United States v. Nygard

324 F. Supp. 863, 1971 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13805
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Missouri
DecidedApril 9, 1971
Docket6173
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 324 F. Supp. 863 (United States v. Nygard) 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. Nygard, 324 F. Supp. 863, 1971 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13805 (W.D. Mo. 1971).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

JOHN W. OLIVER, District Judge.

I.

This case, involving an alleged violation of Sections 5861(c), 5861(d), and 5861 (i), Title 26, United States Code, proscribing the possession of an unregistered firearm, was tried without a jury. The parties agreed that the evidence *865 should be considered in regard to both the merits and defendant’s Rule 41(e) motion to suppress evidence. We deem it appropriate to state the reasons why we must return a verdict of not guilty in a case in which it is apparent that, except for a violation of Rule 5(a) of the Rules of Criminal Procedure, a conviction would have been obtained.

Whether a verdict of guilty or not guilty should be entered turns on the question of whether defendant’s objection to the admission of the unregistered gun in evidence should be sustained. Defendant’s objection was based upon (a) an alleged violation of the Fourth Amendment and (b) an alleged violation of Rule 5(a) of the Rules of Criminal Procedure. The first ground of the objection is not well taken. The second ground is valid. Defendant’s objection must therefore be sustained and the defendant acquitted.

II.

The following factual circumstances were established, for the most part, by contemporaneous documentary evidence, corroborated by the undisputed testimony of the witnesses:

At 2:33 a. m. on the morning of September 25, 1970, at the request of Detective Brogan of the Nassau County, New York, Police Department, the Missouri Highway Patrol and the Police Department of Cabool, Missouri, were sent the following message:

Missing from 19 Norwood Road Manorhaven NY Howard J. Nygard Jr. M-W-25-5-10-170-DOB 080145 blue eyes long black hair moustache fair complexion physical good mentally depressed reported by mother Mary same address phone home 516-883-4348 business 516-535-3000 wearing dungarees black and maroon striped shirt sandles carrying $200.00 U.S.. currency. Subject should be considered dangerous and approached with caution mentally poor alleged to have pistol in possession and has threatened to use same on father
Subject believed to be in route to Route 60 Highway M Cabool Missouri operating a 1968 Camaro color blue N.Y. registration 7214XG subject attempting to contact father Howard J. Nygard Sr. at above address who possibly took subjects younger brother Donald age 13 years from this area— Donald is subject of Nassau County missing person alarm 19059.

That message was received by the Missouri Highway Patrol at 2:35 a. m. on September 25, 1970. At 2:51 a. m. on the same day the message was radioed to the Weight Station maintained by the Highway Patrol near Cabool, Missouri, for eventual delivery to the Cabool police department. A member of the Missouri Highway Patrol at the Cabool Weight Station delivered the message, which he had copied down in longhand, to Patrolman Kelly, a member of the Cabool Police Department, at 3:40 a. m. on September 25, 1970. Patrolman Kelly put the longhand message on a clipboard kept in the Cabool Police Department’s patrol car. He also made a note on his daily report, which is routinely reviewed by the police officer who succeeds him on duty, that “Howard Nygard, Jr. coming in from N.Y. 1968 Camaro Lie. #7214XG. Supposed to try to kill his father. Armed & dangerous. Received our Dept. 3:40 A.M.”

Patrolman Ward and Chief of Police Tucker of the Cabool Police Department became advised of both the message on the clipboard and the notation made by Patrolman Kelly in the officer’s daily report when they came on duty later in the day of September 25, 1970. The official arrest report of the Cabool Police Department, dated September 25, 1970, prepared and signed by both Patrolman Ward and Chief of Police Tucker stated the following:

Subject had been reported enroute from New York to Cabool, Mo. for the purpose of killing his father. Subject reportedly was armed and dangerous. Subject when apprehended was armed with above weapon but offered little resistance to police officers. Subject *866 stated that his purpose here was to originally kill his father with the above mentioned weapon, but that he had changed his mind. Subject incarcerated in Cabool City Jail pending investigation of possible felony charges stemming from the possession of above named weapon.

Those officers described the weapon involved in the alleged concealed weapon offense as a:

22 cal. Rifle modified by sawing stock and barrel off. Gun measured less than 13 inches overall length.

The defendant was in a public telephone booth a substantial distance from his parked automobile at the time of his arrest. There were some unimportant variations in the testimony of the two Cabool police officers and that of the defendant in regard to the details of that arrest and the seizure of the gun. 1 Everyone agreed, however, that because of the tight-fitting sport clothes the defendant was wearing, it was clearly apparent to both arresting officers that he did not in fact have a weapon concealed on his person. It was also clearly apparent to the arresting officers that if the defendant was in fact carrying a weapon it would have to be in the automobile.

III.

The warrantless search involved in this case was valid if (a) the defendant consented and thereby waived the necessity for any warrant which may have otherwise been required; or (b) the arresting officers had probable cause to search the automobile and therefore a warrant was not required under the circumstances. The primary thrust of the Government’s effort to sustain the search was primarily focused on the consent ground. We made an express factual finding at the close of the case (Tr. 193-195) that it could not fairly be said that the defendant had in fact consented to the search.

Haire v. Sarver, 437 F.2d 1262, decided by the Eighth Circuit on February 5, 1971, makes clear that: “The consent to search is ordinarily a question of fact.” We have not changed our mind in regard to the proper inferences to be drawn from the essentially undisputed testimony and therefore adheres to the finding made at trial on the issue of consent.

The fact, however, that defendant did not in fact consent to the search of his automobile does not, under the circumstances of this case, mean, that the Cabool police officers’ search and seizure of the gun from under the driver’s seat in defendant’s automobile was in violation of the Fourth Amendment. Indeed, that police officer had a right to make that search without defendant’s consent and without violating the Fourth Amendment if, under the factual circumstances, he had probable cause to do so. Such is the explicit ruling of Chambers v. Maroney, 399 U.S. 42, 90 S.Ct. 1975, 26 L.Ed.2d 419 (1970). See also United States v. Harflinger, (8th Cir., 1970) 436 F.2d 928, an appeal from this district, for a recent application of the principles enunciated in Chambers v. Maroney. 2

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
324 F. Supp. 863, 1971 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13805, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-nygard-mowd-1971.