended [608]*608and that he did not use a turn signal because the signal light on the right side of his vehicle did not work. Additionally, Melton admitted that he had intentionally “stashed the dope” to keep both Officer Garcia and his companion2 from seeing it.

¶ 6. Dr. Thomas Pittman, who was the director of the drug-identification laboratory that weighed and tested the white substance found in Melton’s vehicle, testified that the substance weighed 1.63 grams and was methamphetamine. Sergeant Fore testified that, based on his training and experience with narcotics cases, the amount of methamphetamine possessed for personal use would be less than .25 grams.

¶ 7. Prior to trial, Melton filed a motion to suppress all evidence stemming from the traffic stop, which the circuit court denied. Melton also filed a motion in li-mine requesting that the circuit court exclude “any and all evidence that may be presented as 404(b)3 evidence against him” and “any and all evidence regarding any uncharged criminal actions.” The circuit court granted the motion. Nevertheless, during Sergeant Fore’s testimony, the State introduced Melton’s unredacted, audio-recorded police statement, where Melton suggested that he had committed other criminal acts.

¶ 8. Additional facts, as necessary, will be related during our analysis and discussion of the issues.

ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF THE ISSUES

1. Fourth Amendment Violation

¶ 9. Melton argues that the circuit court erred in admitting evidence stemming from the traffic stop. Melton contends that the traffic stop was illegal; thus, any evidence recovered during the stop was inadmissible.

¶ 10. Appellate courts apply a mixed standard of review to Fourth Amendment claims. Eaddy v. State, 63 So.3d 1209, 1212 (¶ 11) (Miss.2011). Determinations of reasonable suspicion or probable cause are reviewed de novo. Id. However, the circuit court’s factual findings are reviewed under the substantial-evidence and clearly-erroneous standards. Id. Here, there are no factual disputes concerning the circumstances surrounding the traffic stop. Therefore, we will only review the circuit court’s application of the law to the undisputed facts.

¶ 11. The Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution and Article 3, Section 23 of the Mississippi Constitution prohibit unreasonable searches and seizures. Dies v. State, 926 So.2d 910, 917-18 (¶ 21) (Miss.2006). The Fourth Amendment’s reasonableness requirement extends to brief investigatory stops of a vehicle. Id. at 918 (¶ 21). The Mississippi Supreme Court has held that an investigatory stop is reasonable as long as the officer has “probable cause to believe that a traffic violation has occurred.” Moore v. State, 986 So.2d 928, 934 (¶ 19) (Miss.2008) (quoting Harrison v. State, 800 So.2d 1134, 1138 (¶ 18) (Miss.2001)). In Mississippi, the test for probable cause is the totality of the circumstances. Id. (quoting Harrison, 800 So.2d at 1138 (¶ 18)).

¶ 12. Melton contends that he was the victim of an illegal, pretextual traffic stop. The State responds that Melton’s violation of Mississippi Code Annotated section 63-3-707 (Rev.2004) provided probable cause for Officer Garcia to initiate the [609]*609stop. Section 63-3-707 provides in pertinent part:

No person shall turn a vehicle from a direct course upon a highway unless and until ... after giving a clearly audible signal ... or after giving an appropriate signal in the manner provided in this article in the event any other vehicle may be affected by such movement.
A signal of intention to turn right or left shall be given continuously for a reasonable distance before turning.

(Emphasis added). Melton argues that he was not required to use a turn signal because his and Officer Garcia’s vehicles were the only vehicles on the road, and Officer Garcia’s vehicle was traveling at a safe distance behind his. We disagree.

¶ 13. Section 63-3-707 requires a driver turning right or left to give a continuous signal for a reasonable distance before turning in the event any other vehicle may be affected by such movement.

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

Related

Keith Leon Johnson v. State of Mississippi
228 So. 3d 933 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2017)
Barry Lemax Melton v. State of Mississippi
201 So. 3d 1085 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2016)
Tracy Woods v. State of Mississippi
175 So. 3d 579 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2015)
James Douglas McKnight v. State of Mississippi
187 So. 3d 635 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2015)
Riley v. State
126 So. 3d 1007 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2013)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
118 So. 3d 605, 2012 WL 4785151, 2012 Miss. App. LEXIS 618, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/melton-v-state-missctapp-2012.