United States v. Clark

687 F.Supp.3d 721

UNITED STATES of America v. Kaashif Naail CLARK, Defendant.

Criminal No. 3:22cr81

United States District Court, E.D. Virginia, Richmond Division

Signed August 18, 2023

Jessica Lee Wright, U.S. Attorney, DOJ-USAO, Richmond, VA, for United States of America.

Nia Ayanna Vidal, Public Defender, Office of the Federal Public Defender, Richmond, VA, for Defendant.

MEMORANDUM OPINION

M. Hannah Lauck, United States District Judge

This matter comes before the Court on Defendant Kaashif Clark's Combined Motion to Suppress Evidence (the "Motion"). (ECF No. 47.)

On July 29, 2022, Clark first moved to suppress evidence recovered and statements obtained from his February 10, 2022 arrest. (ECF No. 26, at 1.) Without objection, Clark subsequently filed supplemental briefing moving to suppress statements made during his July 1, 2022 post-indictment interview with federal officials. (ECF Nos. 28-2, 35.) The United States responded. (ECF Nos. 27, 37.) Clark did not reply.

The Court heard evidence and oral argument on December 14, 2022. At the conclusion of that hearing and at the request of the parties, the Court ordered Clark to file a Combined Motion to Suppress that addressed all matters raised. Clark subsequently filed the instant Combined Motion to Suppress Evidence. (ECF No. 47.) The United States responded in opposition, and Clark replied. (ECF Nos. 49, 51.)

Thus, this matter is ripe for disposition. For the reasons articulated below, the Court will grant in part and deny in part Clark's Motion to Suppress. (ECF No. 47.)

I. Procedural History and Findings of Fact

A. Procedural History

On June 7, 2022, a grand jury returned a three-count indictment against Clark, charging him with Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition by a Convicted Felon, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1) ("Count One"); Possession of a Machinegun, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(o) ("Count Two"); and Possession with Intent to Distribute Fentanyl and Cocaine Hydrochloride, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(C) ("Count Three"). (ECF No. 3, at 1-2.) On July 6, 2022, Clark appeared before the Court for arraignment. (ECF No. 13.) The Court issued a scheduling order for motions and a date for trial. (ECF No. 25.)

On July 29, 2022, Clark timely filed his original Motion to Suppress Evidence arguing that the Court must suppress the physical evidence and his statements from his arrest because they were obtained pursuant to an unlawful detention and un-Mirandized interrogation in violation of his Fourth¹ and Fifth² Amendment rights. (ECF No. 26.) The United States responded in opposition and Clark did not reply. (ECF No. 27.)

On October 7, 2022, Clark requested leave from the Court to file an out-of-time supplement to his Motion to Suppress. (ECF No. 28.) The United States did not object. The Court granted the request. (ECF No. 34.) On October 14, 2022, Clark filed his supplemental briefing arguing that the statements from his post-indictment interview should be suppressed because he did not knowingly waive his Miranda rights. (ECF No. 35.) The United States responded to Clark's supplemental memorandum. (ECF No. 37.) Clark did not reply.

On December 14, 2022, the Court heard evidence and oral argument on Clark's Motion to Suppress Evidence. At the conclusion of that hearing and at the request of the parties, the Court ordered Clark to file a Combined Motion to Suppress that incorporated his arguments regarding both his February 10, 2022 arrest and July 1, 2022 post-indictment interview in one motion.

Clark then filed the instant Combined Motion to Suppress Evidence. (ECF No. 47.) Clark maintained his arguments that the Court must suppress the physical evidence and certain statements from his arrest and post-indictment interview because they were obtained pursuant to an unlawful detention, an un-Mirandized interrogation, and an invalid Miranda waiver in violation of his Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights. (ECF No. 47.) However, at the Court's direction, Clark identified the specific evidence and statements the Motion seeks to suppress. (ECF No. 47, at 3-4.) Clark's motion specifically seeks to suppress:

1. The Glock, Model 21, .45 caliber, semi-automatic pistol, bearing serial number AFWZ922, and accompanying ammunition and Glock conversion device recovered from . . . Clark's vehicle . . .

2. All controlled substances and paraphernalia recovered from . . . Clark's vehicle . . .

3. [Clark's] statement, "yes," in response to [Officer Berube's] question whether he is a convicted felon . . .

4. [Clark's] statement, "yeah[,]" in response to Detective Melton twice stating that . . . Clark is a 13-time felon and should not be around firearms . . .

5. All spontaneous statements made by . . . Clark during his arrest and transport to the Richmond City Jail on February 10, 2022 . . .³

6. The entirety of the post-arrest interview on February 10, 2022 with the officers of the Richmond Police Department . . .

7. The entirety of the post-[indictment] interview on July 1, 2022 by federal task force officers.

(ECF No. 47, at 3-4.)

