United States v. Ramsey

367 F. Supp. 1307, 1973 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10586
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Missouri
DecidedDecember 18, 1973
Docket73 CR 198 W 4
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 367 F. Supp. 1307 (United States v. Ramsey) 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. Ramsey, 367 F. Supp. 1307, 1973 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10586 (W.D. Mo. 1973).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

ELMO B. HUNTER, District Judge.

The defendant in this ease is a seventeen year old, juvenile, who was sixteen years old at the time of the alleged offense. On August 17, 1973, at his arraignment, the defendant consented to allow the government to proceed against him by an information charging a juvenile delinquency pursuant to 18 U.S.C. §§ 5031-5033. The information charges that the defendant transported a stolen motor vehicle from" Kansas to Missouri, knowing said motor vehicle to have been stolen, in violation of 18 Ü.S.C. § 2312. The defendant has, at all proceedings before this- Court, been represented by counsel, Mr. Thomas Larson, Assistant Federal Public Defender for the Western District of Missouri.

Pursuant to Rule 41(f) F.R.Cr.P., the defendant moved on August 16, 1973, to suppress the use in evidence of certain alleged admissions and statements made by him. A full evidentiary hearing before this Court to consider defendant’s motion was held on September 7, 1973. Testifying at the hearing were Patrolman Donald Lauffer, Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department; Detective Robert Keys, Kansas City, Missouri Police Department — Youth Bureau; Special Agent Otto T. Handwerk, Federal Bureau of Investigation; and the defendant, Elvis Lee Ramsey.

The evidence adduced at the hearing established the following pattern of events. At approximately 1:20 A.M. on July 31, 1973, Patrolman Lauffer saw the defendant near 27th and Jackson Streets, Kansas City, Missouri, driving a green Volkswagen containing four other passengers. After observing the defendant, Patroman Lauffer did not feel that the defendant was of legal driving age, and consequently turned around to attempt to stop the vehicle in order to make a license check of its driver. He then observed the vehicle run off the road and strike a tree, at which time all five of the occupants abandoned the vehicle and attempted to leave the scene. *1309 Officer Lauffer pursued and apprehended the defendant at approximately 1:30 A.M. on a terrace near 28th and Jackson Streets. At the scene, Patrolman Lauf-fer asked the defendant only his name and to identify the other persons that had been with him. The defendant responded by telling Officer Lauffer his name, and that the others were his “brothers and cousins”. Officer Lauf-fer then took the defendant to the 27th Street Station (Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department), arriving between 2:00 and 2:15 A.M. In the interim, two of the other persons who had been in the car with the defendant (J. E. Bell and T. E. Bell, cousins of the defendant) had been arrested by another officer and were present at the station.

The defendant was then fully advised of his rights by Officer Lauffer reading to him the “Miranda” card, and making some further explanation, including specifically telling him that he did not have to say anything if he did not want to. 1 The defendant then proceeded to freely answer a few questions from Officer Lauffer. Ramsey told Officer Lauffer, in response to Lauffer’s questions, that he, his brothers, and his cousins had “hot-wired” the car in question in Kansas, jump-started it, and drove it to Missouri. The defendant’s statements were not reduced to writing by Officer Lauf-fer at that time, but later in the day were added to his report of the incident.

Detective Keys at the Youth Unit was notified of the arrest by Officer Lauffer via telephone at approximately 2:30 A. M., at which time Officer Lauffer may or may not have told him of the defendant’s statements. The defendant’s mother was notified of the arrest by phone at about 3:00 A.M. Officer Lauffer then transported the defendant to the Youth Unit at 725 Locust, Kansas City, Missouri.

The defendant was seen by Detective Robert Keys of the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department Youth Bureau at or shortly before 4:30 A.M. that morning. At that time, Detective Keys was aware of the defendant’s age (16), but was “probably not” aware that the defendant was then on probation imposed by the Jackson County, Missouri, Juvenile Court from a previous matter. The other two individuals arrested in the incident (J. E. Bell and T. E. Bell, cousins of the defendant) were also present. Detective Keys had read Officer Lauffer’s report of the incident and arrest (which at this time did not include the defendant’s statements) before he saw the defendant. Detective Keys saw the defendant, in accordance with his normal duties, to determine what, if any charges should be referred to the Juvenile Court against this defendant. Detective Keys questioned Ramsey with the intent to determine^ if he should refer a charge against him of “hit and run”, and at the time he questioned him, had no reason to believe that the Volkswagen the defendant had been driving was stolen, and therefore did not intend to question him about any theft.

Detective Keys first asked the defendant if he knew why he was at the station, to which Ramsey replied: “Yes; auto theft — accident”. 2 Keys then fully again advised the defendant of his rights by reading to him the “Miranda” card. He then proceeded to ask Ramsey if he had stolen the car, to which Ramsey responded “Yes.”; and when asked where he had stolen it, responded “Kansas.”, and then declined to talk further with Keys. 3 At this point, Detective *1310 Keys referred the defendant to the Juvenile Detention Unit, where he was later released.

Detective Keys made no effort to contact the defendant’s parents, and further stated that he had probably violated the established procedure for questioning juveniles in that he had questioned the defendant when neither a parent, attorney, or juvenile officer was present to act for the defendant. The normal procedure is for the questioning to be done at the Juvenile Court with a Deputy Juvenile Officer present.

Special Agent Otto Handwerk of the F.B.I. was informed verbally on August 2, 1973, of the possible federal law violation by Lieutenant Schmidt of the Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department, who indicated that persons had been arrested in Kansas City, Missouri, on July 31, 1973, in possession of an automobile previously reported stolen from the home of its owner, Mr. George Long, in Kansas City, Kansas. Agent Handwerk then acquired from the Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department a copy of Officer Lauffer’s report. 4 On August 6, 1973, Agent Handwerk went to see Mr. Patrick Eldridge, Assistant United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, and after a conference it was concluded that this matter warranted further federal investigation. At this time Agent Handwerk felt he needed to interview the owner of the stolen 1966 Volkswagen, and also to interview the defendant, Elvis Ramsey, before he would have enough information to file a complaint.

Agent Handwerk went to the defendant’s home between two and four P.M. on August 6, 1973, and was informed that the defendant was not at home but was out running an errand.

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Related

State v. Pierce
749 S.W.2d 397 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1988)
State v. Hunter
619 S.W.2d 883 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1981)
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420 F. Supp. 960 (D. South Dakota, 1976)
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241 N.W.2d 2 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1976)
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542 P.2d 170 (Alaska Supreme Court, 1975)
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513 F.2d 755 (Eighth Circuit, 1975)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
367 F. Supp. 1307, 1973 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10586, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-ramsey-mowd-1973.