Summary 2009 WY 35

Summary of Decision issued March 10, 2009

Summaries are prepared by Law Librarians and are not official statements of the Wyoming Supreme Court

Case Name: Latta v. State

Citation: 2009 WY 35

Docket Number: S-08-0065

Appeal from the District Court of Carbon County, Honorable Wade E. Waldrip, Judge

Representing Appellant (Plaintiffs): Dion J. Custis., Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Representing Appellee (Defendant): Bruce A. Salzburg, Wyoming Attorney General; Terry L. Armitage, Deputy Attorney General; D. Michael Pauling, Senior Assistant Attorney General; and Jeremy C. Schwendiman, Student Intern.

Facts: Before he pled guilty to felony possession of marijuana with intent to deliver, Appellant filed a motion to suppress evidence seized from his vehicle after a traffic stop. The district court denied his motion, and Latta now claims on appeal that the district court erred in denying the motion because, although he conceded that the initial stop was legal, he did not voluntarily consent to the trooper’s second round of questions and the trooper did not have a reasonable suspicion of criminal activity justifying his detention until a drug dog arrived.

Issues: Whether the trial court abused its discretion and commit reversible error when it denied Appellant’s Motion to Suppress.

Holdings: The right of citizens to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures is guaranteed by article 1, § 4 of the Wyoming Constitution and the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution. A waiver of constitutional rights under our constitution must appear by clear and positive testimony, and, if a search or seizure is based upon the proposition that consent was given, there should be no question from the evidence that consent was really voluntary and with a desire to invite search or further questioning, and not done merely to avoid resistance. Acquiescence and nonresistance have not been deemed sufficient under Wyoming law to establish consent.
The totality of the circumstances will be examined to determine if consent was voluntary. Among the factors considered are: the demeanor of the law enforcement officer, whether the individual was told he could refuse the request, the presence of other law enforcement officers, the length of the detention and nature of the questioning before consent was given, and other coercive factors.
In light of the totality of the factual circumstances in the present, Appellant’s consent was voluntary. The initial traffic stop was brief, the trooper’s conduct was professional, courteous, and non-coercive throughout the length of the entire encounter, and the consents given by Appellant were unhesitant and immediate. Even when considering the fact that the patrol car’s lights remained flashing and that there were two uniformed officers present, under the totality of the circumstances the consent to a second round of questions was voluntary. A reasonable person in the appellant’s position at the time would have felt that he could have said ‘no’ and proceeded on his way.
Having concluded that Appellant’s consent was voluntary, whether the Trooper had reasonable suspicion of illegal activity to warrant further questioning need not be considered. Voluntary consent obviates the necessity of determining whether the trooper had sufficient reasonable suspicion of criminal activity to pursue further questioning.

Conclusion: The district court did not abuse its discretion or otherwise err as a matter of law in denying Appellant’s Motion to Suppress. The Judgment and Sentence of the district court is Affirmed.

J. Hill delivered the opinion for the court.

Link: http://tinyurl.com/c5wurs .

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