State v. Walker

2015 ND 281, 871 N.W.2d 451, 2015 N.D. LEXIS 281, 2015 WL 7738034
CourtNorth Dakota Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 1, 2015
DocketNo. 20140441
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 2015 ND 281 (State v. Walker) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering North Dakota Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Walker, 2015 ND 281, 871 N.W.2d 451, 2015 N.D. LEXIS 281, 2015 WL 7738034 (N.D. 2015).

Opinions

VANDE WALLE, Chief Justice.

[¶ 1] Clinton Walker appealed from a criminal judgment entered upon his conditional plea of guilty for possession of marijuana and tetrahydrocannabinols with intent to deliver. Walker pled guilty after the district court denied his motion to suppress evidence and,.on appeal, challenges that order. We affirm.

I

[¶ 2] While conducting drug surveillance, a Bismarck Police officer observed a vehicle with out-of-state plates. A detective working with the officer believed he recognized at least one occupant of the vehicle.1 Walker was a passenger in that vehicle. The detective asked the officer to pull the vehicle over if he observed it make a traffic violation. The officer observed the vehicle making an illegal left turn and stopped the vehicle.

[¶ 3] Upon approaching the vehicle, the officer informed the occupants as to the reason for the stop, asked for their identification, and asked about their travel plans. They informed the officer they were traveling from Washington State to Indiana because the driver’s mother was undergoing surgery. The officer also discovered that the vehicle was rented by Walker in Indianapolis and would be returned to that location. When asked, the occupants denied there was anything illegal in the vehicle.

[¶ 4] The officer relayed the identification and travel plans to the detective, who did not recognize their names. A check of their information did not turn up any outstanding warrants or criminal history. The officer radioed a second unit to help secure the scene and had the driver, Tyler Asbach, exit the vehicle. Asbach was again asked about their travel plans. He indicated Walker was his second cousin and that his mother was having surgery, but did not know what kind of surgery. He also stated that they chose to drive to see the country.

[¶ 5] The officer requested permission to search the vehicle, which Asbach did not [455]*455give as he did not rent the vehicle. The officer then spoke to Walker, who indicated he was a third cousin to Asbach and they were' returning to Indiana because Asbach’s mother was undergoing carpal tunnel surgery. The officer requested, permission from Walker to search the vehicle, which he received. The length of the stop from beginning until consent was given was twelve minutes. No citation or warning had yet been .issued. The officer did not tell Walker what he was searching for.

[¶ 6] Based on the occupants’ travel plans, the officer’s knowledge that marijuana was in some way decriminalized in the state of Washington, and that drug traffickers rent vehicles instead of using their own vehicles to transport drugs, the-officer suspected the occupants .were involved in drug trafficking. A search of the interior of the vehicle did not uncover any criminal activity. During the search, both occupants were standing behind the vehicle. The officer requested that the trunk be opened. No request for consent to search the trunk was made, and no objection to searching the trunk was made. A number of items of luggage were discovered inside the trunk. No request for consent to search the luggage was made, and no objection to a search of the luggage was made by either occupant. A search of the luggage uncovered bags of items with marijuana leaves displayed on them which the officer suspected were edible marijuana products, as well as bags of raw marijuana. The officer did not inquire as to the ownership of each piece of the luggage prior to the search. Both occupants were then placed under arrest.

[¶ 7] Walker and Asbach moved to suppress the evidence and dismissal of the charges arguing the search and seizure of Walker’s vehicle were illegal. After the suppression hearing the district court denied the motion, finding the officer was conducting duties related to the initial stop, the stop was reasonable, valid and voluntary consent was given by Walker, and the scope of consent was reasonable in its duration and was not limited to the interior of the vehicle. Walker -entered a conditional plea of guilty arid- this appeal followed.

II

[¶ 8] When reviewing a trial court’s ruling on a motion to suppress, this Court -will “defer to the court’s findings of fact and resolve conflicts in the evidence in favor of affirmance.” State v. Guscette, 2004 ND 71, ¶ 5, 678 N.W.2d 126. A trial court’s disposition of a motion to suppress will be affirmed unless, “after resolving conflicting evidence in favor of affirmance, there is insufficient competent evidence fairly capable of supporting the trial court’s findings, or the decision is contrary to the manifest weight of the evidence.” Id.

[¶ 9] Our state and federal constitutions prohibit unreasonable searches and seizures. U.S. Const, amend. IV; N.D. Const, art. I, § 8; State v. Odom, 2006 ND 209, ¶ 9, 722 N.W.2d 370. “War-rantless searches .are unreasonable unless they fall within a recognized exception to the warrant requirement.” Odom, 2006 ND 209, ¶ 9, 722 N.W.2d 370. “Consent is a well-established exception to the warrant requirement.” Id. “The scope of an individual’s consent is determined by ‘considering what an objectively reasonable person would have understood the consent to include.’ ” Id. at ¶ 10 (quoting United States v. Urbina, 431 F.3d 305, 310 (8th Cir.2005)). “The reasonableness inquiry is applied to the understanding of an officer who is conducting a search.” Id. “Whether a search exceeds the -scope of consent is [456]*456a factual question, subject to the clearly erroneous standard of review.” Id.

Ill

[¶ 10] Walker argues his detainment was unreasonable because the purpose of the stop had been completed and further detention was no longer reasonably related in scope to the circumstances which justify the stop. In a pre-trial suppression motion, we determine whether reasonable suspicion exists based on the “totality of the circumstances” and apply an “objective standard, taking into consideration the inferences and deductions an investigating officer would make based on the officer’s training and experience.” State v. Franzen, 2010 ND 244, ¶ 12, 792 N.W.2d 538. “The question is whether a reasonable person in the officer’s position would be justified by some objective manifestation to suspect the defendant was, or was about to be, engaged in unlawful activity” and “[w]hether the facts support a reasonable and articulable suspicion is a question of law.” Id.

[¶ 11] The initial traffic stop of the vehicle was proper because an illegal turn was made. “An officer may detain an individual at the scene of a traffic stop for a reasonable period of time necessary for the officer to complete his duties resulting from the traffic stop.” State v. Deviley, 2011 ND 182, ¶ 9, 803 N.W.2d 561. The stop may continue “as long as reasonably necessary to conduct [duties resulting from a traffic stop] and to issue a warning or citation.” Id. Those duties include:

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2015 ND 281, 871 N.W.2d 451, 2015 N.D. LEXIS 281, 2015 WL 7738034, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-walker-nd-2015.