William McNeal v. State of Indaina , 2016 Ind. App. LEXIS 408 ( 2016 )

FILED
Nov 14 2016, 9:04 am
CLERK
Indiana Supreme Court
Court of Appeals
and Tax Court
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE
Bernice A. N. Corley Gregory F. Zoeller
Marion County Public Defender Agency Attorney General of Indiana
Appellate Panel Attorney
Indianapolis, Indiana George P. Sherman
Deputy Attorney General
Indianapolis, Indiana
IN THE
COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
William McNeal, November 14, 2016
Appellant-Defendant, Court of Appeals Case No.
49A05-1604-CR-838
v. Appeal from the Marion Superior
Court
State of Indiana, The Honorable Shannon L.
Appellee-Plaintiff Logsdon, Judge Pro Tempore
Trial Court Cause No.
49G21-1509-F5-31039
Crone, Judge.
Case Summary
[1] William McNeal appeals his conviction for level 5 felony possession of cocaine,
following a bench trial. He contends that the trial court abused its discretion in
admitting evidence that he claims was obtained in violation of his rights
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pursuant to the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution and
Article 1, Section 11 of the Indiana Constitution. Finding no federal or state
constitutional violation, and therefore no abuse of discretion, we affirm.
Facts and Procedural History
[2] On August 28, 2015, Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department Officer
Aaron Helton was on routine patrol near East 10th Street and Gray Road in
Marion County, when he noticed a man lying face down on the sidewalk. A
crowd was starting to form around the man. Officer Helton alerted dispatch
that he was going to stop and perform a welfare check on the man. When
Officer Helton got close to the man, who was later identified as “Kemo,” he
observed that Kemo was sweating and he could not tell if Kemo was breathing.
Tr. at 16. Officer Helton attempted to shake Kemo to rouse him, but Kemo
was unresponsive. Officer Helton immediately called for medical personnel to
come to the scene.
[3] Around the same time that medics arrived, another man, later identified as
McNeal, approached Officer Helton saying, “That’s my bro, let’s go, let’s go.”
Id. at 14. Officer Helton observed that McNeal had an “[u]nsteady gait, like not
really walking straight ….” Id. McNeal was sweating profusely, his eyes were
“reddish, “glassy,” and “glazed over,” his speech was “kind of slurred,” and it
appeared to Officer Helton like McNeal’s heart “was beating out of his chest.
He just looked like he was in dire straits medically.” Id. at 14, 22, 31. Officer
Helton asked McNeal who he was, and McNeal gave him his identification. As
Kemo started to wake up, McNeal kept saying, “We got to go, let’s get out of
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here, let’s go.” Id. at 16. McNeal began speaking “gibberish” and things that
“didn’t make sense,” and then he tripped and fell over Kemo. Id. at 16, 28-29.
[4] Believing that McNeal was also in need of medical treatment, Officer Helton
advised McNeal, “Why don’t you sit down, why don’t you stay seated, why
don’t you sit down.” Id. at 17. McNeal refused, saying, “No, I got to go, let’s
get out of here.” Id. Officer Helton stated, “No, man, you look like you need
some medical attention, why don’t you sit down.” Id. As McNeal tried to get
up, he fell back down again. Worried about McNeal’s safety and his medical
condition, Officer Helton decided to handcuff McNeal because he did not
believe that he would otherwise be able to “keep [McNeal] there” and seated
until more medics could arrive. Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department
Officer Davey Williams arrived on the scene and observed that McNeal, who
was sitting on the ground, was “kind of like leaning over” and having trouble
remaining in an upright position. Id. at 42. Officer Williams used his legs to
“prop [McNeal] up” so that he did not fall and hit his head on the sidewalk. Id.
at 51.
[5] A second group of medics arrived. After evaluating Kemo and McNeal, the
medics determined that both of them were in “bad shape” and needed to be
transported to the hospital. Id. at 18. Before McNeal was transported, Officer
Helton ran a check on his identification and discovered that he had an
outstanding arrest warrant. During a subsequent search incident to arrest,
Officer Helton discovered three baggies of cocaine in McNeal’s front right pants
pocket. McNeal was transported by ambulance to a hospital emergency room.
