United States v. Pond

36 M.J. 1050, 1993 CMA LEXIS 161, 1993 WL 76213
CourtU S Air Force Court of Military Review
DecidedFebruary 25, 1993
DocketACM 29212 (recon)
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 36 M.J. 1050 (United States v. Pond) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering U S Air Force Court of Military Review primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Pond, 36 M.J. 1050, 1993 CMA LEXIS 161, 1993 WL 76213 (usafctmilrev 1993).

Opinion

OPINION OF THE COURT

UPON RECONSIDERATION

LEONARD, Senior Judge:

This case considers whether urinalysis results from a nonconsensual taking of a urine sample by a civilian police officer, without a warrant or exigent circumstances, may be Used as evidence in a court-martial to prove use of an illegal drug.1 We find the urinalysis results inadmissible because the taking of the urine sample did not comply with the state implied consent statute and violated the Fourth Amendment.

I. Facts.

According to his testimony, Pond engaged a waitress in conversation while passing his time at a bar in San Bernardino County, California. She apparently felt sorry for him and gave him a “dime” bag of methamphetamine.2 Pond testified he put some methamphetamine in his mouth and the rest in his drink. He then placed the small plastic bag containing residue of the methamphetamine in his wallet to throw away as he drove home. A short time later, Pond left the bar on his motorcycle.

A deputy sheriff of San Bernardino County saw Pond leave the bar and make a left turn without giving a signal. The deputy stopped Pond and asked for his license, insurance, and registration. Pond could not produce a driver’s license or proof of insurance. The deputy observed that Pond smelled of alcoholic beverage, had dilated pupils,3 and appeared agitated. The depu[1052]*1052ty’s experience and training led him to believe Pond was under the influence of some drug. He began asking Pond about how much he had to drink and whether he had taken any drugs that would dilate his pupils. Pond admitted drinking three to five beers, but he initially denied using any drugs. After the deputy asked Pond three to five times about possible causes for his dilated pupils, Pond admitted he used methamphetamine at the bar. The deputy questioned Pond at the roadside about half the distance between the patrol car and Pond’s motorcycle. The deputy asked the questions in a normal conversational tone, and Pond was not under arrest at the time they were asked.

After Pond’s admission, the deputy had Pond perform three field sobriety tests. Pond passed all three tests but did them in an unusually rapid manner. Pond’s performance on the tests further confirmed the deputy’s suspicion that Pond was under the influence of a drug and not alcohol. After completing the tests, the deputy examined Pond’s tongue and found it white-coated, another sign that Pond was under the influence of a stimulant. At that point, the deputy decided to arrest Pond and asked him to empty his pockets and place the contents on the hood of the patrol car. Looking through the items in Pond’s pockets, the deputy found the small plastic bag with residue of methamphetamine in Pond’s wallet. The deputy then arrested Pond, handcuffed him, and read him Miranda rights.

After the arrest, the deputy took Pond to the central police station to book him and get a urine sample from him. According to the deputy, he took the urine sample to comply with California’s implied consent law requiring a breath, blood, or urine sample from a person arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. At the time of Pond’s arrest, only breath or urine tests were available at the police station where the deputy took Pond. The deputy knew a breath test would not detect the presence of methamphetamine so he directed Pond to provide a urine sample. The deputy did not tell Pond the implied consent law required he give the sample. He also did not inform Pond about the consequences of refusing to provide the sample or offer Pond an option to refuse or to take another type of test.4 The deputy told Pond to provide a urine sample and personally watched him urinate into the specimen bottle. After Pond gave the urine sample, the deputy took him to the jail where he was processed and placed in a cell. Pond’s urine sample tested positive for use of methamphetamine.

At trial, Pond moved to suppress his admission of methamphetamine use to the deputy, the plastic bag containing methamphetamine residue, and the positive urinalysis result. The government presented the testimony of the deputy and a reserve deputy who was with him at the time of Pond’s arrest. Pond testified for the defense on the motion. In addition to the testimony, the military judge took judicial notice of California Vehicle Code § 23157. The military judge denied all three motions to suppress, and Pond appeals all three rulings.

After the military judge denied his motions to suppress evidence acquired by the civilian police officer and another motion to find the offenses multiplicious, appellant entered a conditional guilty plea, see R.C.M. 910(a)(2), to wrongful use of methamphetamine, wrongful possession of methamphetamine, and operation of a motorcycle while impaired by methamphetamine.

II. Suppression of Pond’s Admission.

We agree with the military judge’s decision denying Pond’s motion to suppress his admission of methamphetamine use. Mil.R.Evid. 305(h)(1) provides:

When a person subject to the code is interrogated by an official or agent of ... a State ... or any political subdivision of such a State ... the person’s entitlement to rights warnings ... shall [1053]*1053be determined by the principles of law generally recognized in the trial of criminal cases in the United States district courts involving similar interrogations.

The military judge found the deputy obtained Pond’s admission of methamphetamine use during a questioning incident to a valid traffic stop. He also found the deputy did not threaten Pond or physically restrict his movement during the questioning and that the questioning was not coercive or police dominated. We agree with these findings of fact. Under the law applicable to United States district courts, such questioning is not a custodial interrogation for purposes of Miranda and rights warnings are not required. Pennsylvania v. Bruder, 488 U.S. 9, 109 S.Ct. 205, 102 L.Ed.2d 172 (1988); Berkemer v. McCarty, 468 U.S. 420, 104 S.Ct. 3138, 82 L.Ed.2d 317 (1984). Therefore, with no requirement for rights warning applicable, Pond’s statements were not involuntary or inadmissible under Mil.R.Evid. 305(a) and 304(a).

III. Suppression of the Methamphetamine Residue.

We also agree with the military judge’s ruling admitting into evidence the plastic bag with methamphetamine residue found on Pond the night of his arrest. The deputy properly obtained this evidence in a search incident to arrest.

The deputy saw Pond commit a driving violation, measured the dilation of Pond’s pupils, observed his agitated condition and unusually rapid performance of the field sobriety tests, heard Pond admit using methamphetamine, and observed his white-coated tongue. The military judge found these facts gave the deputy probable cause to arrest Pond for driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. We agree.

It is not clear from the evidence whether the deputy searched Pond before or after arresting him. However, the deputy’s testimony clearly showed he decided to arrest Pond before he began to search him.

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Bluebook (online)
36 M.J. 1050, 1993 CMA LEXIS 161, 1993 WL 76213, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-pond-usafctmilrev-1993.