United States v. 57,261 Items of Drug Paraphernalia

705 F. Supp. 1256, 1988 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 15804, 1988 WL 147652
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Tennessee
DecidedMarch 11, 1988
DocketNo. 3-87-0656
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 705 F. Supp. 1256 (United States v. 57,261 Items of Drug Paraphernalia) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Tennessee primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. 57,261 Items of Drug Paraphernalia, 705 F. Supp. 1256, 1988 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 15804, 1988 WL 147652 (M.D. Tenn. 1988).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

HIGGINS, District Judge.

On April 15, 1987, Contempo Products, Inc., (Contempo) filed civil action No. 3-87-0292 against Ralph Whiteside, Bill Crane and the Department of the Treasury, Customs Service of the United States of America (the Customs Service). Contempo alleged that Mr. Whiteside, Mr. Crane, and the Customs Service seized Contempo’s property, three shipments of ceramic cigarette holders, ceramic pipes and water pipes, in violation of Contempo’s due process rights.' Contempo simultaneously filed a motion for a preliminary injunction. Jurisdiction was alleged on the basis of 28 U.S.C. § 1331.

On April 27, 1987, Mr. Whiteside, Mr. Crane and the Customs Service filed a motion to dismiss, challenging the subject matter jurisdiction, in personam jurisdiction and sufficiency of process and alleging a failure to state a claim. Then, on April 30, 1987, the plaintiff filed an amendment to the complaint, adding the United States as a party defendant and alleging jurisdiction on the basis of the Tucker Act, 28 U.S.C. § 1346(a) and the All Writs Act, 18 U.S.C. § 1651. On May 21, 1987, a hearing was held on the motion to dismiss. At that time, Contempo’s counsel dismissed all claims against the Customs Service, leaving the two individual customs agents and the United States as defendants in civil action No. 3-87-0292. On June 18, 1987, the Court entered an order denying the motion to dismiss. On the same day, the Court entered an order consolidating the preliminary injunction for hearing with the trial on the merits.

On July 13, 1987, Mr. Crane and Mr. Whiteside filed a motion to dismiss the individual defendants on the ground of qualified immunity. On August 19, 1987, the Court entered an order denying that motion.

Also, on August 19, 1987, the United States (the Government) filed the action before this Court, civil action No. 3-87-0656, United States of America v. 57,261 Items of Drug Paraphernalia, Including Ceramic Pipes, Holders and Water Pipes, for forfeiture of the merchandise, which is also the subject of civil action No. 3-87-0292, i.e., the three shipments of ceramic [1258]*1258cigarette holders, ceramic pipes and water pipes which were imported by Contempo and later seized by the Government.

On August 26, 1987, the defendants in civil action No. 8-87-0292 filed a motion to dismiss or stay the trial of that action until judgment was entered in this action. Then, on August 27, 1987, Mr. Whiteside and Mr. Crane filed a notice of appeal from the order entered in civil action No. 3-87-0292, denying their motion to dismiss on the basis of qualified immunity. They also filed a motion to stay further proceedings against them in civil action No. 3-87-0292, while their appeal was pending.

A hearing on the motion to stay the trial of civil action No. 3-87-0292 was held on August 28,1987. At the hearing, the attorneys agreed to stay civil action No. 3-87-0292 and to proceed to trial on this forfeiture action, No. 3-87-0656. This action was tried on August 31,1987, September 1, 1987, and September 3, 1987, without the intervention of a jury.

For the reasons set forth in this memorandum, the Court finds that the three seized shipments of cigarette holders, ceramic pipes and water pipes are drug paraphernalia as defined by 21 U.S.C. § 857. The Court further finds that these ceramic cigarette holders, ceramic pipes and water pipes were properly seized pursuant to 19 U.S.C. § 1595a(c). Therefore, the defendant, 57,261 items of drug paraphernalia, is condemned and forfeited to the Government.

I.

In early 1987, a shipment of ceramic pipes and ceramic cigarette holders, manufactured by the Niki Glass Company, Inc., of Japan, was imported into the United States by Contempo. Although the shipment was unloaded at the port of Seattle, Washington, the items were kept in sealed containers until they reached Nashville, Tennessee, which served as the port of entry.

On February 25,1987, Customs agents in Nashville were alerted by the Customs Service national computer that items with the tariff number of the items imported by Contempo might be prohibited items of drug paraphernalia as defined by 21 U.S.C. § 857, a provision of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986.1

On February 26,1987, Customs agents in Nashville examined the ceramic pipes and ceramic cigarette holders which made up the initial shipment imported by Contempo. Samples of those items were sent to the Customs Service Regional Counsel’s Office in New Orleans, Louisiana. On March 2, 1987, Customs agents in Nashville received a copy of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986. Then, on March 5, 1987, Customs agents went to the offices of Mr. V. Alexander, the import broker for Contempo, and informed him that the shipment of ceramic pipes and cigarette holders was being detained while a determination was made as to whether these items were drug paraphernalia imported in violation of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act. At that time, the Customs agents were informed that two additional imported shipments of similar items were expected to arrive in Nashville shortly. The import broker provided the agents with copies of the invoices for the two subsequent shipments. The invoices showed that one of those shipments consisted of water pipes imported from Japan, while the other shipment consisted of ceramic water pipes and ceramic cigarette holders and was similar to the shipment which had already arrived.

Customs special agent Jerry Owensby, who had ten years’ experience as an agent for the Drug Enforcement Administration, was sent to observe the environment in which Contempo sold the detained items. Mr. Owensby went to Contempo’s offices [1259]*1259on McNally Drive in Nashville, Tennessee, and was told by the receptionist that he could not examine the products in their showroom because he was not a retail dealer but that he could visit Contempo’s retail store, Jean Marie’s,2 on Elliston Place in Nashville. Mr. Owensby proceeded to visit and observe the Elliston place store. He then reported his observations to Mr. Ralph Whiteside, the Port Director for U.S. Customs, Nashville.

Agent Owensby reported that he saw a plastic marijuana plant in the receptionist’s office at Contempo’s offices. He also reported that Contempo’s retail store sold many products, such as the ceramic pipes and cigarette holders which were contained in the shipment, as well as water pipes, scales, mirrors, straws and razors, which he believed were intended for use with controlled substances. Mr. Owensby told Mr. Whiteside that Contempo’s retail store appeared to be a “head” shop, a store which sells drug paraphernalia to drug users. Mr. Owensby also informed Mr. Whiteside that, in his opinion, based on his experience in drug law enforcement, the ceramic pipes, ceramic cigarette holders and water pipes were used exclusively for introducing controlled substances, particularly marijuana, into the body.

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705 F. Supp. 1256, 1988 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 15804, 1988 WL 147652, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-57261-items-of-drug-paraphernalia-tnmd-1988.