People v. Williams

2019 IL App (4th) 180258-UB

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. DONTREZ WILLIAMS, Defendant-Appellee.

NO. 4-18-0258

APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS FOURTH DISTRICT

Modified upon denial of Rehearing July 16, 2019

June 10, 2019

NOTICE

This order was filed under Supreme Court Rule 23 and may not be cited as precedent by any party except in the limited circumstances allowed under Rule 23(e)(1).

Appeal from the Circuit Court of Vermilion County

No. 16CF885

Honorable Nancy S. Fahey, Judge Presiding.

JUSTICE TURNER delivered the judgment of the court.

Presiding Justice Holder White and Justice Harris concurred in the judgment.

ORDER

¶ 1 Held: The circuit court erred by granting defendant's motion to suppress where the totality of the circumstances established the police had probable cause to arrest defendant.

¶ 2 In January 2017, a grand jury indicted defendant, Dontrez Williams, with two counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm (720 ILCS 5/24-1.2(a)(1), (a)(2) (West 2016)), one count of possession of a stolen firearm (720 ILCS 5/24-3.8(a) (West 2016)), one count of not having a Firearm Owners Identification (FOID) card (430 ILCS 65/2(a)(2) (West 2016)), and one count of obstructing justice (720 ILCS 5/31-4(a)(1) (West 2016)). In December 2017, defendant filed a motion to suppress, seeking to suppress the evidence that was discovered as a result of an illegal seizure. After an evidentiary hearing, the Vermilion County circuit court granted defendant's motion and suppressed the State's evidence. The State then filed a certificate of impairment and an appeal under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 604(a) (eff. July 1, 2017).

¶ 3 On appeal, the State asserted the circuit court erred by suppressing the evidence based on its finding the police lacked probable cause to arrest defendant. In November 2018, this court reversed the circuit court's grant of the motion to suppress and remanded the cause for further proceedings. Defendant filed a petition for leave to appeal to the Illinois Supreme Court. In March 2019, the supreme court denied defendant's petition; however, in the exercise of its supervisory authority, it directed this court to vacate our judgment and "address defendant's alternative argument that even if the arresting officer had probable cause to detain defendant, the continued detention was unreasonable after two negative show-ups." People v. Williams, No. 124390 (Ill. Mar. 20, 2019) (nonprecedential supervisory order on denial of petition for leave to appeal). Accordingly, we vacate our original judgment, and we again reverse and remand for further proceedings.

¶ 4 I. BACKGROUND

¶ 5 In this case, the charges stem from defendant's alleged actions on December 26, 2016. In his December 2017 motion to suppress evidence, defendant argued the police seized defendant without probable cause or reasonable suspicion. Specifically, he alleged Trooper Jennifer Smit's entry into the building in which he was staying to arrest him was presumptively unconstitutional. Moreover, defendant contended that, even if Trooper Smit's entry was reasonable, she lacked probable cause to arrest him. Defendant further argued Trooper Smit's seizure and detention of him were not justified under Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (1968). Thus, defendant alleged the officer's seizure was unreasonable and any fruit of the seizure should be suppressed. The State filed a response to defendant's motion, asserting the police had probable cause to arrest defendant for (1) aggravated discharge of a firearm, (2) obstructing a peaceofficer, and (3) obstructing identification. The State further argued the gunshot residue test results and defendant's fingerprints should not be suppressed even if defendant's arrest was unlawful. Defendant filed a reply, contesting the State's assertions.

¶ 6 On January 25, 2018, the circuit court commenced the hearing on defendant's suppression motion. Defendant testified on his own behalf and presented the testimony of Danielle Lewallen, a Danville police officer. Defendant stated he was in the lobby of Mer Che Manor, an apartment building located at 723 Oak Street in Danville, Illinois, at approximately 8:50 p.m. on December 26, 2016. He was wearing a bright red Jordan Windbreaker and intended to visit his mother and April Hampton, his auntie. The lobby contains two elevators, a gym, and an area for bikes and recreational items. A person must be "buzzed in" to enter. While he was waiting for an elevator, defendant saw a police officer "bailing out" of her squad car. He then saw her pull out her gun and "walkie talkie." The police officer came into the building, grabbed defendant's left hand, snatched the cellular telephone out of his hand, and cuffed defendant. To his knowledge, defendant was not free to leave. Defendant did not have any warrants for his arrest.

