People v. Moser

827 N.E.2d 1111, 356 Ill. App. 3d 900, 293 Ill. Dec. 230, 2005 Ill. App. LEXIS 494
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedMay 18, 2005
Docket2-04-0477
StatusPublished
Cited by32 cases

This text of 827 N.E.2d 1111 (People v. Moser) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Moser, 827 N.E.2d 1111, 356 Ill. App. 3d 900, 293 Ill. Dec. 230, 2005 Ill. App. LEXIS 494 (Ill. Ct. App. 2005).

Opinion

JUSTICE GILLERAN JOHNSON

delivered the opinion of the court:

Following a jury trial, the defendant, Paul Moser, was convicted of unlawful possession of, with the intent to deliver, between 400 and 900 grams of cocaine (720 ILCS 570/401(a)(2)(C) (West 2002)) and sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment. The defendant appeals, arguing that (1) the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress; (2) he was not convicted beyond a reasonable doubt; and (3) the cumulative effect of various trial errors deprived him of a fair trial. We affirm.

On July 25, 2002, the defendant was charged by indictment with unlawful possession of between 400 and 900 grams of cocaine and unlawful possession of, with the intent to deliver, between 400 and 900 grams of cocaine. The indictment was based on an incident where police recovered from the defendant’s residence, upon execution of a search warrant, two bags of a substance containing cocaine.

On January 3, 2003, the defendant filed a motion to suppress evidence, arguing that there was no probable cause to issue the search warrant and that the police improperly executed the search warrant. The trial court held a two-part hearing, first considering the question of probable cause to issue the search warrant. The trial court considered the complaint for the search warrant, which is not part of the instant record, and the accompanying affidavits. The first affidavit was signed by a confidential informant, “John Doe,” who was later divulged to be Charles Petty. In his affidavit, Petty stated that on June 28, 2002, at approximately 4 p.m., he was inside the defendant’s home located at 371 Cornell Drive in Algonquin. While inside the home, Petty purchased 3Vs ounces of cocaine from the defendant. Petty observed a large quantity of cocaine in a purple bag, under a desk in the master bedroom of the home. Petty recognized the substance in the bag as cocaine because he had purchased and used cocaine on at least 20 occasions. Petty had purchased cocaine from the defendant on at least 15 occasions. Petty stated that he had never been convicted of any narcotics-related offenses. However, he was granted a personal recognizance bond on a pending narcotics charge in exchange for information concerning the defendant.

The second affidavit was signed by Inspector Rodney Penrod of the North Central Narcotics Task Force. In his affidavit, Inspector Penrod stated that he met Petty at the Algonquin Roadhouse in February 2002, while working undercover. He asked Petty if he had any cocaine for sale. Petty did not have any cocaine that evening but indicated that he could possibly get some at a later date. Inspector Penrod gave Petty his pager number and asked Petty to call him when he obtained some cocaine. On June 27, 2002, Inspector Penrod received a page from an unfamiliar number. Inspector Penrod called the number and spoke with Petty, who offered to sell him a few ounces of cocaine for $2,600.

On June 28, 2002, Inspector Penrod met with Petty in the parking lot of Home Depot on Randall Road in Algonquin. Petty delivered to him a brown paper bag containing three clear plastic bags of a white powdery substance, which later field tested positive for the presence of cocaine. Inspector Penrod placed Petty under arrest and then questioned him. Petty told Inspector Penrod that he had obtained the cocaine from the defendant earlier that day. Petty told Inspector Pen-rod that when he was at the defendant’s residence, he observed two large chunks of cocaine. Petty also told Inspector Penrod that he had purchased cocaine from the defendant about 15 to 20 times. Inspector Penrod offered Petty a personal recognizance bond in exchange for information regarding the defendant.

After considering the above-described affidavits and the complaint for search warrant, the trial court determined that there was probable cause to issue the search warrant. The trial court noted that the confidential informant’s affidavit was specific in detail and based on personal knowledge. The trial court also noted that the confidential informant was available to the issuing judge for questioning. The trial court therefore denied the first portion of the motion to suppress.

