State v. Gurule

321 P.3d 1039

744 Utah Adv. Rep. 4

STATE of Utah, Plaintiff and Appellee,

v.Craig GURULE, Defendant and Appellant.

No. 20111053.

Supreme Court of Utah.

Oct. 1, 2013.

John E. Swallow, Att'y Gen., Jeffrey S. Gray, Asst Att'y Gen., Salt Lake City, for appellee.

Aaron P. Dodd, Provo, for appellant.

Justice PARRISH authored the opinion of the Court, in which Chief Justice DURRANT, Associate Chief Justice NEHRING, Justice DURHAM, and Justice LEE joined.

Justice PARRISH, opinion of the Court:

INTRODUCTION

¶ 1 After pleading guilty to possession of a controlled substance in a drug free zone, Craig Gurule was sentenced to a term of incarceration for five years to life. Gurule reserved his right to appeal the district court's ruling denying his motion to suppress evidence obtained through a search of his vehicle.

¶ 2 On appeal, Gurule argues that the search was unlawful because the officers did not possess reasonable suspicion that there were drugs in his vehicle when they stopped him for a minor traffic infraction. He further argues that the officers manipulated his Adult Probation and Parole (AP&P) agent into requesting that they conduct a warrantless parole search of Gurule's vehicle. Gurule argues that this search violated both his parole agreement and his state and federal constitutional rights. The State responds that the officers had reasonable suspicion that Gurule possessed illegal drugs, justifying Gurule's detention. The State further responds that Gurule's AP&P agent possessed reasonable suspicion that Gurule had violated his parole and therefore reasonably requested that the officers search Gurule's truck on the agent's behalf.

¶ 3 We hold that the officers lacked reasonable suspicion that Gurule was engaged in or about to be engaged in criminal activity. They improperly extended the duration of Gurule's stop when they abandoned the original purpose of the stop—to investigate a minor traffic infraction—and instead undertook a prolonged investigation into Gurule's possible drug activity. The district court therefore erred when it denied Gurule's motion to suppress the evidence obtained through the officers' improper detention and search.

BACKGROUND

¶ 4 On November 3, 2010, Officer Raymond Flores of the Springville Police Department received a call from dispatch indicating that an anonymous caller had reported seeing two Hispanic men exchange money and plastic baggies in the parking lot of an Allen's grocery store. The caller also reported that a gray Dodge truck was involved. The truck was registered to an individual with the last name of Luna.

¶ 5 Officer Flores and his partner, Detective Anderson, recognized the name Luna and the gray Dodge “as having past drug involvements.” The officers therefore responded to the Allen's grocery store, but they did not see the gray Dodge truck. After waiting a few minutes, they observed a Hispanic male exit the Allen's store. Officer Flores recognized the man, but could not initially remember his name. The man got into a black Ford truck, and the officers ran the truck's license plate. The truck was registered to Andre Gurule, leading the officers to recognize the driver as Craig Gurule, Andre Gurule's son. Officer Flores knew of Gurule because citizen informants and other detectives had told him that Gurule was “possibly involved in drug activity.”

¶ 6 Gurule left the parking lot and the officers followed in an unmarked police car. Officer Flores observed that Gurule's turn signal remained activated for approximately three blocks and that the passenger tires of the truck were riding on the fog line. While following Gurule, both officers remembered that he was on parole. Shortly thereafter, Officer Flores activated his overhead lights to initiate a traffic stop based on Gurule's failure to remain in his lane.

¶ 7 After Officer Flores turned on his lights, Gurule slowed down but did not immediately stop. Officer Flores testified that, during this time, Gurule “was not paying attention to the road,” and that Gurule “would glance at [the officers] and ... was glancing down towards the left side of his body.” Only after Officer Flores activated two audible sirens did Gurule pull over and stop.

¶ 8 Officer Flores approached the driver's side of the truck and instructed Gurule to exit the vehicle. Officer Flores testified that he was concerned for his safety because Gurule did not immediately pull over, was watching the officers instead of the road, and had repeatedly looked down to his left. Officer Flores then asked Gurule why he had failed to pull over. Gurule responded that he had been using his cell phone, but Officer Flores testified that he had not seen Gurule doing so.

¶ 9 At this point, Detective Anderson conducted a frisk of Gurule, and Officer Flores performed a plain-view search of “the immediate area of the driver's side of the vehicle for weapons or anything [Gurule] was trying to conceal.” Neither Detective Anderson nor Officer Flores found any weapons or contraband during their respective searches.