¶ 7 Defendant also testified that, before going to Mer Che Manor, defendant was at a house on Chandler Street with his brother and uncle. Thereafter, he went to a house on English Street. From the house on English Street, he walked to Mer Che Manor.

¶ 8 Officer Lewallen testified she was on duty on December 26, 2016. She met with defendant at the police station and conducted a gunshot residue test on defendant. Defendant was under arrest when she conducted the test.

¶ 9 After Officer Lewallen's testimony, defendant moved to shift the burden of proof to the State. The State made no comment and offered to present testimony. The circuit courtdeclared the burden was shifted. The State then presented the testimony of (1) Eric Kizer, a Danville police sergeant; and (2) Jennifer Smit, an Illinois State Police trooper who worked for the Danville police department at the time of defendant's arrest.

¶ 10 Sergeant Kizer testified he was on duty on December 26, 2016. At 8:58 p.m. on that date, he was responding to a shots-fired complaint in the 700 block of Sherman Street. While en route, he was advised the incident involved two suspects who were black males and had left the area on foot heading eastbound on Woodbury. Additionally, one of the suspects was described by the complainant as wearing a red, black, and grey multicolored jacket. The other suspect's clothing was not described. As he approached the intersection of Gilbert and Woodbury, Sergeant Kizer saw two black males walking northbound on the west side of Gilbert Street.

¶ 11 Sergeant Kizer testified about the area in which he saw the two males. To the north was a Walgreens, which was located on the southwest corner of the intersection of Gilbert and Fairchild Streets. A Domino's was to the south of the Walgreens on Gilbert Street, and a Jimmy John's and a Papa John's were located across the street from the Walgreens. A Dollar General store was east of the Jimmy John's. All of the businesses were open when he observed the two males.

¶ 12 Regarding the two males, Sergeant Kizer testified one male was wearing a bright red jacket and the other male was wearing "a dark hooded jacket but underneath it was a red, black and gray multicolored sweatshirt." While Sergeant Kizer was observing the pair, the man in the dark-hooded jacket took the jacket off. The police took the multicolored sweatshirt suspect into custody on Gilbert Street, and he was later identified as Shawn Stingley. The police recovered Stingley's dark-hooded jacket from the bushes in front of Title Max. A gun was alsofound in the bushes.

¶ 13 Sergeant Kizer observed the other male, who was wearing the bright red jacket, talking on a cellular telephone. When the male wearing the red jacket saw Sergeant Kizer, he had a "deer in the headlights kind of look" on his face. The man wearing the bright red jacket was walking north toward the businesses, was not running or sweating, did not appear to be out of breath, and was walking erect. Stingley was approximately 15 feet behind the man in the red jacket. When Sergeant Kizer first observed the two men, the man in the red jacket was walking northbound on Gilbert Street, and Stingley was at the intersection.

¶ 14 After he saw the two individuals, Sergeant Kizer contacted other units over the radio and turned his vehicle around to keep an eye on the subjects. Over the radio, he noted where the subjects were walking and what they were wearing. After he turned his car around, the two men went in different directions. The male wearing the multicolored sweatshirt went northbound, and the male in the red jacket went in a northeast direction away from the man in the multicolored sweatshirt. Sergeant Kizer went to Mer Che Manor where defendant was being taken into custody and identified him as the male he saw walking away. Sergeant Kizer marked on a map where he first saw the two men and where the shots were fired. In responding to the call, Sergeant Kizer did not see not see any other individuals matching the description of the two suspects.

¶ 15 Trooper Smit testified she was a police officer with the Danville police department on December 16, 2016. At around 8:54 p.m. that night, she was responding to the report of gunshots. Trooper Smit had received a description of a "suspect in red" and had been advised by Sergeant Kizer the suspect in red had run northbound from the area. While she was searching the area for suspects, Trooper Smit received word a subject in red was in the lobby of723 Oak Street. Trooper Smit had not seen anyone else who matched the description of the subject in red.

¶ 16 When Trooper Smit approached defendant inside the lobby of the building, she asked him to stop, and defendant ignored her order. She may have asked him what he was doing there. Defendant never ran from her but did not talk to her. Since defendant matched the description of one of the suspects, Trooper Smit detained defendant pending further investigation for identification. Once detained, defendant told Trooper Smit he was there to visit his aunt. Defendant also told Trooper Smit his name was "Nate Wallace" and his birth date was November...