United States v. Simmons

861 F. Supp. 2d 307, 2012 WL 1324313
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedApril 16, 2012
DocketNo. 08 CR 1280(SAS)
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 861 F. Supp. 2d 307 (United States v. Simmons) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Simmons, 861 F. Supp. 2d 307, 2012 WL 1324313 (S.D.N.Y. 2012).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

SHIRA A. SCHEINDLIN, District Judge.

I. INTRODUCTION

Following a bench trial on stipulated facts, defendant Robert Simmons was convicted of one count of being a convicted felon in possession of a weapon and ammunition. He was sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of 180 months in custody. On appeal, the Second Circuit affirmed this Court’s denial of defendant’s motion to suppress certain statements, but reversed this Court’s denial of defendant’s motion to suppress the seizure of the gun and ammunition. The Second Circuit remanded the case for “further proceedings consistent with this opinion.”1

The Government asks the Court to resolve defendant’s motion to suppress on the grounds it raised in its initial opposition to said motion, which were not addressed by the Court, and on additional grounds now raised for the first time. The parties have made voluminous submissions in support of their respective positions.2 Although the Court heard extensive oral argument on the issues presented, no additional evidence was taken as the parties agreed that the record of the prior sup[309]*309pression hearing is sufficient to resolve all factual issues.

In opposition to defendant’s motion, the Government initially argued that: defendant’s roommate consented to entry by the police into the apartment he shared with Simmons; the seized gun was in “plain view;” and the police were permitted to enter Simmons’ bedroom as part of a protective sweep, thereby triggering the so-called public safety exception to the Fourth Amendment’s warrant requirement.3 After holding a two-day evidentiary hearing, I concluded that the roommate did not have the authority to authorize a search of defendant’s bedroom but that the public safety exception permitted the police officers to enter the bedroom and seize the gun. Because I found that the public safety exception applied, I did not reach the issue of whether the gun was in “plain view.” The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (the “appellate court”) has now held that the public safety exception did not permit the police to enter defendant’s bedroom. As a result, I must now determine whether there are other grounds for permitting the warrantless search of defendant’s bedroom.

The parties agree that the Court should now decide the “plain view” question.4 However, the Government now argues that there are two additional legal grounds on which the Court should deny the motion to suppress — defendant’s implicit consent to the search of his bedroom and the inevitable discovery doctrine. The defendant, in turn, argues that the Court may not consider any legal theory not raised in opposition to the original motion to suppress, claiming that the Government has waived any such arguments. I disagree. “If the record reveals matters which indicate that the evidence was lawfully obtained,” then this Court is permitted to consider that evidence in deciding the pending motion to suppress.5

II. RELEVANT FACTS

On the night of November 10, 2008, the police entered Simmons’ apartment at the request of his roommate who had called the police and reported that there was a man with a gun at his apartment located at 920 Trinity Avenue.6 When the police arrived, the roommate explained that several days earlier, in the midst of a dispute with Simmons, Simmons brandished a shiny silver handgun.7 After entering the apartment, the police walked down the hallway toward Simmons’ bedroom.8 The police testified that the bedroom door was open [310]*310and, therefore, the bedroom was visible from the hallway.9 Because the bedroom was dark, one of the officers used his flashlight to look into the bedroom as he announced his presence.10 That officer testified that he saw Simmons on his bed and a shiny object located on a table next to the bed, which he believed was the gun described by the roommate.11 At that point, Simmons rose from his bed and stepped into the hall. The police questioned him and Simmons admitted that there was a gun in his bedroom.12 Then, the police entered the bedroom and seized the gun and ammunition from the table by Simmons’ bed.13 In his testimony, Simmons admitted that in response to the police questioning in the hallway, he stated: “Yes, I do [have a gun] in my room. My mother gave me the gun to turn [over to] the church. It is in the room on the chair by my bed under the papers.” 14 On cross-examination, Simmons admitted that he lied when he stated that the gun belonged to his mother.15 However, he claimed that the police could not have seen the gun from the hallway because it was on a chair under a newspaper.16

III. DISCUSSION

A. Plain View

On appeal, the appellate court noted that “[t]he district court did not make a finding or credibility determination to resolve the conflicting assertions about whether the gun was in plain view.”17 I now do so. I credit the testimony of Officer Mangual that he saw a shiny object on a night table next to Simmons’ bed-which he believed to be the gun described by the roommate — when he shone his flashlight into the bedroom. When an officer sees an incriminating object in plain view, he may seize the object without a warrant.18 Here, the officers were lawfully in the apartment with the consent of the roommate. The incriminating nature of a gun is immediately apparent. In addition, Simmons himself confirmed that the gun was in his bedroom near the bed. The bedroom door was open and the gun was lying just a few feet from where the officers stood. No search was needed to retrieve the gun as Simmons already told the officers of its location. For all of these reasons, no warrant was required as the [311]*311gun was in plain view and it was permissible for the officers to seize it.

B. Implied Consent

“There is no Fourth Amendment violation where an individual voluntarily consents to a search.” 19 Because I cannot explain or justify defendant’s consent any better than Judge Ralph Winter did in his dissenting opinion on appeal, I therefore quote his words and adopt them as my own:

[Defendant’s] statements constituted implied consent to the officer’s entering his bedroom and securing the gun. Informing the police of the precise but concealed location of the gun — under papers and on a particular chair — had no purpose other than to facilitate the immediate seizure of the weapon. Certainly, [defendant] was not simply being helpful to the officers in any putative obtaining of a warrant .... [A] defendant’s directions to a firearm amounts to, or may be found to amount to, implied consent, at least for the limited purpose of retrieving thé gun.20

It is noteworthy that Simmons volunteered the location of the gun without being asked. The question he was asked was “Do you have a gun in this apartment.” His response was, “Yes, I do, in my room .... It is in the room on the chair by my bed under the papers.”21

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Related

United States v. Calhoun
236 F. Supp. 3d 537 (D. Connecticut, 2017)
United States v. Simmons
543 F. App'x 101 (Second Circuit, 2013)
United States v. Wilson
914 F. Supp. 2d 550 (S.D. New York, 2012)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
861 F. Supp. 2d 307, 2012 WL 1324313, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-simmons-nysd-2012.