United States v. Altius Willix

Case: 16-17611 Date Filed: 02/05/2018 Page: 1 of 10
[DO NOT PUBLISH]
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
________________________
No. 16-17611
Non-Argument Calendar
________________________
D.C. Docket No. 8:16-cr-00211-RAL-JSS-1
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
versus
ALTIUS WILLIX,
Defendant - Appellant.
________________________
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Middle District of Florida
________________________
(February 5, 2018)
Before MARCUS, WILSON, and ROSENBAUM, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:
Case: 16-17611 Date Filed: 02/05/2018 Page: 2 of 10
Altius Willix appeals his convictions for forcibly assaulting a police officer
and inflicting bodily injury, 18 U.S.C. § 111(a)(1), (b), and for both conspiring to
possess with intent to distribute and attempting to possess with intent to distribute
500 grams or more of methamphetamine, 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(b)(1)(A)(viii), 846.
Willix argues that the district court erred in (1) denying his motion to suppress
evidence obtained in the warrantless search of his minivan; (2) denying his motion
to suppress statements he made in an interview with Drug Enforcement Agency
(DEA) officials; and (3) denying his requested jury instruction on the meaning of
“inflict” under 18 U.S.C. § 111(b). Upon thorough review, we find that (1) the
warrantless search of Willix’s van was proper under the automobile exception; (2)
the district court did not err in finding that the statements Willix made in the
interview with DEA agents were admissible; and (3) the district court did not err in
refusing to provide a specialized instruction on the term “inflict.” We therefore
affirm his convictions.
I.
Willix’s convictions stemmed from the investigation of a U.S. mail parcel
containing roughly four pounds of methamphetamine. While agents posing as
postal carriers attempted to deliver the parcel to its intended address, Willix
arrived—by minivan—and told the agents that he had been expecting the package.
But Willix refused to sign for it, so the agents left. Immediately thereafter, Willix
2
Case: 16-17611 Date Filed: 02/05/2018 Page: 3 of 10
got back in his minivan, drove to the end of the block, parked, and began walking
back down the street. At this point, two other agents—wearing vests emblazoned
with “Police”—approached Willix. He fled. After a series of chases and violent
struggles, during which Willix twice attempted to unholster an agent’s firearm, he
was eventually apprehended. Two officers sustained injuries in the process.
Willix was arrested for assaulting federal officers.
The local police impounded and searched Willix’s minivan without a
warrant and found evidence inside connecting him to the parcel of
methamphetamine. After he was arrested, Willix agreed to a post-Miranda 1
interview with DEA agents, in which he provided incriminating statements about
the drugs.
Prior to trial, Willix moved to suppress his post-arrest statements, arguing
that his Miranda waiver was not knowing, intelligent, and voluntary and that he
only talked because the officers promised him that they would not charge him with
the drug offenses. He also moved to suppress any evidence seized from his
minivan, arguing that the search was not a valid search incident to arrest or
inventory search. The district court denied both motions, finding that Willix had
been read his Miranda rights, knowingly and voluntarily waived them, and that the
officers “did nothing more than impress on him the need to be truthful and upfront
1
Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S. Ct. 1602 (1966).
3
Case: 16-17611 Date Filed: 02/05/2018 Page: 4 of 10
and, in return, they would convey the truthfulness of his testimony to the
prosecutor.” The district court also found that the inventory search exception
applied.
At trial, Willix requested that the district court instruct the jury that the term
“inflict,” as used in the “inflicts bodily injury” provision of the assault statute, is
defined more narrowly than “cause,” and that the government was required to
prove that Willix inflicted the officers’ injuries through a direct, intentional act.
The district court declined to provide the instruction. The jury convicted Willix on
the assault and drug charges, and this appeal ensued.
II.
Several standards of review apply to this case. We review a district court’s
denial of a motion to suppress under a mixed standard, reviewing the findings of
fact for clear error and the application of the law to those facts de novo. United
States v. Bervaldi, 226 F.3d 1256, 1262 (11th Cir. 2000). “[A]ll facts are
construed in the light most favorable to the prevailing party below.” Id.
