State v. Bond

2011 NMCA 036, 261 P.3d 599, 150 N.M. 451
CourtNew Mexico Court of Appeals
DecidedMarch 17, 2011
Docket29,436
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 2011 NMCA 036 (State v. Bond) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Mexico Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Bond, 2011 NMCA 036, 261 P.3d 599, 150 N.M. 451 (N.M. Ct. App. 2011).

Opinion

OPINION

WECHSLER, Judge.

{1} Defendant Tiffany Bond entered a conditional plea to one count of possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine), a fourth degree felony, contrary to NMSA 1978, Section 30-31-23(D) (2005), reserving the right to appeal the district court’s denial of her motion to suppress. Because we conclude that the investigating officer unreasonably searched Defendant’s purse and seized contents within it without consent, we reverse.

BACKGROUND

{2} On June 29, 2008, police officers were attempting to locate a white Pontiac convertible that had been stolen from the lot of Performance Auto in Farmington, New Mexico. The vehicle’s global position system indicated that the vehicle was located at the intersection of Knollcrest and Kingsway. Officer Kyle Dowdy was dispatched to the location and observed the vehicle in the driveway of a residence at the identified location, when he saw two people come out of the residence and enter the vehicle. He initiated a felony traffic stop while the vehicle was still in the driveway. Officer Dowdy then detained the driver and Defendant, who was a passenger in the vehicle, in connection with his investigation. He handcuffed them and read them Miranda rights.

{3} The investigating officer, Officer David Karst, arrived at the location of the stop. Officer Karst had spoken with the manager of Performance Auto, and the manager had informed Officer Karst that he saw a woman with long hair driving the vehicle out of the lot. Officer Karst asked Defendant to step in front of his patrol unit, again read her Miranda rights, and placed her in the backseat of his patrol unit. Officer Karst asked Defendant if she had identification, and Defendant informed him that it was located in her wallet that was in her purse on the passenger side of the stolen vehicle. Officer Karst went to the vehicle and retrieved a brown purse with what appeared to be a phone charger in the top of it. Officer Karst also retrieved a white hand mirror, a yellow Corona hat, and a cell phone. Defendant informed Officer Karst that the yellow hat, phone charger, and mirror that were visible, as well as the brown purse, belonged to her, but the black bag or pencil bag that was inside the purse did not. Officer Karst removed the black bag from the purse and opened it to see if he could find any owner identification. Upon opening the black bag, Officer Karst discovered both paraphernalia and a crystal rock-like substance that he believed was methamphetamine.

{4} Defendant filed a motion to suppress, challenging the search of her purse. The district court denied Defendant’s motion. Defendant entered a conditional plea, reserving the right to appeal the district court’s ruling.

MOTION TO SUPPRESS

{5} We begin by defining the issue to be addressed in this case. In her motion to suppress, Defendant argued that the officer violated her rights under the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution and Article II, Section 10 of the New Mexico Constitution by searching her purse. The district court denied Defendant’s motion to suppress on the ground that Defendant had no expectation of privacy in the black bag Officer Karst removed from Defendant’s purse because Defendant had disclaimed ownership of the black bag. In making that ruling, it appears the district court assumed that Officer Karst had the right to enter Defendant’s purse and remove the black bag. On appeal, Defendant does not contest that she abandoned the black bag, but argues that the officer did not have the right to lawfully retrieve the black bag from her purse. The State also submits that the issue on appeal is the officer’s ability to enter Defendant’s purse. We therefore limit our analysis to this issue.

{6} Furthermore, Defendant moved to suppress the evidence pursuant to both the federal and state constitutions. The State contends that Defendant failed to preserve her state constitutional claim. We need not reach the issue of whether Defendant preserved a state constitutional argument, since we are reversing based on an application of the Fourth Amendment.

Standard of Review

{7} “We engage in a two-part review of a district court’s decision regarding a motion to suppress: The legality of a search questioned in a suppression hearing is generally tested as a mixed question of law and fact wherein we review any factual questions under a substantial evidence standard and we review the application of law to the facts de novo.” State v. Neal, 2007-NMSC-043, ¶ 15, 142 N.M. 176, 164 P.3d 57 (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). We therefore “review the district court’s ruling on a motion to suppress to determine whether the law was correctly applied to the facts, viewing the facts in the light most favorable to the prevailing party.” State v. Cline, 1998-NMCA-154, ¶6, 126 N.M. 77, 966 P.2d 785.

Defendant’s Standing to Challenge the Search

{8} In determining that Defendant had no reasonable expectation of privacy in the black bag because of her disclaimer of ownership, the district court ruled that Defendant lacked standing to challenge the search of the black bag. See State v. Leyba, 1997-NMCA-023, ¶ 9, 123 N.M. 159, 935 P.2d 1171 (stating that a defendant’s “standing to challenge a search as violative of the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article II, Section 10 of the New Mexico Constitution hinges on whether [the defendant] had a reasonable expectation of privacy in the place entered”). As we noted above, the district court did not address the issue of the officer’s entry into Defendant’s purse. As a result, we begin our analysis by determining whether Defendant had standing to challenge the officer’s entry of her purse.

{9} To establish standing, a defendant must demonstrate a legitimate expectation of privacy. See Leyba, 1997-NMCA-023, ¶ 9, 123 N.M. 159, 935 P.2d 1171. “Determining whether a search is an intrusion on a legitimate expectation of privacy requires two considerations. First, we consider whether the individual’s conduct demonstrated a subjective expectation of privacy. Second, we consider whether society recognizes the individual’s expectation of privacy as reasonable.” State v. Bomboy, 2008-NMSC-029, ¶ 10, 144 N.M. 151, 184 P.3d 1045 (internal quotation marks and citations omitted).

{10} “[Ojwnership or lawful possession generally gives rise to a legitimate expectation of privacy}.]” State v. Celusniak, 2004-NMCA-070, ¶ 25, 135 N.M. 728, 93 P.3d 10. However, “one can relinquish this expectation if he or she abandons the property.” Id. “[T]he basic inquiry is whether the defendant either denied ownership of the item or physically relinquished it.” Id. ¶ 28. There is no indication from the record that Defendant disclaimed her ownership of the purse through either her words or her actions. Nor does the State argue that Defendant abandoned any claim of ownership to her purse. See id. ¶ 26 (“The party seeking to prove abandonment must show this intent by clear, unequivocal and decisive evidence.” (internal quotation marks and citation omitted)). Moreover, this Court has previously concluded that society recognizes a reasonable expectation of privacy in an individual’s purse. See id.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2011 NMCA 036, 261 P.3d 599, 150 N.M. 451, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-bond-nmctapp-2011.