State v. Stevens

845 S.W.2d 124, 1993 WL 7164
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedJanuary 19, 1993
Docket61978
StatusPublished
Cited by32 cases

This text of 845 S.W.2d 124 (State v. Stevens) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri 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. Stevens, 845 S.W.2d 124, 1993 WL 7164 (Mo. Ct. App. 1993).

Opinion

845 S.W.2d 124 (1993)

STATE of Missouri, Plaintiff/Appellant,
v.
Richard Del STEVENS, Defendant/Respondent.

No. 61978.

Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, Division Four.

January 19, 1993.

*125 George Michael Archer, Asst. Pros. Atty., Clayton, for plaintiff/appellant.

Burton H. Shostak, Moline, Ottsen, Mauze, Leggat & Shostak, Clayton, for defendant/respondent.

*126 CRANE, Judge.

The state appeals pursuant to § 547.200 RSMo 1986 from the order of the trial court granting defendant's motion to suppress evidence seized from defendant's motor home after he was stopped for speeding and given a warning. We affirm.

On February 27, 1991 Trooper Wade Stuart of the Missouri Highway Patrol was operating a stationary radar on the shoulder of eastbound Interstate 44, one-half mile east of Antire Road in St. Louis County. At approximately 8:30 p.m., Stuart's radar picked up a large motor home traveling at 54 miles per hour. Stuart testified that the maximum speed limit on that stretch of Interstate 44 had been lowered for some time to 45 miles per hour due to extensive maintenance and construction and his captain had told him to enforce that speed limit. There was no evidence whether the lowered speed limit had been posted.

Stuart paced the motor home at 52 miles per hour for a short distance and then activated his red lights to signal the motor home to pull over. Stuart stopped in front of the motor home. After pulling to the side of the road, defendant Richard Del Stevens, the driver of the motor home, got out and met Stuart in front of the motor home. Stuart asked defendant for his driver's license and registration and informed defendant he had been pulled over for speeding. Stuart noticed that defendant looked extremely nervous, his face twitched, he blinked excessively, he avoided eye contact, and he exhibited many other nervous characteristics. After Stuart informed defendant that he would only issue a warning, he noticed that defendant did not seem to relax. Stuart testified that in his six and one-half years of experience as a state trooper he found that drivers tended to relax after being told they will only be issued a warning.

Stuart asked defendant to accompany him to the patrol car while he initiated checks on the registration and defendant's California driver's license. While he waited for the results of the checks, Stuart asked defendant some background questions. Defendant indicated that he was driving directly from northern California to visit his wife's family in Indianapolis, Indiana, but was taking a southern route. Defendant stated that both his and his passenger's wife and children were flying to Indiana because they did not want to make a long road trip. Defendant mentioned he was a winery worker from northern California earning $35,000 per year, his wife was a secretary at a small school district, and they owned their own home. Defendant informed Stuart the motor home cost more than $50,000 and only got six to eight miles per gallon of gasoline. Defendant also stated that he had known his passenger for eight years, but could not state his last name. Stuart could not understand how a family living in such a high cost of living area could afford the luxuries of a motor home or plane travel on his and his wife's income. He thought it "a little bit" "unusual" that defendant would take a longer route when the motor home got such low mileage. He thought it was "unusual" for a couple to buy a motor home that the wife did not like to travel in. He thought it "highly unusual" that defendant did not know his passenger's last name. Stuart testified "each and every event combined" made him "suspicious of the activity that was before me."

After completing the registration and license check, Stuart returned the driver's license to defendant, completed the warning, and allowed defendant to return to the motor home. Stuart then motioned for the passenger to come out of the motor home and sit in the patrol car. He asked defendant to sit in the front seat of the motor home while he talked to the passenger in the patrol car. Stuart wanted to verify defendant's responses, so he asked the passenger the same questions he had asked defendant. The passenger's answers conflicted in some respects from defendant's. He gave a departure date from California four days earlier than that given by defendant. The passenger stated that the pair had initially travelled to Austin, Texas with their wives, but without their children, and had stayed in Austin for several days. The passenger also did not know the first or last names of any of defendant's family or *127 in-laws, although defendant had said the passenger was very familiar with his family.

Because of defendant's nervousness, his failure to know his passenger's last name, and his passenger's conflicting answers, Stuart became "just about totally convinced" that the pair was engaged in criminal activity and called for another trooper. When the second trooper, Sean Moore, arrived, Stuart asked defendant to exit the motor home and asked whether he had guns, knives or drugs in the motor home. Defendant said no, but that he did have some knives. Stuart then asked whether he could search the motor home. After giving inconclusive answers for about five minutes, defendant finally agreed. However, when Moore started to enter the motor home, defendant rescinded his consent. At that time, Stuart testified he became "totally convinced" that the motor home contained some type of evidence to indicate criminal activity and called for the canine unit.

When the canine unit arrived, the dog alerted on the left side of the motor home near the luggage compartment. Stuart then arrested defendant and his passenger. Eventually 600 pounds of marijuana was discovered in the motor home.

Defendant and his passenger were each charged with drug trafficking in violation of § 195.223 RSMo (Cum.Supp. 1989). Both filed motions to suppress the physical evidence. The trial court heard the motion in the passenger's case first. After hearing the testimony of the sole witness, Trooper Stuart, and reviewing the parties' legal memoranda and cases, the trial court granted the passenger's motion. In his legal memorandum the passenger argued that any detention following the issuance of the traffic warning was unlawful and the use of the drug sniffing dog constituted an unreasonable search. At the hearing he provided the trial court with copies of the opinions in United States v. Walker, 933 F.2d 812 (10th Cir.), reh'g denied, 941 F.2d 1086, 1090 (10th Cir.1991), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 112 S.Ct. 1168, 117 L.Ed.2d 414 (1992), and United States v. Guzman, 864 F.2d 1512 (10th Cir.1988). Defendant submitted his motion to suppress on the record made in the passenger's case. The trial court granted defendant's motion to suppress physical evidence "for purposes of consistency" with its ruling on the passenger's case. The trial court did not make any findings of fact or conclusions of law in support of its ruling in either case.

On appeal the state first contends that the detention of the vehicle and its passengers constituted a "Terry stop" under Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 88 S.Ct.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

State of Missouri v. Leonard Davie
460 S.W.3d 485 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2015)
State of Missouri, Plaintiff/Respondent v. Michael Ford
445 S.W.3d 113 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2014)
State v. Triplett
355 S.W.3d 543 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2011)
State v. Grayson
336 S.W.3d 138 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 2011)
State v. Kempa
235 S.W.3d 54 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2007)
In Re NDC
229 S.W.3d 602 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 2007)
In the Interest of N.D.C.
229 S.W.3d 602 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 2007)
State v. Mahsman
157 S.W.3d 245 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2004)
State v. Bizovi
129 S.W.3d 429 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2004)
State v. Kelly
119 S.W.3d 587 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2003)
State v. Kimberley
103 S.W.3d 850 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2003)
State v. Bradshaw
99 S.W.3d 73 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2003)
State v. Day
87 S.W.3d 51 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2002)
State v. Watkins
73 S.W.3d 881 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2002)
State v. Taber
73 S.W.3d 699 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2002)
State v. West
58 S.W.3d 563 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2001)
State v. Middleton
43 S.W.3d 881 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2001)
State v. Weddle
18 S.W.3d 389 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2000)
State v. Tackett
12 S.W.3d 332 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2000)
State v. Pfleiderer
8 S.W.3d 249 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1999)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
845 S.W.2d 124, 1993 WL 7164, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-stevens-moctapp-1993.