“The district court’s ultimate conclusion on the voluntariness of a
confession, or the waiver of Miranda rights, raises questions of law to be reviewed
de novo.” United States v. Barbour, 70 F.3d 580, 584 (11th Cir. 1995) (internal
quotation marks omitted). However, in the context of a motion to suppress,
“[c]redibility determinations are typically the province of the fact finder because
4
Case: 16-17611 Date Filed: 02/05/2018 Page: 5 of 10
the fact finder personally observes the testimony and is thus in a better position
than a reviewing court to assess the credibility of witnesses.” United States v.
Ramirez-Chilel, 289 F.3d 744, 749 (11th Cir. 2002). We have held, therefore, that
a “trial judge’s . . . choice of whom to believe is conclusive on the appellate court
unless the judge credits exceedingly improbable testimony.” Id. (internal quotation
marks omitted).
Lastly, a district court’s refusal to give a requested instruction to the jury is
reviewed under an abuse of discretion standard. United States v. McGarity, 669
F.3d 1218, 1232 (11th Cir.). A district court has “broad discretion in formulating
its charge as long as the charge accurately reflects the law and the facts.” Id. But
when a challenge to a given jury instruction presents a question of law, we review
it de novo. United States v. Gibson, 708 F.3d 1256, 1275 (11th Cir. 2013).
III.
A. Warrantless Search of Willix’s Minivan
Willix first argues that the warrantless search of his minivan violated the
Fourth Amendment. The government responds that two exceptions to the warrant
requirement apply—the inventory exception and the automobile exception.
While we have doubts about whether we agree with the district court’s
determination that the warrantless search can be justified under the inventory
5
Case: 16-17611 Date Filed: 02/05/2018 Page: 6 of 10
exception alone, 2 the record demonstrates that the search of Willix’s minivan was
lawful under the automobile exception. See United States v. Caraballo, 595 F.3d
1214, 1222 (11th Cir. 2010) (“[W]e may affirm the denial of a motion to suppress
on any ground supported by the record.”).
Under the automobile exception, agents can search a car without a warrant if
“(1) the vehicle is readily mobile (i.e., operational); and (2) agents have probable
cause to believe the vehicle contains contraband or evidence of a crime.” United
States v. Tamari, 454 F.3d 1259, 1261 (11th Cir. 2006). The latter element
requires a showing that, “under the totality of the circumstances, there is a fair
probability that contraband or evidence of a crime will be found in the vehicle.”
Id. at 1262 (internal quotation marks omitted). Unlike a search incident to arrest,
the automobile exception “allows searches for evidence relevant to offenses other
than the offense of arrest, and the scope of the search authorized is broader.”
Arizona v. Grant, 556 U.S. 332, 347, 129 S. Ct. 1710, 1721 (2009). In determining
2
The evidence suggests that Willix’s van was impounded solely because the police believed it
was of evidentiary value to the drug investigation—and not for any recognized “community
caretaking function.” See South Dakota v. Opperman, 428 U.S. 364, 369, 96 S. Ct. 3092, 3097
(1976). Willix’s minivan was legally parked, and Twanna Dewdney, the mother of Willix’s
child, testified at the suppression hearing that she arrived at the scene of the arrest and requested
to take the van, but that the officers refused. “Inventory searches must . . . be limited to
effectuation of the recognized purposes for which they are conducted and they may not be used
as a pretext for intrusive investigatory searches that would otherwise be impermissible.” United
States v. Bosby, 675 F.2d 1174, 1179 (11th Cir. 1982) (internal quotation marks omitted). While
the “mere expectation of uncovering evidence will not vitiate an otherwise valid inventory
search,” id., here, Winter Haven Police Officer Michael Roe testified at the suppression hearing
that the van was impounded because it was of evidentiary value and admitted that he would have
impounded the van whether someone came to retrieve it or not.
6
Case: 16-17611 Date Filed: 02/05/2018 Page: 7 of 10
whether there was probable cause, we may consider the collective knowledge of
law enforcement officers involved, so long as “they maintained at least a minimal
level of communication during their investigation.” United States v. Willis, 759
F.2d 1486, 1494 (11th Cir. 1985).
