United States v. Falloco

277 F. 75, 1922 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 966
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Missouri
DecidedJanuary 7, 1922
DocketNos. 4496, 4514
StatusPublished
Cited by18 cases

This text of 277 F. 75 (United States v. Falloco) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Falloco, 277 F. 75, 1922 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 966 (W.D. Mo. 1922).

Opinion

VAN VAEKENBURGH, District Judge.

While these two cases arise out of distinct transactions, and involve different facts and circumstances, the same principle is involved, and both motions were heard together. A single ruling will dispose of both applications. The seizures in both cases were made by police officers. In the Falloco case the defendant’s premises consisted of a house, barn, and shed, all of which were within the same inclosure; that is to say, situated upon the same lot of ground in Kansas City, Mo. The officers passed from the shed through a sort of harness room and through a door which led into an underground apartment; that part of the ground in which this latter apartment was situated being higher than that upon which the shed stood. They there found a still, some whisky, and some mash for use in making whisky. The defendant was present and in charge. The still was in operation. They arrested the defendant and turned him and a sample of the whisky over to federal officers, and this prosecution resulted. The attention of the officers was directed to the property in question by smelling the odor of the distillation while walking their beat on the street along which the building was located. Their sense of smell led them to the hidden illicit apparatus and product. They had no search warrant.

In the Ross Case the officers had been directed by their superiors of [77]*77the police department to proceed to the Ross premises, where there was reason to believe that the illicit manufacture of whisky was in progress. As they approached the house the fumes of the distillation were distinctly perceptible. They demanded admission to the house, which was subsequently granted, and they gained access to one of the rooms in which a considerable quantity of liquor was found, and beneath the floor was found a still in operation and about 17 barrels of mash. Here again the officers had no search warrant.

The defendants base their application for a suppression of this evidence upon the ground that the relationship existing between the police officers and the enforcement officers of the United States was of such a nature as to make the former substantially the representatives of the government, or, at least, to subject them and their acts to the provisions of the federal Constitution, and more specifically the Fourth and Fifth Amendments thereto. A review of the testimony is essential to the proper application of the legal principles involved.

Mr. Shrader Howell, called on behalf of the defendants, testified that he was formerly, and at the time these transactions arose, federal prohibition director for this district; that along in April, 1920, under the former board of police commissioners, he arranged for a conference with the board in respect to securing co-operation beween the state and federal authorities by reason of the concurrent jurisdictions. He said:

“Wi> dirt have that conference, T think, with Mayor Cowgill and Mr. Ransom and Mr. Hatpin. At that time I think the state law was not in effect, * i:-' hut we had a general understanding they would lend every cooperation they could with reference to making arrests. And as near as I can recollect, when the new board came in, in January, according to my best recollection, I arranged a conference with the commissioners in connection with George Williams, who was the agent in charge here at Kansas Oify. * * * The conference with Commissioners Foster and Wilson was very brief; in other words, they merely said they would co-operate and referred me to Chief Edwards, and we had our real talk with him.
“Q. And at that conference you asked him to assist the federal officers in the enforcement of the Prohibition Act? A. Yes, sir.
“Q. What did he say? A. He very promptly said that anything his department could do we could count on.
‘ Q. Now, from that time forward state whether or not your agents in charge of the enforcement of the Volstead act had conferences with the police officers in regard to the enforcement of the Prohibition Act A. I know they conferred in the handling of cases with various officers, but I don’t know that myself.
“Q. Now, from that time forward, August 1, 1921, do you have any knowledge of the number of cases that were turned over to the federal officers here charged with the enforcement of the Volstead Act? A. Well I know there were a great number, but I couldn’t give any definite estimate even.
“Q. There was a working agreement that was in continual process of operation at least from that time forward? A. Yes; they were turning over violators of the Prohibition Act to the federal agents.
“Q. Did you have any conference with either of these two boards of police commissioners upon the subject of proeurance of search warrants as a pre requisite to obtaining of testimony? A. No, sir.
‘•Q- The subject of search warrants was not mentioned? A. Not that 1 recall; no, sir.”

[78]*78Cross-examination:

“Q. This conversation that you had was just a general conversation with the commissioners in reference to the National Prohibition Act, was it, and >'ts application? A. Well, with reference to co-operation between the two departments.
“Q. Now at that time did you tender to the police force or to the commissioners here in Kansas City any of your agents to assist in making raids or arrests? A. No; that matter was not gone into.
“Q. Did you instruct them in what manner to make this evidence? A. No, sir.
“The Court: When you speak of co-operation, Mr. Howell, just describe what you had in mind in this conference. A. What was discussed at that conference was this: At that time the docket was congested, and after conferring with Judge Sullinger and I think the commissioner, we tried to work out some plan by which as many cases as could be prosecuted under the state law should go to the state courts, and had a general understanding that first offenses, in the absence of any particular reasons, should be handled in state courts. That would release the commissioner of the court and the federal court to handle more aggravated eases and second offenses. That was the basis of our whole conference.
“The Court: As I understand you, your understanding with them was in the way of co-operation—was to try to stimulate the local authorities into a greater responsibility in the prosecution of cases in their jurisdiction, and not leave the entire matter to the consideration of government officers?
A. That was the idea back of the conference, so far as I was concerned.”

Redirect examination:

“Q. Isn’t that one of the reasons you went to the police department, in order that you might from them procure support and evidence which they had obtained in searches and seizures without putting your department to the trouble of procuring search warrants? A. No; that question wasn’t acute at that time.
“Q. Later on did it become acute? A. We never discussed that matter at all. The matter of how the police should procure evidence was a matter ' I thought entirely out of my jurisdiction.
“Q.

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Bluebook (online)
277 F. 75, 1922 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 966, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-falloco-mowd-1922.