People v. Chapman

883 N.E.2d 510, 379 Ill. App. 3d 317, 318 Ill. Dec. 279, 2007 Ill. App. LEXIS 1126
Appellate Court of Illinois·Decided October 11, 2007·No. 4-06-0228·Published·Cited by 18 cases

Opinions

PRESIDING JUSTICE STEIGMANN

delivered the opinion of the court:

Following a January 2006 bench trial, the trial court convicted defendant, Forrest D. Chapman III, of possession of a controlled substance (less than 15 grams of a substance containing cocaine) and possession of cannabis (more than 30 but less than 500 grams) (720 ILCS 570/402(c) (West 2004); 720 ILCS 550/4(d) (West 2004)). The court sentenced him to two years’ probation and six weekends in jail.

Defendant appeals, arguing that (1) the trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress the evidence against him because police violated the “knock and announce” rule when they executed a search warrant at his residence and (2) his stipulated bench trial was tantamount to a guilty-plea proceeding, thus requiring that he be given the admonishments set forth in Supreme Court Rule 402 (177 Ill. 2d R. 402). We affirm.

I. BACKGROUND

A. The Motion To Suppress Evidence

At the September 2005 hearing on defendant’s motion to suppress evidence, the evidence showed that around 3:30 a.m. on May 6, 2005, police executed a search warrant at 610 West Grant in Pontiac, which was a house that belonged to defendant’s longtime girlfriend, Julie Serna. Defendant, Julie, Julie’s daughter, Elizabeth Serna, Elizabeth’s boyfriend, Daris Woods, and Julie’s son, Chase, were present when the search warrant was executed.

Pontiac police sergeant Dan Davis testified that he was one of the officers.who executed the search warrant at Julie’s house on May 6, 2005. Davis detonated a defense-technology (DEF-TEC) device in the backyard by throwing it over the backyard fence. Davis explained that a DEF-TEC device produces a “very loud report” and gives off a very bright light. It is “a tool used by many tactical teams when executing search warrants.” The purpose of the device is to alert anyone in the house or the area that police are executing a search warrant. Davis would not classify the device as a bomb because it is primarily used for noise and does not destroy anything.

Davis also testified that no lights were on at the house when he detonated the DEF-TEC device. After he threw it into the backyard, he joined seven other officers at the north side of the house. He was 10 feet from those officers when the device exploded about three seconds later. After another four or five seconds, Davis heard police officer Adam Fulkerson yell in a loud voice, “Police, search warrant.” Although Davis did not see Fulkerson knock on the door, he heard knocking. Davis could not recall specifically how many times he heard Fulkerson announce their presence.

Davis further testified that he heard three knocks on the door immediately after he heard Fulkerson yell, “Police, search warrant,” and five or six seconds later, the police entered the house. Davis believed that they entered through the door without using a battering ram. He heard one of the officers say that the door was unlocked. Davis did not know which officer discovered that the door was unlocked.

Daris Woods testified that he was at Julie’s house when the police executed the search warrant. Woods had arrived at the house between 10 p.m. and 11 p.m. the night before. He had been watching television in the living room until the early morning hours of May 6, 2005. However, he had turned off the television and was giving Elizabeth a back massage when they heard an explosion toward the front of the house. He asked Elizabeth what the noise was, and she said she did not know. A few seconds later, the police came through the front door into the living room. Woods did not hear the police say anything prior to coming into the house. After the door opened, the police were screaming for everyone to get on the ground. Woods heard Elizabeth say, “Oh, shit.”

Woods acknowledged that in 2004, he was convicted of two counts of unlawful delivery of cannabis and the felony offense of unlawful possession of cannabis. Despite having been punished for those crimes, he said he would not lie in court.

Elizabeth testified that during the early morning of May 6, 2005, she was lying on her stomach in the living room with Woods. She heard a loud bang that she thought came from the back of the house. Woods asked her what the noise was, and she said she did not know. The police then came through the door, saying “Pontiac PD.” She did not hear anything besides the explosion before they entered. The police did not notice that she was present until she said, “Oh, shit.” At that point, they shined a flashlight on her and said, “Pontiac PD, get down on the ground.”

Elizabeth acknowledged that Julie and defendant, whom she referred to as her stepfather, were charged with crimes in this case and could go to prison. She stated that she would not lie under oath even though Julie and defendant could go to prison.

Julie testified that she had lived with defendant for many years. When she got home in the early morning hours of May 6, 2005, she saw Elizabeth and Woods watching television in the living room. She then went upstairs to her bedroom. Shortly thereafter, defendant came home and joined her in the bedroom, where they engaged in sex. The bedroom door was closed, and one lamp was turned on. Even though the window was covered with a bedsheet, someone standing outside the house would be able to see that a light was on. While she and defendant were having sex, defendant thought he heard something. Defendant got up and went to the window but could not see anything and went back to bed. Then Julie heard a “big loud boom” and within seconds, she heard the front door being rammed open and the words, “Pontiac PD, get on the ground.” She wrapped herself in a blanket and laid on the ground and waited for them to come upstairs. She did not hear anyone yelling prior to the officers’ entry into the house. She had consumed four or five beers before returning home that evening over a six- to seven-hour time period.

Defendant testified that before he heard the explosion that night, he thought he had heard something else. He went to the window that faced the backyard and looked outside. He did not see anything so he let go of the curtain and then immediately heard the explosion. A split second, or maybe a second, passed and then he heard another boom, which was the sound of “something hitting the front door very hard.” He did not hear anyone say anything before the front door opened. Defendant estimated that the distance from the front door to his upstairs bedroom was approximately 25 feet if you went on foot and 15 feet “as the crow flies.” Defendant further testified as follows:

“Nothing was said. What — The first explosion went off, the bomb, whatever, the grenade or device; and then the front door, something hit the front door very hard, very loud; and then the next thing I heard was [‘]you didn’t have to do that.f] And then I heard the police say to Elizabeth, [‘]on the ground, quit resisting.!”] ”

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People v. Chapman, 883 N.E.2d 510, 379 Ill. App. 3d 317, 318 Ill. Dec. 279, 2007 Ill. App. LEXIS 1126 (Ill. Ct. App. 2007).

883 N.E.2d 510 (People v. Chapman) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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