People v. Palmer

207 Cal. App. 3d 663, 255 Cal. Rptr. 55, 1989 Cal. App. LEXIS 57
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedJanuary 27, 1989
DocketC002415
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 207 Cal. App. 3d 663 (People v. Palmer) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Palmer, 207 Cal. App. 3d 663, 255 Cal. Rptr. 55, 1989 Cal. App. LEXIS 57 (Cal. Ct. App. 1989).

Opinion

Opinion

SIMS, J.

In United States v. Leon (1984) 468 U.S. 897 [82 L.Ed.2d 677, 104 S.Ct. 3405], the United States Supreme court held that evidence seized pursuant to the service of an invalid search warrant need not be suppressed where police officers serving the warrant relied on its validity in objectively reasonable good faith. (Id., at pp. 916, 922 [82 L.Ed.2d at pp. 694, 698].) The rule of Leon applies in California state courts to determine whether evidence seized pursuant to a search warrant should be suppressed. (Cal. *666 Const., art. I, § 28, subd. (d); In re Lance W. (1985) 37 Cal.3d 873, 879 [210 Cal.Rptr. 631, 694 P.2d 744]; People v. Helmquist (1984) 161 Cal.App.3d 609, 612-616 [207 Cal.Rptr. 718].) In this case, we hold that Leon’s rule applies to the service of an arrest warrant. We also hold that, even assuming the warrant was invalid, the officers relied on it in objective good faith because California judicial authority, extant when the warrant was served, suggested it was valid.

Factual and Procedural Background

This case arose from an underlying criminal action styled People v. Raphael Julius Anderson, Butte County Justice Court No. CR-47104. 1 (Hereafter Anderson.) In that case the district attorney issued a subpoena commanding Kenneth Palmer, the defendant in this case, to testify as a witness at 10:30 a.m. on November 14, 1985, in Oroville. The subpoena was served on defendant in Oroville one hour and 25 minutes before the time for his appearance stated in the subpoena.

Defendant did not appear as ordered. A declaration under penalty of perjury showing service of the subpoena was filed and, at the district attorney’s request, the justice court issued a bench warrant for defendant’s arrest. The Anderson matter was promptly dismissed and the accused was discharged.

After service of the bench warrant could not be effected in the time prescribed in the warrant, the warrant was reissued in the form set forth in Appendix A, post.

On June 17, 1986, Butte County Sheriff’s Civil Deputy Warren Munroe and three other deputies arrived at defendant’s residence to serve the reissued bench warrant. Munroe requested the other deputies’ assistance because defendant was known to keep numerous weapons in his possession.

One of the assisting deputies was Grant Johnson who had known defendant for the previous 18 months. Johnson had previously contacted defendant at his residence on several occasions.

When the officers arrived at defendant’s residence Johnson knocked on the door and identified himself as “Deputy Johnson.” Defendant said, “Come on in.” Johnson did so and went inside accompanied by the other deputies.

*667 Munroe began explaining the reason for the officers’ presence. At that point Johnson observed what appeared to be a sawed-off shotgun on the coffee table next to where defendant was reclining on the couch. Johnson confiscated the gun which proved to be loaded.

Defendant was advised of his Miranda 2 rights. Deputy Krampitz asked defendant if he would mind if the officers looked around the house. Defendant told the officers they could look around all they wanted.

In an upstairs bedroom Munroe found a second sawed-off shotgun and defendant was arrested. He was charged in two counts with unlawful possession of the sawed-off shotguns. (Pen. Code, § 12020, subd. (a); statutory references are to this code unless otherwise noted.)

The People ultimately decided not to pursue any contempt charge against defendant premised on his failure to appear as a witness in the Anderson matter.

At his preliminary examination on the instant offenses defendant made a section 1538.5 motion to suppress the shotguns as the fruit of an unlawful arrest. The officers involved in the arrest testified the arrest was made upon the authority of the bench warrant. Defendant contended the bench warrant was defective because there was no affidavit detailing why he was allegedly in contempt of court. The magistrate denied the motion and held defendant to answer in superior court.

In superior court defendant renewed his section 1538.5 motion 3 and moved to set aside the information (§ 995). The People opposed the motions contending that even if the bench warrant was defective the officers’ reliance thereon was in good faith, so that under Leon suppression of the evidence was not required. 4 The trial court found the bench warrant defective but relied on Leon to deny defendant’s motions. Defendant then entered a *668 negotiated plea of no contest to one count of possession of a sawed-off shotgun (§ 12020, subd. (a)).

On appeal to this court (§ 1538.5, subd. (m)) defendant argues his section 1538.5 motion was improperly denied. He renews his contention the bench warrant was defective because (1) the underlying Anderson action having terminated, defendant could no longer be brought to court to testify and (2) if the arrest was to punish defendant for contempt, the warrant had to be (but was not) supported by an affidavit detailing his contemptuous conduct. Defendant also contends Leon's good faith exception to the exclusionary rule is inapplicable to cases such as this involving arrest rather than search warrants. Finally, defendant contends that, assuming Leon governs, the officers had no objectively reasonable belief the warrant was valid. We shall affirm the judgment.

Discussion

I

The Trial Court Properly Applied United States v. Leon to This Entry Under an Arrest Warrant.

We first consider defendant’s contention the trial court erroneously applied Leon to this case involving an arrest warrant. Two California Courts of Appeal have assumed without analysis that Leon applies to the service of an arrest warrant. (See People v. Ramirez (1988) 202 Cal.App.3d 425, 428 [248 Cal.Rptr. 396]; People v. Dickens (1984) 163 Cal.App.3d 377, 381, fns. 3 and 4 [208 Cal.Rptr. 751].) For reasons that follow, we shall endorse the assumption.

In Leon the United States Supreme Court concluded “the marginal or nonexistent benefits produced by suppressing evidence obtained in objectively reasonable reliance on a subsequently invalidated search warrant cannot justify the substantial costs of exclusion.” (Leon, supra, 468 U.S. at p.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
207 Cal. App. 3d 663, 255 Cal. Rptr. 55, 1989 Cal. App. LEXIS 57, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-palmer-calctapp-1989.