The United States responded in opposition. (ECF No. 49.) The United States maintains that Clark's statements regarding his felon status to Officer Berube and Detective Melton⁴ are admissible, however, it agrees not to introduce the two statements at trial because Clark made post-Miranda warning statements that he knew he was a felon. (ECF No. 49, at 10.) Clark replied. (ECF No. 51.)

B. Findings of Fact

1. February 10, 2022 Arrest of Rawkea Pryor

On February 10, 2022, Detective Johnson of Richmond Police Department's ("RPD") Special Investigations Division ("SID") arranged for the arrest of Rawkea Pryor, the target of an ongoing drug trafficking investigation. (Tr. 13:5-8.)

a. Richmond Police Department's Investigation of Pryor

In October 2021, RPD both received a "drug complaint" about drug dealing and investigated a shooting at the same intersection of Meadow Street and Cary Street: the 2000 block of West Cary Street. (Tr. 7:9-15.) A witness to the shooting provided pictures and a video of the shootout. (Tr. 7:16-18.) Detective Johnson identified that Pryor was one of the individuals involved in the shooting. (Tr. 7:18-19.)

In approximately December 2021, RPD officers developed a confidential, reliable informant.⁵ The informant told Detective Johnson that Pryor was on pretrial home "electronic monitoring," (Tr. 26:2-5), and Johnson learned that Pryor had what is known as a "Fourth Amendment waiver on file," (Tr. 8:14-15). The Fourth Amendment waiver was a "stipulation for [Pryor] to get out on bond" in a pending Richmond City Circuit Court case; essentially providing "that he could be searched pretty much at any time." (Tr. 8:16-22; ECF No. 47, at 5.)

Through the confidential informant and surveillance of Pryor, RPD learned that Pryor drove a white Chevy Equinox, (Tr. 8:7-10), that every time the informant "dealt with [Pryor], he would have a firearm either in the center console or between the center console and the driver's seat," (Tr. 12:24-13:4), and that Pryor usually left his house around 8:00 or 8:30 a.m. to park in an alley near the same intersection at Meadow Street and Cary Street. (Tr. 9:9-23).

Detective Johnson's investigation led him to believe that Pryor was dealing heroin, crack, and fentanyl and he saw Pryor engage in "[w]ell over [ten]" suspected drug deals in the alley way. (Tr. 8:4-6; 26:22-25.) While he generally did not see the exchange of money or drugs, Detective Johnson witnessed, "throughout several surveillances," individuals in the alley "walk up to [Pryor's] car, reach their hand into the window, and come out hand clenched and walk off." (Tr. 26:10-17.) Detective Johnson "knew some of the [individuals approaching Pryor's car] to be drug addicts" from his time working in the area from 2004 until 2015. (Tr. 26:18-21.) In December of 2021, RPD, using their informant, conducted a "controlled buy" of illegal narcotics from Pryor, meaning the transaction was conducted under law enforcement supervision, at the 2200 or 2300 block of West Cary Street. (Tr. 18:22-19:7).

b. Richmond Police Department's Detention of Pryor

On February 10, 2022, RPD planned to conduct Pryor's arrest. (Tr. 13:5-8.) The plan was for a team of uniformed officers from RPD's First Precinct Focus Mission Team ("FMT") to "conduct a traffic stop" on Pryor for driving with a suspended license. (Tr. 13:22-14:5.) On the morning of February 10, 2022, Detective Johnson led a briefing and provided the FMT officers with the "background of the investigation, a little history about . . . Pryor, the criminal history of . . . Pryor[,] . . . that he had a Fourth Amendment waiver on file[,] . . . [a] picture of . . . Pryor . . . , a picture of [Pryor's car], a tag of the [car,] . . . his history of leaving the house and where he usually goes[,] . . . that he[is] known to carry a firearm, and the location of the firearm." (Tr. 14:11-20; 15:3-7.) The operational overview given to the FMT officers reported that their "objective" was to "stop [Pryor] after he began[ ] to deal drugs" and notes that "Pryor is known to carry a firearm and usually keeps it in or around the center console or between the driver's seat and the center console." (Govt. Ex. 2, at 1.) The planned location for Pryor's arrest was the alleyway where Detective Johnson had observed Pryor engaged in suspected drug deals because the officers could "approach from both ends . . . [a]nd it would be safer away from the public." (Tr. 15:10-15.)

After the officers were briefed, they began surveillance outside of Pryor's home. (ECF No. 49, at 3.) Pryor's white Chevy Equinox "arrived at the home, driven by an unknown man." (ECF No. 49, at 3.) "Pryor came out of [his] house with a dark colored book bag [and] placed it in the rear of the car. The [unknown man] who was driving got in the passenger seat and . . . Pryor got in the driver's seat." (Tr. 17:4-10.) After dropping off the passenger, Pryor drove...