State v. Stephens

71 So. 3d 462, 2011 La. App. LEXIS 792, 2011 WL 2463130
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedJune 22, 2011
DocketNo. 46,304-KA
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 71 So. 3d 462 (State v. Stephens) 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. Stephens, 71 So. 3d 462, 2011 La. App. LEXIS 792, 2011 WL 2463130 (La. Ct. App. 2011).

Opinion

STEWART, J.

| ,The defendant, Tommy Glen Stephens (“Stephens”), pled guilty to one count of possession of marijuana, third offense, and was sentenced to five years at hard labor, with credit for time served. He pled pursuant to State v. Crosby, 338 So.2d 584 (La.1976), so that he could appeal the denial of his motion to suppress evidence seized from his home. We affirm.

FACTS

Stephens alleged in the motion to suppress that Deputy Donovan Shultz of the Jackson Parish Sheriffs Office entered his home on December 30, 2009, without consent and that marijuana and other evidence seized from the home should be suppressed. The motion was heard by the trial court on September 17, 2010. The state offered the testimony of Deputy Shultz, and the defense offered the testimony of David Neatherland (“Neather-land”) and Stephens.

Deputy Shultz testified that he went to Stephens’ home in search of Adrianna Taylor, for whom arrest warrants had been issued. He believed that Taylor was living there. When Deputy Shultz knocked on the door, Neatherland opened it. He told Neatherland that he wanted to speak to Stephens. After first inviting him to enter, Neatherland told him to wait while he asked Stephens if he could enter. Deputy Shultz testified that he heard Neatherland make inquiry and then heard Stephens say, “Come in.”

When Deputy Shultz entered the house, Stephens was on the couch in front of the television with a plate of food beside him. He asked Stephens about Taylor and learned that she had been staying with him but was not there that night. As they were talking, Deputy Shultz noticed a marijuana 12roach in a clip on the couch next to Stephens. He advised Stephens of what [464]*464he saw and of his rights. Stephens admitted that he had been smoking marijuana. Deputy Shultz took the marijuana into his possession and then asked Stephens whether he had anything else in the house. After advising Stephens that he could get a warrant based on the marijuana being in plain view, he asked for his consent to search the rest of the house. Deputy Shultz testified that Stephens consented to a search and then turned over to him a grinder for marijuana. Deputy Shultz then found clear plastic bags containing marijuana and several marijuana roaches in a dresser.

On cross, Deputy Shultz admitted that he did not have the warrants for Taylor’s arrest with him and that he had no search warrant for Stephens’ home. Deputy Shultz also admitted that he did not know whether Neatherland said his name when he asked Stephens if he could enter the house and that he could not see Stephens from the doorway. When asked what Stephens was doing when he first saw him, Deputy Shultz stated that he was “laid on the couch” and “appeared to be high from smoking, to be perfectly honest.”

Neatherland, the defendant’s brother-in-law, testified that he answered the door because Stephens was asleep on the living room couch. Neatherland testified that Deputy Shultz asked if Taylor was there. When he told him that she was not, Deputy Shultz asked to come inside. Neather-land told him that he could not let him inside because it wasn’t his house and asked him to wait while he went to get Stephens. Neatherland explained that he could not close the door because it opened out and Deputy |sShultz was standing in the doorway. Instead of waiting, Deputy Shultz followed him into the house and awakened Stephens by getting close to him and hollering at him. Neatherland denied that he or Stephens told Deputy Shultz to enter the house. He also testified that he called Deputy Shultz the next day when Taylor returned to Stephens’ house but that Deputy Shultz did not rush back to apprehend her.

On cross, Neatherland admitted that he had prior distribution convictions and was on probation. Finally, he denied seeing any marijuana at Stephens’ house and denied that they were high.

Stephens testified that he was asleep on his couch when he was awakened by Deputy Shultz standing over him. He denied hearing any knocking on his door or any discussion between Deputy Shultz and Neatherland. He explained that his trailer door opens to the outside as stated by Neatherland and not inward as Deputy Shultz seemed to recall.

Stephens stated that when Deputy Schultz saw the marijuana roach he stated that he could get a warrant or that Stephens could consent to a search. Stephens then handed over the marijuana and led Deputy Schultz to a grinder in a dresser drawer. When asked whether he consented to the search of his home, Stephens replied:

Well he was talking about Adrianna and everything, he wanted to know about her and I consented to a search, you know, the dresser drawer where she kept her clothes and everything and he proceeded to search the rest of the house, yes sir.

Stephens denied consenting to a search of his entire home. He explained that he has abdominal cancer and had taken medications, including morphine, Elavil, and Ambien, that night. He also admitted to smoking the |4last of a joint. The combination of the marijuana and prescribed drugs had put him to sleep.

On cross, Stephens admitted to a prior distribution conviction. When asked [465]*465whether he was being untruthful when he told Deputy Shultz that he did not have more marijuana in the house, he stated that “it turned out not to be to my knowledge at that time that was all of it.” Finally, Stephens could think of no particular reason why Deputy Shultz would have it in for him or lie about what happened. He stated that he had never had a bad experience with him.

On redirect, Stephens admitted that he could remember everything that happened that night after he was awakened by Deputy Shultz, and he again denied inviting Deputy Shultz into his house.

The trial court identified the issue as whether Deputy Shultz had authority to enter Stephens’ home and noted it to be an issue of credibility. After stating that “the facts are in such dispute that it is appropriate to refer this to the trial on the merits,” the trial court denied the motion to suppress and noted the defendant’s objection for the record.

Stephens entered a Crosby plea of guilty to possession of marijuana, third offense, on September 27, 2010. In accordance with a sentencing agreement, the trial court sentenced him to five years at hard labor with credit for time served. Stephens then filed this appeal.

After the appeal was docketed and because it was not clear whether the trial court made a credibility determination in favor of the state in denying the motion to suppress, this court stayed the appeal and ordered the [ .¡trial court to submit written reasons explaining the grounds for its ruling. The trial court complied and filed reasons explaining that it found Deputy Shultz’s testimony about how he entered the home to be credible. Factors found by the trial court to be significant in assessing credibility included the purpose for which Deputy Shultz went to Stephens’ home and the potential exposure of both Stephens and Neatherland to further convictions based on the finding of drugs in the home. Their prior drug convictions provided good reason for them to deny that they let Deputy Shultz enter the home. The trial court reasoned that because Stephens and Neatherland knew that Deputy Shultz was there to find Taylor, they had no cause to be concerned about his presence. Thus, the trial court concluded that it was more credible than not that Deputy Shultz had permission to enter.

DISCUSSION

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Related

State v. Percy
137 So. 3d 184 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2014)

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Bluebook (online)
71 So. 3d 462, 2011 La. App. LEXIS 792, 2011 WL 2463130, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-stephens-lactapp-2011.