United States v. Camanga

38 M.J. 249, 1993 CMA LEXIS 131, 1993 WL 449288
CourtUnited States Court of Military Appeals
DecidedSeptember 28, 1993
DocketNo. 68,261; CMR No. 9100408
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 38 M.J. 249 (United States v. Camanga) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Military Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Camanga, 38 M.J. 249, 1993 CMA LEXIS 131, 1993 WL 449288 (cma 1993).

Opinion

Opinion of the Court

CRAWFORD, Judge:

Appellant was convicted, contrary to his pleas, by a military judge sitting alone as a general court-martial of larceny, in violation of Article 121, Uniform Code of Military Justice, 10 USC § 921. The convening authority approved the sentence of a bad-conduct discharge, confinement for 22 months, total forfeitures, and reduction to the lowest enlisted grade. The Court of Military Review affirmed the findings and the sentence. 34 MJ 1135 (1992). We granted review of the following issues:

I

WHETHER THE MILITARY JUDGE ERRED BY FAILING TO SUPPRESS EVIDENCE SEIZED FROM APPELLANT’S OFF-POST RESIDENCE AND FROM THE RESIDENCE OF A NEIGHBOR, WHERE THE SEARCH OF APPELLANT’S RESIDENCE WAS TAINTED BY PRIOR ILLEGAL SEARCHES OF HIS BARRACKS ROOM AND PRIVATELY OWNED VEHICLE, AND THE SEARCH OF THE NEIGHBOR’S RESIDENCE WAS TAINTED BY AN ILLEGAL APPREHENSION OF APPELLANT.
II
WHETHER TRIAL DEFENSE COUNSEL ERRED BY FAILING TO INFORM THE MILITARY JUDGE IN A TIMELY MANNER OF APPELLANT’S DESIRE TO SEEK CIVILIAN COUNSEL.

FACTS

Two fires of suspicious origin led agents of the Criminal Investigation Command (CID) to ask the battery commander for permission to search appellant’s barracks room. The first fire was in early May 1990 at appellant’s battery command. This fire destroyed, among other things, all the records pertaining to appellant’s nonjudicial punishment under Article 15, UCMJ, 10 USC § 815. These records had been pulled from a file, placed on a desk top, soaked with an accelerant, and ignited.

Unrelated to the two fires, in early August 1990, Private First Class H, assigned to the same installation as appellant, reported that several thousand dollars worth of personal items, including stereo components and compact discs, were stolen from his on-post temporary storage locker. These items were seized from appellant’s off-post quarters and from Mr. Lozano, a neighbor of appellant’s wife. The discovery and seizure of these items formed the basis of the larceny charge.

The second fire occurred on August 18, 1990, in appellant’s battalion headquarters. Entry was made by removing two bolts from a broken window on the ground floor. An incendiary device was found in the battalion legal clerk’s office. Varnish was placed immediately beneath the incendiary device, and one can of wood stain was placed in the office. Paint thinner was poured throughout the building. The record of appellant’s summary court-martial proceedings, initiated after appellant had refused nonjudicial punishment, were placed on top of the legal clerk’s desk, soaked with an accelerant, and ignited.

On the same day of the second fire, CID agents apprehended appellant outside his wife’s off-post residence and towed his car to the CID office. Later a search of his car revealed a receipt for the purchase of a pipe similar to that used for the incendiary device that started the fire at the battalion headquarters. The bolts from the first [251]*251floor window of the battalion headquarters were also found.

On August 19, 1990, appellant was returned to his unit and ordered by the charge of quarters to remain there pursuant to the battery .commander’s order. However, later that morning appellant left his unit contrary to his orders. The battery commander advised the CID of appellant’s absence; the CID went to appellant’s off-post residence, which was different from his wife’s residence, coaxed him out of the house, and apprehended him.

Mr. Lozano observed the CID with appellant in custody. Lozano walked over to appellant’s residence and informed the CID agents that he had stored some items for appellant at his residence for a fee. The agents told Mr. Lozano to hold the items. On August 20 or 21, 1990, the agents returned to Mr. Lozano’s home and seized a number of items. From checking the serial numbers they determined that these items had been reported stolen in August 1990 by PFC H.

On the morning of August 23, 1990, the agents went to appellant’s off-post quarters and asked appellant’s roommate for permission to search. Appellant’s roommate permitted the agents to enter the apartment and look in the common area but not in appellant’s room. Appellant’s roommate mentioned that appellant had bought paint thinner and pieces of pipe similar to that used in the construction of the explosive device. The agents observed in plain view two milk container crates containing compact discs, which they determined to have been among those reported stolen earlier in the month by PFC H.

On the afternoon of August 23,1990, the FBI obtained a search warrant from a federal magistrate to search appellant’s apartment for a steel pipe and paint thinner or any container holding paint thinner. The search warrant was executed that same day, and numerous personal items (kitchen utensils, electric fan, Panasonic dual cassette player, etc.) reported stolen in August 1990 by PFC H were seized.

At trial appellant alleged five incidents in which his Fourth Amendment rights had been violated: (1) the search of his barracks and seizure of his car on August 18, 1990; (2) the inventory of his car in August 1990; (3) appellant’s apprehension on August 19, 1990; (4) the seizure of items from appellant’s wife’s neighbor’s home several days later; (5) and the seizure of items from appellant’s apartment on August 23, 1990. The military judge ruled that the first three incidents constituted violations of the Fourth Amendment but upheld the seizure from the neighbor’s home and from appellant’s apartment.

Appellant argues that the items seized from the neighbor’s home and from appellant’s apartment should have been suppressed because they resulted from, and thus were tainted by, the illegal apprehension. We disagree.

DISCUSSION

RCM 302(b)(1), Manual for Courts-Martial, United States, 1984, provides that military law enforcement personnel may apprehend individuals when there is probable cause to believe there is a violation of the Uniform Code. RCM 302(c). Whether there is probable cause is based upon an “objective,” rather than a subjective, standard. Scott v. United States, 436 U.S. 128, 136-37, 98 S.Ct. 1717, 1723, 56 L.Ed.2d 168 (1978); United States v. Roa, 24 MJ 297 (CMA 1987).

At the time of the apprehension, CID suspected appellant of two arsons and had probable cause to believe that he disobeyed his commander’s order to remain at his unit. Probable cause for the latter offense is uncontested. That the officers may not have had grounds to apprehend appellant for arson does not undermine the basis for apprehending him for violating the order to remain at his unit. United States v. Prouse, 945 F.2d 1017, 1022-24 (8th Cir.1991); Klingler v. United States, 409 F.2d 299 (8th Cir.1969).

The exclusionary rule would be carried to an extreme if an invalid reason to [252]*252arrest cancelled a valid one. Thus, we hold that the evidence seized from Mr. Lozano’s apartment was not tainted by an illegal apprehension and was based on Lozano’s voluntary consent.

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Bluebook (online)
38 M.J. 249, 1993 CMA LEXIS 131, 1993 WL 449288, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-camanga-cma-1993.