State v. Owen

453 So. 2d 1202
CourtSupreme Court of Louisiana
DecidedJune 25, 1984
Docket83-KK-2375
StatusPublished
Cited by106 cases

This text of 453 So. 2d 1202 (State v. Owen) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Owen, 453 So. 2d 1202 (La. 1984).

Opinion

453 So.2d 1202 (1984)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Michael OWEN and Gregory Cormier.

No. 83-KK-2375.

Supreme Court of Louisiana.

June 25, 1984.

*1203 Jim Orteog, Lloyd Keith Milam, Lake Charles, for relator.

William J. Guste, Jr., Atty. Gen., Barbara Rutledge, Asst. Atty. Gen., Leonard Knapp, Jr., Dist. Atty., Robert R. Bryant, Eugene Bouquet, Asst. Dist. Attys., for respondent.

MARCUS, Justice.

Michael J. Owen and Gregory Cormier were charged by the grand jury in the same indictment in separate counts with attempted second degree murder in violation of La.R.S. 14:27 and La.R.S. 14:30.1, aggravated crime against nature in violation of La.R.S. 14:89.1(2) and armed robbery in violation of La.R.S. 14:64. Prior to trial, defendants filed motions to suppress physical evidence. After a hearing, the trial judge denied the motions. The court of appeal denied writs. We granted defendants' application and remanded the case to the court of appeal for briefing and argument.[1] On remand, the court of appeal, finding that the trial judge correctly denied the motions to suppress, again denied writs.[2] Upon defendants' application, we granted certiorari to review the correctness of that ruling.[3]

Defendants contend the trial judge erred in denying their motions to suppress physical evidence seized pursuant to a warrantless search of a residence owned by a third person. They argue that they have standing to contest the legality of the search and that, on the merits, there was no valid consent to the warrantless search.

FACTS

Evidence adduced at the suppression hearing reveals that Lt. Pat McCann of the Sulpher Police Department received a call at about 1:30 a.m. on October 14, 1982 reporting a crime earlier that evening. When Lt. McCann arrived at the crime scene, he noticed that the front door of the house had been broken into and that there was blood all over the front room. It appeared to him that there had been a struggle and that someone had gone through the drawers and cabinets. According to the victim's son, who relayed information from the victim in her hospital room to Lt. McCann at the scene of the crime, the victim had been beaten, stabbed, sexually assaulted and robbed by two men. Money and coins, including old silver coins, were taken. The victim identified one of the perpetrators as Michael Owen and stated that he "was, at one time, staying with Carl Evans on North Crocker Street in Sulpher."

Lt. McCann dispatched Officer Keith Johnson to Evans' residence on North Crocker Street to attempt to discover information about Owen from Evans. Officer Johnson arrived at Evans' residence, a trailer located about five blocks from the scene of the crime, at about 2:35 a.m. He saw someone looking out of the window of the trailer as he pulled up. Soon after he arrived, the lights in the trailer went off. He knocked on the front door. Although he heard movement inside, no one answered his knock. Officer Johnson radioed this information to Lt. Ronnie Lee Carroll, who was then instructed by Lt. McCann to assist Officer Johnson at Evans' trailer. When Lt. Carroll arrived, he also knocked on the door, identified himself as a police officer and asked to speak to Carl Evans. There was no response. Lt. Carroll consulted with Lt. McCann at the crime scene about how to proceed and was told to return to the trailer, try again to rouse Evans, *1204 and, if unsuccessful, step inside. Upon returning to the trailer, Lt. Carroll knocked once more and then opened the unlocked front door. Following Lt. Carroll into the trailer were Officer Johnson, Auxiliary Officer Keith Berry and an unidentified deputy sheriff. This entry was made at about 3:00 a.m.

There are conflicting accounts about what occurred inside the trailer. Lt. Carroll and Officer Johnson testified that they walked about five or six steps into the trailer and observed two persons sleeping in the front room, later identified as Owen and Cormier. They recognized Owen because they were familiar with him from previous encounters. A third person, Grant Miller, was walking down the hallway toward them. Lt. Carroll told Miller to get Evans, the owner of the trailer. When Evans arrived, Lt. Carroll told him that they were investigating an armed robbery and stabbing and that Owen was one of the suspects. Lt. Carroll asked Evans if he would consent to a search of his trailer. Evans agreed and signed a consent to search form. Although the consent form has the time 3:45 a.m. written on it, Lts. Carroll and McCann testified that it was signed before Lt. McCann's 3:44 a.m. arrival at the trailer. After the consent form was signed, the five occupants of the trailer and the four police officers waited in the front room for Lt. McCann to arrive. There was very little conversation. According to Lt. Carroll, the officers were questioned about why they were there and replied that they were investigating an armed robbery and stabbing. No one was handcuffed; no search was made; and, no one was placed under arrest. When Lt. McCann arrived, he went over the signed consent form with Evans, told him what they were investigating and that he did not have to sign. He also asked Evans if the signature on the form was his, to which Evans replied that it was and that he still agreed to the search. A thorough search of the trailer was conducted. Numerous coins, including old silver coins, and prescription bottles with the victim's name on them were recovered. Defendants were arrested after the discovery of this evidence.

Two occupants of the trailer, Grant Miller and John Church, testified for defendants. Miller stated the police officers told them to stand up against the wall and empty their pockets. The coins were seized and everyone was questioned about his whereabouts that night. Initially, Miller stated that everyone in the trailer was arrested after McCann arrived; however, he later stated that everyone was handcuffed before McCann arrived. Similarly, Miller first stated that he did not see Evans sign the consent form; however, he later testified that Evans signed the consent form after everyone was handcuffed and being taken to the police cars. Miller also conceded that he was unsure when everyone was told to empty his pockets. Finally, on cross-examination, Miller admitted that he was "mixed up about the whole thing. It's been four months ago."

Church testified that he was awakened by a police officer and taken into the front room where he was read his rights and handcuffed. Everyone sat on the couch and chairs until he was told to get up. The police officers found the coins under the cushions. The occupants of the trailer were arrested and taken outside. According to Church, Evans signed the consent form in the kitchen when everyone else was being taken outside to the police cars.

Neither the state nor defendants were able to obtain Carl Evans' testimony; he was working offshore at the time of the hearing. At the conclusion of the testimony, the trial judge denied the motions to suppress. On remand from this court to consider defendants' application for writs after briefing and argument, the court of appeal held that defendants lacked standing under either the federal or state constitutions and that, in any event, Evans validly consented to the search.

STANDING

The question is whether defendants, for whom no arrest warrant had been issued, *1205 have standing to contest the admissibility of evidence seized in the search of Evans' trailer allegedly conducted in violation of Evans' constitutional rights.

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Bluebook (online)
453 So. 2d 1202, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-owen-la-1984.