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[6] The State charged McNeal with level 5 felony possession of cocaine. McNeal
filed a motion to suppress alleging that his detention by police was
unconstitutional, and therefore all evidence subsequently obtained should be
suppressed. The trial court denied the motion to suppress and held a bench trial
on March 14, 2016. McNeal renewed his objection to the admission of the
cocaine evidence during trial. At the conclusion of the trial, the court found
McNeal guilty as charged. This appeal ensued.
Discussion and Decision
[7] McNeal asserts that the trial court abused its discretion in admitting the cocaine
evidence at trial. “Our review of rulings on the admissibility of evidence is
essentially the same whether the challenge is made by a pre-trial motion to
suppress or by trial objection.” Lundquist v. State, 834 N.E.2d 1061, 1067 (Ind.
Ct. App. 2005). “We do not reweigh the evidence, and we consider conflicting
evidence most favorable to the trial court’s ruling.” Id. We must also consider
the uncontested evidence favorable to the defendant. Id. We will not disturb
the trial court’s evidentiary ruling unless it is shown that the trial court’s
decision is clearly against the logic and effect of the facts and circumstances
before the court. Turner v. State, 953 N.E.2d 1039, 1045 (Ind. 2011). However,
the constitutionality of a search and seizure is a question of law that we review
de novo. Lewis v. State, 949 N.E.2d 1243, 1246 (Ind. 2011).
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Section 1 – Police did not violate McNeal’s Fourth
Amendment rights.
[8] We begin by addressing McNeal’s contention that the cocaine evidence was
obtained in violation of his Fourth Amendment rights. The Fourth
Amendment states,
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses,
papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures,
shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon
probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and
particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons
or things to be seized.
[9] “The fundamental purpose of the Fourth Amendment ‘is to protect the
legitimate expectations of privacy that citizens possess in their persons, their
homes, and their belongings.’” Hines v. State, 981 N.E.2d 150, 153 (Ind. Ct.
App. 2013) (quoting Trotter v. State, 933 N.E.2d 572, 579 (Ind. Ct. App. 2010)).
This protection has been extended to the states through the Fourteenth
Amendment. Krise v. State, 746 N.E.2d 957, 961 (Ind. 2001). In general, the
Fourth Amendment prohibits searches and seizures conducted without a
warrant that is supported by probable cause. Clark v. State, 994 N.E.2d 252, 260
(Ind. 2013). As a deterrent mechanism, evidence obtained without a warrant is
not admissible in a prosecution unless the search or seizure falls into one of the
well-delineated exceptions to the warrant requirement. Id. “Where a search or
seizure is conducted without a warrant, the State bears the burden to prove that
an exception to the warrant requirement existed at the time of the search or
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seizure.” Brooks v. State, 934 N.E.2d 1234, 1240 (Ind. Ct. App. 2010), trans.
denied (2011).
[10] Moreover, encounters between law enforcement officers and citizens take a
variety of forms, some of which do not implicate the protections of the Fourth
Amendment and some of which do. Clark, 994 N.E.2d at 261. Consensual
encounters in which a citizen voluntarily interacts with an officer do not compel
Fourth Amendment analysis. Id. Nonconsensual encounters do, though, and
typically are viewed in two levels of detention: a full arrest lasting longer than a
short period of time, or a brief investigative stop. Id. The former requires
probable cause to be permissible; the latter requires a lower standard of
reasonable suspicion. Id. 1
[11] We note that McNeal concedes that his initial encounter with Officer Helton
was consensual and did not implicate the Fourth Amendment. However, he
maintains that Officer Helton’s behavior converted what began as a consensual
encounter into an investigative detention lacking in reasonable suspicion that he
was engaged in criminal activity. Accordingly, he asserts that any evidence
discovered subsequent to his unlawful detention should have been excluded as
“fruit of the poisonous tree.” See Segura v. United States, 468 U.S. 796, 804
(1984) (noting that the exclusionary rule encompasses both the “primary
evidence obtained as a direct result of an illegal search or seizure” and any
1
Our supreme court has recognized that what begins as a consensual encounter can “evolve[] into an
investigative stop.” Finger v. State, 799 N.E.2d 528, 533 (Ind. 2003).
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“evidence later discovered and found to be derivative of an illegality.”) This
would include the cocaine evidence obtained during the search incident to
arrest that followed Officer Helton’s discovery of what both parties agree was a
valid pre-existing arrest warrant. See Williams v. State, 898 N.E.2d 400, 402
(Ind. Ct. App. 2008) (observing that search was incident to lawful arrest when
officer learned of active arrest warrant during routine traffic stop), trans. denied
(2009).
