United States v. Francisco Peguero, Jr.

518 F. App'x 792
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
DecidedMay 9, 2013
Docket11-13043
StatusUnpublished

This text of 518 F. App'x 792 (United States v. Francisco Peguero, Jr.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Francisco Peguero, Jr., 518 F. App'x 792 (11th Cir. 2013).

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

Francisco Peguero, Jr. appeals his convictions for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), (b)(l)(A)(ii), and 846 and possession with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), (b)(l)(A)(ii) and 18 U.S.C. § 2. On appeal, Peguero argues that we should reverse the district court’s denial of his motion to suppress for three reasons: (1) the officer lacked probable cause to stop him for speeding; (2) he was unlawfully detained because the officer unreasonably prolonged the traffic stop; and (3) his subsequent consent to search his vehicle was coerced and invalid. For the reasons that follow, we affirm.

*794 I.

“In reviewing a district court’s denial of a motion to suppress, we review its findings of fact for clear error and its application of law to those facts de novo.” United States v. Ramirez, 476 F.3d 1231, 1235 (11th Cir.2007) (emphasis omitted). “We also construe all facts in the light most favorable to the prevailing party in the district court[ — ]here, the government.” United States v. Boyce, 351 F.3d 1102, 1105 (11th Cir.2003). We review determinations regarding probable cause de novo. United States v. Butler, 102 F.3d 1191, 1199 (11th Cir.1997).

“The Fourth Amendment protects individuals from unreasonable search and seizure.” United States v. Harris, 526 F.3d 1334, 1337 (11th Cir.2008) (per cu-riam) (internal quotation marks omitted). When the police stop a motor vehicle, even for a brief period, a Fourth Amendment “seizure” occurs. Whren v. United States, 517 U.S. 806, 809-10, 116 S.Ct. 1769, 1772, 135 L.Ed.2d 89 (1996). A traffic stop is reasonable, and therefore constitutional, if the officers conducting the stop have “probable cause to believe a traffic violation has occurred.” Harris, 526 F.3d at 1337. A determination of probable cause rests on objective factors, and the officer’s subjective motives in making the stop are irrelevant. See Whren, 517 U.S. at 813, 116 S.Ct. at 1774. Furthermore, “a traffic stop based on an officer’s incorrect but reasonable assessment of facts does not violate the Fourth Amendment.” United States v. Chanthasouxat, 342 F.3d 1271, 1276 (11th Cir.2003). However, “a mistake of law, no matter how reasonable or understandable, ... cannot provide reasonable suspicion or probable cause to justify a traffic stop.” Id. at 1279.

Viewed in the light most favorable to the government, the evidence presented at the suppression hearing shows that the officer had probable cause to stop Peguero for speeding. At the suppression hearing, the officer testified that he knew Peguero was speeding because he had “paced” him. Pacing is when a police officer uses his or her own speedometer to determine the speed of the suspect’s vehicle. Here, while the officer maintained a speed of 79 miles per hour, Peguero’s truck pulled away, which, based on the officer’s training and experience, demonstrated that Peguero was traveling at least 79 miles per hour. The posted speed limit for this particular stretch of highway is 70 miles per hour. The officer further testified that he had received training in pacing and that his speedometer had recently been calibrated to ensure accuracy. The officer had probable cause to pull over Peguero.

II.

Peguero next argues that he was unlawfully detained because the officer unreasonably prolonged the traffic stop. We disagree. When evaluating whether the duration of an investigative detention is unreasonable and too intrusive, the Supreme Court has indicated that “common sense and ordinary human experience must govern over rigid criteria.” United States v. Sharpe, 470 U.S. 675, 685, 105 S.Ct. 1568, 1575, 84 L.Ed.2d 605 (1985). We have noted that “[a] traffic stop for speeding can doubtlessly last long enough for the police to ask questions about the reasons for speeding and to conduct a variety of checks about licenses, registration, [and] insurance.” United States v. Hernandez, 418 F.3d 1206, 1212 n. 7 (11th Cir.2005).

Following a stop for the purpose of issuing a citation for a routine traffic infraction, the officer may lengthen the detention for further questioning beyond that connected to the initial stop, if (1) the *795 officer “has an objectively reasonable and articulable suspicion illegal activity has occurred or is occurring;” or (2) “if the initial detention has become a consensual encounter.” United States v. Pruitt, 174 F.3d 1215, 1220 (11th Cir.1999). “[T]he [Supreme] Court [has] held, in a case involving a traffic stop, that ‘[a]n officer’s inquiries into matters unrelated to the justification for the ... stop ... do not convert the encounter into something other than a lawful seizure, so long as those inquiries do not measurably extend the duration of the stop.’ ” United States v. Griffin, 696 F.3d 1354, 1361 (11th Cir.2012) (quoting Arizona v. Johnson, 555 U.S. 323, 333, 129 S.Ct. 781, 788, 172 L.Ed.2d 694 (2009)).

Here, the district court did not err when it concluded that Peguero was legally detained. The dashboard video indicates that as the officer filled out the warning form, he asked a series of routine questions to Peguero. The officer testified that the process of issuing a warning form usually takes about 10 minutes. Approximately 10 minutes had elapsed from when Peguero was stopped to the time Peguero consented to the officer’s search of his vehicle. Even if the officer’s questions extended the stop by a few moments, his questions were asked during the course of related administrative tasks. See id. Moreover, once Peguero consented to the search, the interaction became consensual for Fourth Amendment purposes. The officer’s questions did not materially extend the detention.

III.

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Related

United States v. Butler
102 F.3d 1191 (Eleventh Circuit, 1997)
United States v. Pruitt
174 F.3d 1215 (Eleventh Circuit, 1999)
United States v. Chanthasouxat
342 F.3d 1271 (Eleventh Circuit, 2003)
United States v. Jody James Boyce
351 F.3d 1102 (Eleventh Circuit, 2003)
United States v. Joanna Hernandez
418 F.3d 1206 (Eleventh Circuit, 2005)
United States v. Omar Ramirez
476 F.3d 1231 (Eleventh Circuit, 2007)
United States v. Harris
526 F.3d 1334 (Eleventh Circuit, 2008)
Schneckloth v. Bustamonte
412 U.S. 218 (Supreme Court, 1973)
United States v. Sharpe
470 U.S. 675 (Supreme Court, 1985)
Whren v. United States
517 U.S. 806 (Supreme Court, 1996)
Arizona v. Johnson
555 U.S. 323 (Supreme Court, 2009)
United States v. Robert Chemaly
741 F.2d 1346 (Eleventh Circuit, 1984)
United States v. Oswald G. Blake, Leonard Eason
888 F.2d 795 (Eleventh Circuit, 1989)
United States v. Kareen Rasul Griffin
696 F.3d 1354 (Eleventh Circuit, 2012)

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Bluebook (online)
518 F. App'x 792, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-francisco-peguero-jr-ca11-2013.