¶ 10 Despite the fact that these initial searches revealed nothing suspicious, the officers continued to detain Gurule and called for a canine unit. No canine units were available. Detective Anderson then called the on-call AP&P agent, Todd Dixon. Detective Anderson relayed the circumstances of the officers' detention of Gurule. Agent Dixon then asked the officers “to preform [sic] a search on the vehicle ... for AP&P.” Gurule's signed parole agreement stated that he would “permit officers of AP&P to search [his] person, residence, vehicle, or any other property under [his] control without a warrant ... on reasonable suspicion to ensure compliance with conditions of [his] parole.” One of the conditions of Gurule's parole was that he would “obey all state ... laws.”

¶ 11 The officers performed a lengthy and extensive search of Gurule's vehicle. Inside the driver's side door, the officers found a canvas bag containing a used syringe, a cut drinking straw with residue on it, and a plastic baggie holding 2.9 grams of methamphetamine.

¶ 12 The officers arrested Gurule. In a search incident to his arrest, they found $2,335 in cash on his person. The officers once again contacted AP&P to “let them know of [their] findings” and were told that AP&P would now send an agent to the scene.

¶ 13 When the AP&P agent arrived, she requested that the officers assist her in an AP&P parole search of Gurule's home. During the search of Gurule's home, the officers found video surveillance equipment that was recording the front yard and street, a digital scale, and a small amount of marijuana.

¶ 14 Gurule was charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute in a drug-free zone with a prior distribution conviction enhancement for possession of methamphetamine; possession or use of a controlled substance in a drug-free zone with a prior distribution conviction enhancement for possession of marijuana; possession of drug paraphernalia in a drug-free zone; possession, use, or control of a vehicle with a compartment for contraband; driving on a suspended driver's license; and failure to stay in one lane. The State later dismissed the marijuana and drug paraphernalia charges stemming from the search of Gurule's house because he entered a plea and was sentenced on those charges in Spanish Fork Justice Court.

¶ 15 Gurule filed a motion to suppress all of the evidence found during the searches of his person, truck, and house. Gurule argued that after he was stopped for a minor traffic infraction, he was unlawfully detained without reasonable suspicion of further illegal activity and that the evidence was therefore illegally obtained. He also argued that the officers' search of his truck on behalf of AP&P was illegal because AP&P improperly authorized the officers to search his truck outside the presence of an AP&P agent.

¶ 16 The district court denied Gurule's motion. It held that the anonymous tip about drug dealing at the Allen's store, combined with the officers' knowledge of Gurule's background, Gurule's furtive movements after the officers turned on their lights, and Gurule's assertion that he failed to immediately pull over because he was on a cell phone provided the officers with reasonable suspicion that Gurule was involved in illegal drug activity.

¶ 17 The district court also upheld the legality of the search conducted by the officers at the request of AP&P. Specifically, it held that Agent Dixon possessed reasonable suspicion that Gurule had violated the conditions of his parole and that “there was no pretext or other funny business going on” between the officers and Agent Dixon. Because “[Agent] Dixon of his own volition asked [the officers] to search [Gurule's truck],” which “was directly related to [his] duty as a parole officer,” the court concluded that the officers' search on behalf of AP&P was constitutionally valid.

¶ 18 The case was scheduled for a jury trial. At the conclusion of the State's presentation during trial, Gurule entered a conditional guilty plea to possession of a controlled substance in a drug-free zone with a prior distribution conviction enhancement. Pursuant to our decision in State v. Sery, 758 P.2d 935 (Utah Ct. App.1988), he reserved the right to appeal the district court's ruling on his motion to suppress. In return, the State dropped all other charges. Gurule timely appealed.

¶ 19 We have jurisdiction pursuant to Utah Code section 78A-3-102(I).

STANDARD OF REVIEW

¶ 20 “When reviewing a district court's denial of a motion to suppress, [we] disturb [ ] the district court's findings of fact only when they are clearly erroneous.” State v. Baker, 2010 UT 18, ¶ 7, 229 P.3d 650. But “because there must be state-wide standards that guide law enforcement and prosecutorial officials,” State v. Hansen, 2002 UT 125, ¶ 25, 63 P.3d 650 (internal quotation marks omitted), we afford no deference to the district court's ...