State v. Every

274 So. 3d 770
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMay 23, 2019
DocketNO. 19-K-40
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 274 So. 3d 770 (State v. Every) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Every, 274 So. 3d 770 (La. Ct. App. 2019).

Opinion

GRAVOIS, J.

*775Relator, Joshua Every, seeks this Court's supervisory review of various rulings of the trial court denying his Motions to Suppress Evidence. Relator argues five assignments of error in his writ application. For the following reasons, we deny this writ application.

PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND AND FACTS

On October 27, 2016, a Jefferson Parish Grand Jury returned a true bill of indictment charging relator with violating La. R.S. 14:30 by committing the first degree murder of Taylor Friloux on June 29, 2016 while engaged in the perpetration or attempted perpetration of armed robbery, aggravated kidnapping, and second degree kidnapping upon her and during the perpetration or attempted perpetration of an aggravated burglary upon a Raising Cane's Restaurant.

On January 3, 2018, relator filed eight motions to suppress evidence, challenging evidence seized from the search of a Mercedes automobile (DM-39)1 ; two searches of the Mercedes pursuant to warrants (DM-40 and -41); an Alcatel cell phone seized from the Mercedes (DM-42); a silver iPhone seized from the Raising Cane's (DM-43); a black Kyocera cell phone (DM-44); a black iPhone 5 (DM-45); and a black and silver iPhone 6S (DM-46). The State filed written responses to each motion. Relator's motions DM-39 through DM-46 were heard at suppression hearings held on February 1, March 9, and March 19, 2018, at which hearings the trial court heard the testimony of witnesses and pertinent evidence was admitted. On August 17, 2018, the parties presented arguments as to DM-39 through DM-41 (regarding the warrantless search and seizure of the Mercedes and the two subsequent search warrants). Relator and the State submitted on their pleadings as to DM-42 through DM-46 (searches of cell phones pursuant to warrants). The trial court denied DM-39 through DM-46 for reasons assigned from the bench at the hearing on this date.

On September 6, 2018, relator filed additional motions to suppress evidence seized from relator's Facebook account (DM-77); a black iPhone linked to Ariana Runner, a co-defendant (DM-78); the same black and silver iPhone 6S (DM-79); a cell phone belonging to Candace Rose (DM-80); a cell phone owned by Felix Santiago (DM-82); a phone owned by Taylor Friloux, the victim (the same phone seized from the manager's office)2 (DM-84); the black Kyocera cell phone (DM-85); the black iPhone 5 (DM-86); and the black Alcatel cell phone (DM-87). The State filed responses to each of these written motions to suppress.

On November 2, 2018, the parties argued DM-77 and submitted DM-78 through DM-87 on the pleadings. After taking the motions under advisement, on November 14, 2018, the trial court denied DM-77 through DM-87.

*776Relator filed a timely writ application in this Court. Upon review, this Court found deficiencies in the writ application, namely that it failed to contain the full transcripts of the hearings on the motions to suppress referenced in the writ application, and ordered relator to supplement the writ application with any and all relevant transcripts in an Order dated February 27, 2019. This Court further ordered relator to supplement the writ application, in accordance with Uniform Rules - Courts of Appeal, Rule 4-5(C)(8), with the State's responses to the various motions to suppress and post-hearing memoranda filed by relator. Having received the requested supplements to the writ application, this Court now considers relator's assignments of error.

ASSIGNMENT OF ERROR NO. ONE

The trial judge erred as a matter of law in finding that Det. Ricke had the right to enter the Every property and scrutinize the interior of the Mercedes for evidence after the premises had been secured and after Mr. Every had been removed from the premises (DM-39).

In this assignment, relator argues that in light of the United States Supreme Court's decision in Collins v. Virginia , --- U.S. ----, 138 S.Ct. 1663, 201 L.Ed.2d 9 (2018), the trial court erred in finding that Detective Ricke3 lawfully entered relator's property and scrutinized the interior of the Mercedes. He argues that because Detective Ricke was within the curtilage of the home, he was required to have either probable cause to conduct the search of the Mercedes under the automobile exception to the warrant requirement or there must have been exigent circumstances present. He asserts that the Mercedes had no connection to the crime as it was located over twenty miles away from the Raising Cane's and was peered into by the police more than five hours after the incident occurred. He also argues the holding of State v. Hernandez , 410 So.2d 1381 (La. 1982) applies.

The State responded that Detective Ricke was legally justified in conducting a warrantless search of the vehicle under the automobile exception as it was probable that the Mercedes contained contraband and/or under the plain view exception. It further argued that the officers had a lawful right to access the driveway, which was not within the curtilage of the home. It argued that the Collins and Hernandez decisions are distinguishable, and that Detective Ricke more than complied with constitutional mandates by obtaining two search warrants for the Mercedes.

The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article I, § 5 of the Louisiana Constitution prohibit unreasonable searches and seizures. If evidence is derived from an unreasonable search or seizure, the proper remedy is exclusion of the evidence from trial. State v. Aston , 12-955 (La. App. 5 Cir. 9/4/13), 125 So.3d 1148, 1156, writ denied , 13-2374 (La. 3/21/14), 135 So.3d 618. A defendant who is adversely affected may move to suppress evidence from use at the trial on the merits on the ground that it was unconstitutionally obtained. La. C.Cr.P. art. 703(A). The trial court's decision to deny a motion to suppress is afforded great weight and will not be set aside unless the preponderance of the evidence clearly favors *777suppression. State v. Butler , 01-907 (La. App. 5 Cir. 2/13/02), 812 So.2d 120, 124.

As a general rule, searches and seizures must be conducted pursuant to a validly executed search warrant or arrest warrant. State v. Holmes , 08-719 (La. App. 5 Cir. 3/10/09), 10 So.3d 274, 278, writ denied , 09-816 (La. 1/8/10), 24 So.3d 857.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
274 So. 3d 770, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-every-lactapp-2019.