[12] The State does not dispute that McNeal’s encounter with Officer Helton indeed
evolved from a consensual encounter into an investigative detention. However,
the State maintains that there were sufficient facts available to Officer Helton to
support a reasonable suspicion that McNeal was engaged in the crime of public
intoxication, and therefore his warrantless detention was lawful and did not
taint the subsequent search incident to arrest that yielded the cocaine. 2 We
agree with the State, but we choose to first address what we believe is the more
pertinent justification for Officer Helton’s detention of McNeal based upon the
facts and circumstances presented, that is, Officer Helton’s reasonable exercise
of the community caretaking function.
2
The State focuses its argument on the assertion that, at the time of the detention, Officer Helton had
probable cause to arrest McNeal for public intoxication. We decline to address that argument because we
conclude that Officer Helton’s conduct was more akin to an investigative detention that required the lower
standard of reasonable suspicion.
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Section 1.1 – Officer Helton’s detention of McNeal was
reasonable pursuant to the community caretaking function.
[13] One exception to the warrant requirement is when police are exercising their
“community caretaking function.” Cady v. Dombrowski, 413 U.S. 433, 441
(1973). In Cady, the United States Supreme Court acknowledged the
multifaceted nature of policing in articulating this now well-known exception to
the warrant requirement. Id. The exception recognizes that “[t]he police are
expected not only to enforce the criminal laws but also to aid those in distress,
abate hazards, prevent potential hazards from materializing, and perform an
infinite variety of other tasks calculated to enhance and maintain the safety of
communities.” Fair v. State, 627 N.E.2d 427, 431 (Ind. 1993). The community
caretaking function has been described as “‘a catchall for the wide range of
responsibilities that police officers must discharge from their criminal
enforcement activities.’” Id. (quoting United States v. Rodriguez-Morales, 929 F.2d
780, 785 (1st Cir. 1991), cert. denied (1992)). The community caretaking
function is a narrow exception to the privacy protections of the Fourth
Amendment so as to ensure that the exception “is not improperly used to
justify, after the fact, warrantless investigative foray.” Colorado v. Bertine, 479
U.S. 367, 381 (1987) (Marshall, J., dissenting).
[14] Recently, other panels of this Court have noted that this exception to the
warrant requirement has been applied, in Indiana, only to justify inventory
searches of impounded vehicles. See Cruz-Salazar v. State, No. 49A05-1511-CR-
1782, 2016 WL 3551529, at *3 (Ind. Ct. App. June 30, 2016), trans. pending;
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Osbourne v. State, 54 N.E.3d 428, 434 (Ind. Ct. App. 2016), trans. granted.
Observing that numerous other state courts have adopted the community
caretaking function as an exception to the Fourth Amendment warrant
requirement in various situations beyond inventory searches of vehicles, those
panels each adopted, as do we, a three-pronged analysis for evaluating claims of
police community caretaking functions as set out by the Wisconsin Supreme
Court in State v. Kramer, 759 N.W.2d 598, 605 (Wis. 2009). Id.
[15] Before reiterating and applying the Wisconsin analysis, we emphasize that
although prior Indiana courts have either not had occasion or not been inclined
to extend the community caretaking exception beyond inventory searches of
impounded vehicles, and most recently have extended the community
caretaking exception only to cases in which a vehicle is involved in some way,
see id., we see no discernible rational basis for limiting the application of the
community caretaking function in such a manner. We understand that vehicle
impoundments fall under the community caretaking function because
“[c]ommunity safety often requires police to impound vehicles because they are
abandoned and obstruct traffic, create a nuisance, or invite thieves and
vandals.” Wilford v. State, 50 N.E.3d 371, 375 (Ind. 2016). We also understand
that vehicles themselves can be dangerous instrumentalities, and that the
involvement of a vehicle in most scenarios will elevate the level of potential
hazards that police are attempting to abate by exercising their community
caretaking function. Nevertheless, it would be illogical to think that a police
officer cannot aid a citizen in distress, abate hazards, or perform the “infinite
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variety of other tasks calculated to enhance and maintain the safety of
communities,” Fair, 627 N.E.2d at 431, simply because a vehicle is not
involved. Accordingly, we reject McNeal’s suggestion that the community
caretaking exception is inapplicable in the present case due to the absence of a
vehicle. With this in mind, we turn to assess Officer Helton’s execution of the
community caretaking function pursuant to the Wisconsin approach.