Here, the evidence and testimony at the suppression hearing show that the
officers were collectively aware that: (1) agents attempted a delivery of a mail
parcel containing four pounds of methamphetamine; (2) Willix showed up at the
delivery address in his minivan and stated that he was expecting the package; and
(3) Willix fled when approached by officers and fought them when apprehended.
See United States v. Franklin, 323 F.3d 1298, 1302 (11th Cir. 2003) (“While flight
is not proof of wrongdoing, it is indicative of such.”). Under the totality of the
circumstances, the officers were presented with a “fair probability that contraband
or evidence” related to the methamphetamine investigation would be found in the
minivan Willix drove to the pickup and attempted to flee in, which was
unquestionably operational. Tamari, 454 F.3d at 1264. Accordingly, we affirm
the denial of the motion to suppress the evidence found in Willix’s minivan.
B. Willix’s Post-Arrest Statements
Willix next argues that his post-arrest statements should be suppressed
because DEA agents promised him that they would not charge him with the drug
7
Case: 16-17611 Date Filed: 02/05/2018 Page: 8 of 10
crimes if he cooperated, which effectively negated the Miranda warning that
anything he said could and would be used against him.
Where a defendant is provided with a proper Miranda advisement, the
government can rely on his post-Miranda statements if it shows that the
defendant’s waiver of his right to remain silent was “voluntary in the sense that it
was the product of a free and deliberate choice rather than intimidation, coercion,
or deception.” Barbour, 70 F.3d at 585. This requires that the waiver was “made
with a full awareness of both the nature of the right being abandoned and the
consequences of the decision to abandon it.” Id. at 585.
The district court did not err in denying Willix’s motion to suppress his
statements, because Willix was properly instructed as to his Miranda rights, he
voluntarily waived his rights, and the evidence fails to demonstrate that the agents
made any promises inducing him to do so. Willix does not contest that he was read
his Miranda rights and verbally waived those rights. During the suppression
hearing, two of the DEA agents that interviewed Willix testified that while they
told Willix they would convey the truthfulness of his information to the prosecutor,
they did not promise that his cooperation would yield any benefit. Furthermore,
Willix himself admitted that the agents did not make any explicit promises to him,
but that based on his past experience, he felt like if he cooperated it would help
reduce his sentence. The evidence supports the district court’s finding that agents
8
Case: 16-17611 Date Filed: 02/05/2018 Page: 9 of 10
did not make any promises to Willix in exchange for his cooperation. We
therefore affirm the denial of Willix’s motion to suppress his post-arrest
statements.
C. Willix’s Requested Jury Instruction
Lastly, Willix argues that the court erred when it failed to provide his
requested jury instruction on the meaning of “inflicts” in 18 U.S.C. § 111(b),
which provides for a separate, enhanced crime when a defendant “inflicts bodily
injury” while forcibly assaulting a federal officer. See United States v. Siler, 734
F.3d 1290, 1296 (11th Cir. 2013). Willix, citing the Sixth Circuit, argues that
“inflicts” is restricted to “direct physical causation of physical harm.” See United
States v. Zabawa, 719 F.3d 555, 560 (6th Cir. 2013).
We find that the district court did not err in refusing to provide Willix’s
specialized instruction. The district court’s instruction, that the government had to
prove beyond a reasonable doubt that “the Defendant inflicted bodily injury,” was
an accurate, and literal, reflection of the statute, which itself leaves the term
“inflict” undefined. McGarity, 669 F.3d 1218, 1232. While under certain
circumstances it may be necessary to distinguish “inflict” from mere proximate
cause, see Zabawa, 719 F.3d at 557; compare United States v. Jackson, 310 F.3d
554, 557 (7th Cir. 2002), we have not yet recognized this distinction. And in this
case, where two officers were injured during a violent physical struggle with
9
Case: 16-17611 Date Filed: 02/05/2018 Page: 10 of 10
Willix, we see no need to do so. Accordingly, we affirm the decision of the district
court.
IV.
We affirm the denial of Willix’s motion (1) to suppress the evidence
recovered from his minivan; (2) to suppress his statements made to DEA agents
after his arrest; and (3) to deliver a special instruction on the meaning of “inflicts”
under 18 U.S.C. § 111(b).
AFFIRMED.
10