United States v. Gooch

780 F. Supp. 725, 1991 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18447, 1991 WL 263260
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Washington
DecidedDecember 12, 1991
DocketNo. CR-91-174-JLQ
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 780 F. Supp. 725 (United States v. Gooch) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Washington primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Gooch, 780 F. Supp. 725, 1991 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18447, 1991 WL 263260 (E.D. Wash. 1991).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANT’S MOTION TO SUPPRESS

QUACKENBUSH, Chief Judge.

BEFORE THE COURT is Defendant’s Motion to Suppress Evidence Based on Unlawful Arrest (Ct. Rec. 22), heard on December 4, 1991. Timothy J. Ohms represented the Plaintiff; Daniel J. Keane and Brian L. Meek represented the Defendant. Having reviewed the record, heard from [727]*727counsel, and being fully advised in this matter, this order is intended to memorialize the court’s oral ruling in the hearing on this matter.

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

The following portion of the facts has been stipulated to by the parties for the purpose of this proceeding. On July 7, 1991, at 4:52 a.m., the Stevens County Sheriffs Office was contacted by the Spokane County Sheriffs Office regarding an alleged assault at the residence of Defendant, Kenneth Gooch, located at 3265 Highway 231, East Valley, Stevens County, Washington. Stevens County Deputy Sheriff Paul Murray was advised of the incident at 4:55 a.m. The alleged victims, Hazel R. Sims, Gooch’s sister, and Darryl S. Slater, Sims’s companion, contacted the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office claiming that Kenneth Gooch had assaulted them with a rifle and held them against their will at Gooch’s residence. Ms. Sims alleged that Gooch had been drinking alcohol and ingesting Demerol and Tylenol 4 when he became violent, and began to beat her with his fists and kick her. He then allegedly produced a .22 caliber rifle and threatened to kill her. Somehow, Ms. Sims managed to phone a friend, Darryl Slater, for help. When Mr. Slater arrived at Gooch’s residence, he was allegedly met at gunpoint by Gooch, after which he was prevented from leaving. Gooch eventually passed out around 5:00 a.m. It was at this time that Sims and Slater left the Gooch residence and traveled to Spokane County, where they called the Spokane County Sheriff’s Department.

At 6:08 a.m., Mr. Slater contacted the Stevens County Sheriff’s Office, advising that he and Ms. Sims were leaving the Deer Park area to return to their home in Spokane. According to the testimony of Stevens County Deputy Sheriff Ted Campbell, Ms. Sims’s house was located approximately 30 miles away from Gooch’s house. At approximately 7:00 a.m., Deputy Murray contacted Sergeant Craig Thayer, of the Stevens County Sheriff’s Department, regarding the incident. Sergeant Thayer directed that Deputy Campbell make personal contact with Sims and Slater at their home in Spokane.

While Deputy Campbell was at the Sims residence in Spokane, Sergeant Thayer drove to the Stevens County Sheriff’s Office in Colville. At approximately 8:00 a.m., Sergeant Thayer requested that Sheriff Richard C. Andres call out the Stevens County Sheriff’s Tactical Response Team to take Gooch into custody. At 8:53 a.m., the Stevens County Tactical Response Team was activated.

At 9:30 a.m., Deputy Campbell arrived at the Sims home at North 2711 Regal, Spokane, and took Sims’s and Slater’s statements. According to the testimony of Deputy Campbell, he observed that Ms. Sims was injured, and advised her to see a doctor. Ms. Sims indicated to Deputy Campbell that Gooch had caused her injuries the prior evening, and at that time had threatened her life. At approximately 10:10 a.m., Ms. Sims received a telephone call from Mary Baker. Ms. Baker is Defendant Gooch’s girlfriend, and was allegedly present during Sims's and Slater’s captivity. Ms. Baker, calling from the Gooch residence, allegedly wanted to know whether or not Ms. Sims had called the police. According to the testimony of Deputy Campbell, he listened in on the phone conversation at Ms. Sims’s request.

At 10:30 a.m., the Tactical Response Team met at the Chewelah Police Department. At 10:55, the team went to the Christian Church at the junction of Highway 232 and Highway 395, and then Sergeant Thayer and Stevens County Deputy Sheriff Colin Webb went on to an abandoned house approximately 100 yards north of the Gooch residence. From there, they could observe the northwest and east sides of the Gooch house. Sergeant Thayer then called for the rest of the team to move to the abandoned house. A plan was formulated whereby the remaining team members (approximately nine officers) would surround the Gooch residence, and Sergeant Thayer would contact Mr. Gooch by telephone and request that he come out of the home. Then, at 11:07 a.m., without an [728]*728arrest or search warrant, Detective Webb and other members of the Tactical Response Team approached the northwest side of the Gooch house.

As stated previously, the preceding portion of the facts are not in dispute; however, the events which transpired after 11:07 are disputed.

Sergeant Thayer testified that, at 11:27 a.m., he telephoned Gooch with a portable phone and told him that camouflaged deputies were outside his residence and to come out of the home with his hands in plain view. However, according to the testimony of Gooch, he was told during this call that his house was surrounded, that he was under arrest, and that if he did not surrender peaceably, the police would extricate him by force. Indeed, on cross-examination, Sergeant Thayer acknowledged that Gooch’s house was, in fact, surrounded by camouflaged members of the Tactical Response Team, and that Gooch was not free to leave. According to Sergeant Thayer, it was his intent that all officers, vehicles and weapons remain hidden until after Gooch exited his residence. However, Gooch testified that after answering the call from Sergeant Thayer, he looked out his window and saw a Sheriffs patrol car down the hill from his house and a police officer wearing a camouflaged uniform hiding behind a car in his yard.

According to the testimony of Gooch, he complied with Sergeant Thayer’s instructions to surrender peaceably. However, as soon as he exited his house, he was met by Detective Burns, who had his service weapon drawn and pointed at him. Gooch apparently became quite hostile because the Tactical Response Team all had their weapons drawn and pointed at him. At this point, according to Gooch, he told the officer to either point his gun toward the ground or use it. Subsequently, Detective Webb and Deputy Kevin Nave laid down their weapons and advanced on Mr. Gooch. According to Sergeant Thayer, Mr. Gooch was handcuffed at approximately 12:10 p.m. Thereafter, Deputy Paul Murray transported Gooch to the Stevens County Jail. The Deputy removed Gooch’s handcuffs and told Gooch to empty his pockets. Mr. Gooch had two .22 caliber bullets in his left pants pocket, which are the subject of this suppression motion. The .22 caliber rifle apparently was never located.

The Indictment alleges two counts against the Defendant: Count 1 — felon in possession of a firearm on or about July 29, 1990, to-wit, a .22 caliber revolver; and Count 2 — felon in possession of ammunition on or about July 7, 1991, to-wit, two rounds of .22 caliber ammunition. Gooch seeks to suppress all evidence obtained as a result of his allegedly unlawful arrest on July 7, 1991, including the two rounds of .22 caliber ammunition found on his person, statements given by him to the police after his arrest, and statements made by occupants of his house after his arrest. However, because the Government has stipulated that it will not use, at trial, the statements made by individuals in Gooch’s house after his arrest, the court will only determine whether the ammunition and Gooch’s statements should be suppressed.

II. DISCUSSION

“It is a basic principle of Fourth Amendment law that searches and seizures

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Related

United States v. Kenneth D. Gooch
6 F.3d 673 (Ninth Circuit, 1993)

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Bluebook (online)
780 F. Supp. 725, 1991 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18447, 1991 WL 263260, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-gooch-waed-1991.