[16] In assessing whether the community caretaking function justifies the
warrantless seizure of a person, the trial court must determine: “(1) that a
seizure within the meaning of the [F]ourth [A]mendment has occurred; (2) if so,
whether the police conduct was bona fide community caretaker activity; and (3)
if so, whether the public need and interest outweigh the intrusion upon the
privacy of the individual.” Kramer, 759 N.W.2d at 605. During the second
step—i.e., whether the police conduct was bona fide community caretaker
activity—“a court considers whether police conduct is ‘totally divorced from
the detection, investigation, or acquisition of evidence relating to the violation
of a criminal statute.’” Id. at 606 (quoting Cady, 413 U.S. at 441). This
determination is based on an examination of the totality of the circumstances as
they existed at the time of the police officer’s conduct. Id. at 608. While a
police officer’s subjective intent may be a factor to consider in the totality of the
circumstances, when “an objectively reasonable basis for the community
caretaker function is shown, that determination is not negated by the officer’s
subjective law enforcement concerns.” Id. The third step—the balance of
public needs against individual privacy interests—assesses whether the officer’s
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exercise of his or her community caretaker function was reasonable. Id. at 610.
“The stronger the public need and the more minimal the intrusion upon an
individual’s liberty, the more likely the police conduct will be held to be
reasonable.” Id. at 611. In balancing these interests, the court considers: (1) the
degree of the public interest and the exigency of the situation; (2) the attendant
circumstances surrounding the seizure, including time, location, and the degree
of overt authority and force displayed; (3) whether an automobile is involved;
and (4) the availability, feasibility, and effectiveness of alternatives to the type of
intrusion actually accomplished. Id.
[17] In the present case, there is no dispute that Officer Helton seized McNeal
within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment when he handcuffed him and
had him remain seated on the sidewalk while waiting for medics to arrive.
Turning to the second prong, Officer Helton articulated an objectively
reasonable basis for detaining McNeal that was wholly unrelated to any
criminal investigative duties. Officer Helton testified that he detained McNeal
out of concern for his safety. In addition to McNeal appearing to be in “dire
straits medically,” Tr. at 14, he had already fallen on the sidewalk twice, one
time falling over Kemo. The objective facts that existed at the time of the
detention indicated that McNeal was endangering himself and others.
Moreover, Officer Helton’s subjective belief matched the objectively reasonable
basis for detaining McNeal. Officer Helton testified that he believed that
McNeal was in need of medical assistance, and the officer denied that he was
investigating McNeal for any criminal activity. Id. at 31. Based upon these
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facts, we conclude that Officer Helton was engaged in a bona fide community
caretaking function.
[18] In determining whether Officer Helton’s conduct was reasonable under the
third prong of the analysis, we balance the public interest or need that was
furthered by Officer Helton’s conduct against the degree and nature of the
restriction upon McNeal’s liberty interests. The public interest in assuring that
police render aid to a citizen who appears to be in severe medical distress and in
need of immediate care, and who voluntarily and literally stumbles upon the
officer and engages his attention, is incredibly high. Officer Helton was already
performing his community caretaking function in checking the welfare of
Kemo, who was lying face down on a public sidewalk, when McNeal
interrupted and interfered, bringing his own apparent medical distress to light.
Officer Helton did not exercise any overt authority over McNeal until McNeal
had already fallen twice, and the officer’s requests for McNeal to stay seated for
his own safety, and the safety of others, went unheeded. No vehicle was
involved here, so that factor is irrelevant. Regarding the availability, feasibility,
and effectiveness of alternatives to the type of intrusion actually accomplished,
the facts indicate that handcuffing McNeal until medics could arrive was the
most feasible, effective, and least intrusive means for Officer Helton to secure
McNeal’s safety and to prevent additional potential hazards from materializing.
[19] After balancing the interests involved, we conclude that Officer Helton’s
conduct was reasonable under the circumstances. Accordingly, because Officer
Helton’s conduct was a reasonable exercise of the community caretaking
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function, his detention of McNeal did not violate McNeal’s Fourth
Amendment rights.
Section 1.2 – Officer Helton had reasonable suspicion to
detain McNeal.