The trial court next considered the question of whether the search warrant was executed properly. Inspector Ken Stoves, with the North Central Narcotics Task Force, testified that on June 29, 2002, he assisted in a search of the defendant’s residence pursuant to a search warrant that had been obtained by police the day prior. Inspector Stoves performed three to four hours of surveillance on the residence before executing the search warrant. During this time, Inspector Stoves observed numerous cars come and go. It appeared to Inspector Stoves that people were in the home.

Just after midnight, Inspector Stoves, along with Inspector Penrod and other task force officers, approached the front door of the residence. There were some lights on inside, but Inspector Stoves was unaware if anyone was awake. Inspector Stoves looked through a window next to the front door and did not see anybody. Inspector Stoves did not hear any noise from within the home. Inspector Stoves wiggled the front doorknob to determine if the front door was locked.

After determining that the door was locked, Inspector Stoves pounded on the door with his fist and yelled in a clear, loud voice, “Police, search warrant.” Inspector Stoves paused for about three seconds to listen for movement, but did not hear anything. He again pounded on the door and yelled, “Police, search warrant.” Inspector Stoves stood there for between 3 to 10 seconds and still did not hear any movement. Inspector Penrod then rammed the door down.

Inspector Stoves, Inspector Penrod, and the other officers entered the house and secured the various rooms. Inspector Stoves found the defendant’s wife in the bedroom, in bed. The defendant was not home. During the search, the officers found a substance suspected to be cocaine. Prior to entering the home, Inspector Stoves was unaware of any concerns regarding the presence of weapons or the possible destruction of evidence.

Inspector Penrod testified that he was the lead officer in the investigation. Before he and the other officers executed the search warrant, Inspector Stoves knocked on the front door with his fist and announced “Police.” Inspector Penrod, Inspector Stoves, and the other officers then listened for movement for about three to four seconds. They did not hear anything. Inspector Stoves knocked on the door and announced “Police” a second time. After the second knock, they again listened for movement for about six to eight seconds but still did not hear anything. Inspector Penrod then broke open the door. After he broke open the door, Inspector Penrod proceeded to the upstairs bedroom, where the defendant’s wife was located. Inspector Penrod recovered from a nightstand in the bedroom approximately 900 grams of cocaine and a scale.

Inspectors Laura Virgils and Phil Barrille of the North Central Narcotics Task Force testified consistently with Inspectors Stoves and Penrod. According to Inspector Virgils, there were about five seconds between the first two knocks and three to five seconds between the second knock and the ramming of the door.

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

Related

People v. Johnson
Appellate Court of Illinois, 2026
People v. Kimmons
2022 IL App (2d) 180589 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2022)
People v. Jones
2020 IL App (3d) 170674 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2021)
People v. Reyes
2020 IL App (2d) 170379 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2020)
People v. Simpson
2019 IL App (3d) 170379-U (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2019)
People v. Foreman
2019 IL App (3d) 160334 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2019)
People v. Wise
2019 IL App (2d) 160611 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2019)
People v. Manzo
2017 IL App (3d) 150264 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2017)
People v. Moody
2015 IL App (1st) 130071 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2016)
People v. Williams
2015 IL App (1st) 130097 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2015)
People v. Brown
2014 IL App (2d) 121167 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2014)
People v. Kornegay
2014 IL App (1st) 122573 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2014)
People v. Cerda
2014 IL App (1st) 120484 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2014)
People v. Robinson
2013 IL App (1st) 102476 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2013)
People v. Gumila
2012 IL App (2d) 110761 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2012)
People v. Davis
924 N.E.2d 67 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2010)
Sherwood v. City of Aurora
Appellate Court of Illinois, 2009
People v. Smith
865 N.E.2d 502 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2007)
People v. Cumbee
851 N.E.2d 934 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2006)
People v. Bohn
Appellate Court of Illinois, 2005

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
827 N.E.2d 1111, 356 Ill. App. 3d 900, 293 Ill. Dec. 230, 2005 Ill. App. LEXIS 494, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-moser-illappct-2005.