People v. Vincent

2023 IL App (4th) 221115-U
Appellate Court of Illinois·Decided November 28, 2023·No. 4-22-1115·Unpublished

Opinion

NOTICE 2023 IL App (4th) 221115-U This Order was filed under FILED

Supreme Court Rule 23 and is November 28, 2023 NO. 4-22-1115

not precedent except in the Carla Bender limited circumstances allowed 4th District Appellate under Rule 23(e)(1). IN THE APPELLATE COURT Court, IL

OF ILLINOIS

FOURTH DISTRICT

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, ) Appeal from the Plaintiff-Appellee, ) Circuit Court of v. ) Woodford County MARY C. VINCENT, ) No. 21CF171 Defendant-Appellant. )

) Honorable

) Charles M. Feeney III, ) Judge Presiding.

JUSTICE ZENOFF delivered the judgment of the court.

Presiding Justice DeArmond and Justice Harris concurred in the judgment.

ORDER

¶1 Held: The appellate court reversed the trial court’s judgment denying defendant’s motion to suppress evidence where the arresting officer did not have reasonable suspicion to detain defendant for a canine sniff.

¶2 After the trial court denied a motion to suppress evidence filed by defendant, Mary C. Vincent, the case proceeded to a stipulated bench trial. Defendant was convicted of cannabis trafficking (720 ILCS 550/5.1(a) (West 2020)) (count I) and possession with intent to deliver cannabis (720 ILCS 550/5(g) (West 2020)) (count II). After merging the counts, the court sentenced defendant on count I, to 14 years’ imprisonment. Defendant appeals, arguing that the court erred in denying her motion to suppress evidence. We reverse and remand for further proceedings consistent with this order.

¶3 I. BACKGROUND

¶4 On November 4, 2021, defendant was charged with the aforementioned offenses. In count I, the State alleged that on October 15, 2021, defendant, while driving from California, knowingly brought 2,500 or more grams of cannabis into Illinois for the purpose of delivering said cannabis. In count II, the State alleged that on October 15, 2021, defendant knowingly possessed, with the intent to deliver, more than 5000 grams of a substance containing cannabis.

¶5 On February 7, 2022, defendant filed a motion to suppress evidence of cannabis that was obtained during a search of her vehicle. The trial court held a hearing on the motion on April 4, 2022.

¶6 At the hearing, defendant called Lieutenant Timothy Sweeney of the Illinois State Police as a witness. Sweeney testified that he had 18 years’ experience as a state trooper and became involved in criminal interdiction cases immediately after becoming a trooper. Throughout Sweeney’s career, he self-initiated 100 traffic stops that were Class X-level trafficking cases. Additionally, Sweeney had been “involved in approximately 400 of these types of cases” as a backup officer or supervisor of criminal interdiction units. Sweeney reported that he attended several drug interdiction training courses since 2006. For the last 10 years, Sweeney instructed cadet classes in interdiction techniques at the Illinois State Police Academy.

¶7 Sweeney testified that on October 15, 2021, he was patrolling Interstate 74 when he observed defendant driving a white vehicle with Nevada license plates three miles over the posted speed limit of 70 miles per hour. Sweeney followed defendant’s vehicle and entered its license plate number into the Law Enforcement Archival Reporting Network (LEARN), a license plate reader database. Sweeney explained that LEARN was a fixed camera system that captured passing vehicles’ data and imported the information into a database that officers could access to determine “where that license plate has been.” Sweeney determined from the LEARN database

that defendant’s vehicle crossed the California-Nevada border on Interstate 80 on October 13 at 10:28 a.m. Sweeney then stopped defendant’s vehicle. As he approached the vehicle, he noticed that it appeared to have driven through rain or snow because there was grime on it. According to Sweeney, it appeared the trunk had not been accessed, because there were no handprints or markings indicating that the trunk had been opened or closed.

¶8 A video of the stop taken from Sweeney’s squad car was entered into evidence. In the video, which this court has reviewed, Sweeney made contact with defendant at the 01:54 time stamp. Defendant informed Sweeney that the vehicle was a rental, and Sweeney asked for the rental contract. Sweeney informed defendant that he stopped her for speeding, and defendant acknowledged that she was traveling at 73 miles per hour. Sweeney then asked defendant to accompany him to his vehicle to review her license, and defendant agreed. While waiting for defendant to exit her vehicle, Sweeney observed a dog in the vehicle and no luggage in the back seat.

¶9 Once in Sweeney’s squad car, Sweeney began processing defendant’s information. Sweeney testified that, over the next approximately 13 minutes, he entered into his computer defendant’s driver’s license information, vehicle information, and the details of the traffic stop. As Sweeney did so, he engaged in conversation with defendant. Sweeney asked defendant about her destination, and defendant answered that she was traveling to Columbus, Ohio, to see family. Several times during the conversation, defendant referred to her dog as “Doobie.” Defendant stated that she last traveled to Columbus on the same route approximately six months prior. At the 05:41 time stamp, Sweeney requested a police canine. Defendant asked if her driver’s license was “not good.” Sweeney responded that the license was “good” and told defendant that he intended to write a warning. Sweeney then asked defendant if she ever flew to Columbus. Defendant responded that

she did fly sometimes, but it was difficult to get a license for her dog to fly with her. Defendant explained that she had been stopping at hotels during the trip. Sweeney asked if defendant had ever “been in trouble for anything,” and defendant responded that she had been “years ago.”

¶ 10 At the 16:30 time stamp, Sweeney handed a warning to defendant and informed her that they were “all done with the traffic stop.” Sweeney then asked defendant if he could ask her some questions, and defendant answered, “[S]ure.” Sweeney asked about the contents of defendant’s vehicle, and defendant responded that nothing inside it would get her in trouble. At the 17:10 time stamp, Sweeney asked for permission to search the vehicle. Defendant responded that she “really would like to go.” Sweeney then informed defendant that she was being “detained for a canine” to conduct a sniff. They waited several minutes for another officer, who arrived and conducted a sniff search at the 20:07 time stamp. Approximately 30 seconds later, the canine provided a positive alert. Sweeney then searched defendant’s vehicle, revealing apparent cannabis in the trunk.

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People v. Vincent, 2023 IL App (4th) 221115-U (Ill. Ct. App. 2023).

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