No. 3-05-0075
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Filed January 26, 2007.
IN THE
APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS
THIRD DISTRICT
A.D., 2007
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ) Appeal from the Circuit Court of the
ILLINOIS, ) Tenth Judicial Circuit,
) Tazewell County, Illinois,
Plaintiff-Appellee, )
)
v. ) No. 02-CF-0342
)
GLEN R. PLANTE, ) Honorable
) Peter J. Ault,
Defendant-Appellant. ) Judge Presiding.
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JUSTICE McDADE delivered the opinion of the court:
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A grand jury indicted defendant, Glen R. Plante, for unlawful manufacture of 900 grams
or more of a substance containing methamphetamine, possession with the intent to deliver 900
grams or more of a substance containing methamphetamine, and possession of 900 grams or more
of a substance containing methamphetamine. Prior to trial, defendant filed a motion to quash
arrest and suppress evidence seized from his home on May 6, 2002. The circuit court of Tazewell
County denied defendant’s motion. Following a jury trial, the court convicted defendant and
sentenced him to concurrent 25-year terms of imprisonment for unlawful manufacture and
possession with intent to deliver. Defendant appeals, arguing the court erred in denying his
motion to quash and to suppress because a police officer entered his home, arrested him, and
seized evidence without a warrant, without consent, and absent exigent circumstances justifying a
warrantless entry. For the reasons that follow, we reverse and remand.
BACKGROUND
Defendant’s motion to quash his arrest and suppress evidence alleged that Deputy Sheriff
Jeffrey Bass made a nonconsensual and warrantless entry into defendant’s home whereupon Bass
arrested defendant and seized a number of items. At a hearing on the motion, defendant testified
that he was at his home on the day in question with Penny Wood, his girlfriend, and Robert
Rusterholz, his friend, when defendant observed a police vehicle pull up to the home. Defendant
approached the vehicle and asked Bass if there was a problem. Bass asked if defendant knew why
he came to his home and defendant replied he thought Bass might be investigating a local
ordinance violation related to the number of vehicles parked at defendant’s home. Bass told
defendant he would ?check on it” and return.
Ten minutes later, Bass returned and defendant consented to Bass’s entering his home.
Defendant had a large number of electronic devices in his home in connection with an electronics
repair business. Bass asked defendant if he possessed any stolen property and defendant replied
he did not but that Bass was free to take any stolen property that might be present. Defendant
allowed Bass to search for stolen property. Bass searched the home, including a room containing
two toolboxes. During the search, defendant told Bass he thought Bass may be investigating a
possible theft of telephone services. This was because the previous day, defendant repaired a
temporary telephone line running between his home and an adjacent county building. Defendant
showed Bass a work order concerning the telephone line.
Bass left and returned 10 minutes later accompanied by Detective Darrell Stoecker. The
officers told defendant they were investigating a theft of toolboxes and wanted to check the serial
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numbers on the toolboxes in defendant’s home. Defendant allowed the officers to enter and, after
checking the serial numbers, the officers asked defendant what was upstairs. Defendant allowed
the officers upstairs then returned to the first floor. The three men entered the kitchen, where
Bass asked defendant the location of the basement. Defendant indicated the entrance to the
basement and Bass entered. Bass returned three minutes later and both officers left.
Five to 10 minutes after Bass and Stoecker left, Wood and Rusterholz were leaving
carrying laundry. Defendant stood in the doorway, holding the screen door open for Wood and
Rusterholz, where they encountered Bass and Stoecker. Stoecker stopped Wood and Rusterholz
and Bass grabbed the screen door. Bass stood in front of defendant with his arm extended. Bass
told defendant he needed to speak to him inside the house. Defendant asked Bass if they could
talk outside and Bass replied “No.” Bass moved his hand as though to escort defendant inside the
home. Defendant then entered the home and Bass followed. Bass told defendant they needed to
speak in the basement and asked what was going on there and where the lab was. Bass then
escorted defendant to the basement and placed him under arrest.
Bass also testified at the hearing on defendant’s motion. Bass testified consistently with
defendant’s testimony, with the following additions: Bass went to defendant’s home to
investigate a possible theft of telephone services. The sheriff’s office had also recently received a
tip that persons were engaged in drug trafficking from defendant’s residence. After leaving the
first time, Bass spoke to Stoecker and they devised a plan to investigate the possible theft of
telephone services in which Bass would return to the residence and Stoecker would call the
county number at a designated time to see if the line rang in defendant’s home. Bass returned to
defendant’s home and defendant invited him to enter. When Bass left the second time, he again
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spoke to Stoecker and told him about the toolboxes. Stoecker had been investigating a theft of
similar toolboxes.
When Bass asked defendant about the basement, defendant told him the basement was
flooded. Bass insisted on seeing the basement and discovered the basement was in fact flooded.
There, he smelled ammonia. Defendant remained on the bottom of the stairs but Bass crossed
some running boards to a corner of the basement. He observed what he considered to be a
methamphetamine laboratory. When Bass and Stoecker left the residence, Bass took Stoecker to
the rear of the home and told him what he observed. The officers contacted the State’s
Attorney’s office for advice on how to proceed. An assistant State’s Attorney told Bass that he
should have arrested defendant while Bass was still inside and that Bass would have to gain
defendant’s permission to reenter the home.
Bass and Stoecker went to the door, where they encountered Wood and Rusterholz. Bass
testified defendant was at the front door when he spoke to him. Bass further testified as to his
encounter with defendant as follows:
?A. And I said, I want to talk to you about something. He
said,