[20] Aside from the community caretaking function, the State maintains that Officer
Helton’s detention of McNeal was supported by reasonable suspicion that
McNeal had committed, or was about to commit, the crime of public
intoxication. Indiana Code Section 7.5-5-1-3(a) provides in relevant part that it
is a class B misdemeanor for a person to be in a public place in a state of
intoxication caused by the person’s use of alcohol or a controlled substance, if
the person: “(1) endangers the person’s life; (2) endangers the life of another
person; (3) breaches the peace or is in imminent danger of breaching the peace;
or (4) harasses, annoys, or alarms another person.” Moreover, it is well settled
that
an officer may conduct a brief investigatory stop of an individual
when, based on a totality of the circumstances, the officer has a
reasonable, articulable suspicion that criminal activity is afoot.
The investigatory stop, also known as a Terry stop, is a lesser
intrusion on the person than an arrest and may include a request
to see identification and inquiry necessary to confirm or dispel
the officer’s suspicions. Reasonable suspicion is determined on a
case by case basis. The reasonable suspicion requirement is met
where the facts known to the officer at the moment of the stop,
together with the reasonable inferences from such facts, would
cause an ordinarily prudent person to believe criminal activity
has occurred or is about to occur.
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J.B. v. State, 30 N.E.3d 51, 55 (Ind. Ct. App. 2015) (citations and quotation
marks omitted).
[21] Here, as Officer Helton was in the midst of conducting a welfare check on
Kemo, McNeal voluntarily walked up and interrupted. Officer Helton
observed that McNeal had an “[u]nsteady gait, like not really walking straight”
and was sweating profusely, his eyes were “reddish, “glassy,” and “glazed
over,” and his speech was “kind of slurred.” Tr. at 14, 22, 31. McNeal got very
close to Officer Helton and was speaking “gibberish” and things that just
“didn’t make sense.” Id at. 28-29. McNeal then tripped and fell over Kemo.
After “trying to get back up,” he “fell down again,” and continually refused
Officer Helton’s suggestions to just “sit down” so as not to hurt himself or
someone else. Id. at 17. Based upon the facts available to Officer Helton at the
time of the detention, an ordinarily prudent person in his position could
reasonably infer that McNeal had committed, or was about to commit, the
crime of public intoxication.
[22] While McNeal points out that Officer Helton testified that he was concerned
solely with McNeal’s medical condition and safety and that the officer
specifically denied investigating McNeal for public intoxication, Officer
Helton’s subjective beliefs and motivations are not relevant to our Fourth
Amendment analysis. It is well settled that “[a]n action is ‘reasonable’ under
the Fourth Amendment, regardless of the individual officer’s state of mind, as
long as the circumstances, viewed objectively, justify [the] action. The officer’s
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subjective motivation is irrelevant.” Brigham City, Utah v. Stuart, 547 U.S. 398,
404 (2006) (citations and quotation marks omitted).
[23] Under the facts and circumstances presented, viewed objectively, we conclude
that the facts known to Officer Helton together with the reasonable inferences
arising from such facts would cause an ordinarily prudent person to believe that
criminal activity may be afoot, thus justifying a brief investigatory detention.
The detention was not a violation of McNeal’s Fourth Amendment rights.
Section 2 – Police did not violate McNeal’s rights under the
Indiana Constitution.
[24] McNeal also asserts that Officer Helton’s conduct violated Article 1, Section 11
of the Indiana Constitution. While the language of Article 1, Section 11 is
virtually identical to its Fourth Amendment counterpart, our supreme court has
“made an explicit point to interpret and apply Section 11 independently from
federal Fourth Amendment jurisprudence.” Mitchell v. State, 745 N.E.2d 775,
786 (Ind. 2001). Under Article 1, Section 11, the State must show that, in the
totality of the circumstances of a detention without a warrant, the police
behavior was reasonable. J.J. v. State, 58 N.E.3d 1002, 1005 (Ind. Ct. App.
2016).
[25] For the same reasons explained in the context of the Fourth Amendment, we
hold that Officer Helton’s detention of McNeal did not violate the Indiana
Constitution. Under the totality of the circumstances, whether based upon the
community caretaking function or reasonable suspicion of criminal activity,
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Officer Helton’s detention of McNeal was eminently reasonable. Accordingly,
we cannot say that the cocaine evidence discovered subsequently was derivative
of any illegality. Therefore, we conclude that the trial court did not abuse its
discretion in admitting the evidence, and we affirm McNeal’s conviction.
[26] Affirmed.
Kirsch, J., and May, J., concur.
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