United States v. Alaniz

278 F. Supp. 3d 944
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Texas
DecidedOctober 6, 2017
DocketCase No. 5:17-cr-00464
StatusPublished
Cited by58 cases

This text of 278 F. Supp. 3d 944 (United States v. Alaniz) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Alaniz, 278 F. Supp. 3d 944 (S.D. Tex. 2017).

Opinion

ORDER

George P. Kazen, Senior United States District Judge

Before the Court is the Report and Recommendation filed by Magistrate Judge J. Scott Hacker. (Dkt. 50) Any party who wishes to object to a Magistrate Judge’s findings and recommendations must serve and file written objections within fourteen days after being served with a copy of the findings and recommendation. Fed. R. Civ. P. 72(b)(2). The Court must conduct “a de novo determination of those portions of the report or specified proposed findings or recommendations to which objection is made”. 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(C). If no specific objections are made, de novo review is not required. Instead, where there is no objection, the Court need only determine whether the report and recommendation is clearly erroneous or contrary to law. See United States v. Wilson, 864 F.2d 1219, 1221 (5th Cir. 1989). In this case, because no party has objected to Magistrate' Judge Hacker’s Report and Recommendation, the Court need not conduct a de novo review. The Court has carefully reviewed the Report and Recommendation and finds it to be neither clearly erroneous nor contrary to law.

Accordingly, the Court ACCEPTS the findings of fact and conclusions- of law in the Magistrate Judge’s Report and Recommendation. (Dkt. 50) Defendants’ Motions to Suppress (Dkt. 34; Dkt. 42) are GRANTED. • i.

REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION

THE HONORABLE J. SCOTT HACKER, UNITED .STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

A grand jury, in a two-count indictment, charged Defendants Jesus Maria Alaniz (“Alaniz”) and Amy May Cadena (“Cade-na”) with conspiracy to possess and distribute 100 kilograms or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of marijuana, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846, 841(a)(1), and 841(b)(1)(B), and possession with intent to distribute 100 kilograms or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of marijuana, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(B) and 18 U.S.C. § 2. (Dkt. No. 23 (“Indictment”) at 13). Alaniz filed a Motion to Suppress (Dkt. No. 34) that Cadena joined. (Dkt. Nos. 39, 42). Senior District Judge George Kazen referred, the motion to the undersigned. - (Dkt. No. 35). .The government filed a response (Dkt. No. 43) pursuant to an Order of this Court (Dkt. No. 37).

• On August 2, 2017, the undersigned held a Motion Hearing at which the parties presented argument and evidence, and two government witnesses testified. (Dkt. Nos. 45, 46, 47). The Court has considered the argument, evidence, testimony, and applicable law. For the reasons that follow, the undersigned RECOMMENDS that the District Judge GRANT Alaniz’s and Cade-na’s Motion to Suppress (Dkt. Nos. 34, 42).

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

On May 23, 2017, United States Border Patrol Agents (“BPA”) Robert Sotero Gonzalez (“BPA Gonzalez”) and Darren Garza (“BPA Garza”) were working their assigned interdiction duties on Texas State Highway 359, a road having a single lane in either direction. At approximately 10:00 p.m., BPA Gonzalez was parked in a'perpendicular position in an unmarked, black Ford F250 without radar at the intersection of Highway 359 and Farm-to-Market Road 2895 (“FM 2895”). He observed three vehicles (i.e., Jeep Commander, Dodge Ram, and.red.Saturn VUE) that appeared to be driving in tandem at a high rate of speed eastbound on Highway 359 towards Oilton, Texas. He believed that the vehicles were traveling above the speed limit. After having allowed all three vehicles to drive past him, BPA Gonzalez turned east to follow the vehicles, accelerating to catch up to the Saturn. He noticed that the driver of the Saturn started “overly pressing the brakes” and “going over to the shoulder of the road,” allowing the agent’s vehicle to pass. (Mot. Hr’g at 9:21 9:22 AM). From BPA Gonzalez’s experience, it was common for alien and narcotics smugglers “to let people pass them so that [ ] nobody sees them.” (Mot. Hr’g at 9:21:20).

Deeming this activity suspicious, BPA Gonzalez continued to tail the Saturn to read its license plate and to call it into dispatch. (Mot. Hr’g at 9:219:25:20 AM).’ While observing the Saturn, he noticed that the rear of that vehicle was “bouncing way too much.” In fact, it “kept bouncing and bouncing and never stopped as [it was] traveling.” (Mot. Hr’g at 9:25:45 9:25:50 AM). Again, from BPA Gonzalez’s experience, this was indicative that the vehicle had a “little bit more weight” for a vehicle with only two passengers. (Mot. Hr’g at 9:26:03 AM). After calling dispatch with his personal cellular telephone, BPA Gonzalez was informed'that the Saturn was registered out of Freer, Texas,'and not stolen. BPA Gonzalez soon called BPA Garza and explained to him what he had observed. Believing that the Saturn was either carrying aliens or' narcotics, he further asked BPA Garza, who was driving a' marked patrol unit, to observe the Saturn and thereafter conduct a traffic stop.

BPA Garza was parked right at the west entrance to Oilton, Texas, at Highway 359, allowing him to view vehicles -traveling eastbound that same evening. Shortly after being contacted by BPA, Gonzalez, BPA Garza observed four vehicles driving ahead of BPA Gonzalezes unmarked F250, a Dodge RAM; a Nissan Sentra; and a Jeep Commander, followed by the red Saturn VUE. It appeared to BPA Garza that the Saturn was “riding very low.”1 .(Mot. Hr’g at 10:10:10 AM). Concluding that the Saturn was heavily laden, this seemed suspicious to him because he observed only two occupants in the vehicle—a driver and a front-seat passenger.. Further adding ■ to his suspicion, was., that,, in. this area or “small stretch,” there was a common trend of a lot of alien and narcotics smuggling, where they would drop off aliens or circumvent the checkpoint with narcotics or aliens. (Mot. Hr’g at 10:11:00 10:11:28 AM).

Once the Saturn passed by, BPA Garza drove out onto Highway 359, and attempted to catch up to the vehicle. When BPA Garza approached the Saturn, it had reduced its speed because the speed limit drops going into and through Oilton. At this point, the Saturn still appeared to be “riding a little lower.” (Mot. Hr’g at 10:12:00 AM). BPA Garza approached the Saturn travelling as close as one car apart from the vehicle, and he was only behind the Saturn for a short time2,,when the driver suddenly turned on his blinker. This was suspicious to BPA Garza because his marked (service) vehicle was only behind the Saturn for a short time, coupled with the fact that only places that the vehicle could have turned off were a parking lot to a local restaurant that was closed for the night and an adjacent street that leads down to the train tracks.

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Bluebook (online)
278 F. Supp. 3d 944, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-alaniz-txsd-2017.