PJo. 84-538
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE O F M N A A
OTN
1985
STATE O MONTANA,
F
P l a i n t i f f and A p p e l l a n t ,
-vs-
DELBERT JEPJSEN ,
D e f e n d a n t and Respondent.
APPEAL FROM: D i s t r i c t C o u r t of t h e Twelfth J u d i c i a l D i s t r i c t ,
I n and f o r t h e County o f H i l l ,
The H o n o r a b l e Chan E t t i e n , J u d g e p r e s i d i n g .
COUPSSEL O RECORD:
F
For A p p e l l a n t :
Hon. Mike G r e e l y , A t t o r n e y G e n e r a l , H e l e n a , Montana
James S c h e i e r a r g u e d , A s s t . A t t y . G e n e r a l , Helena
Ronald W. S m i t h , County A t t o r n e y , Havre, Montana
Edward C o r r i g a n , Deputy County A t t o r n e y , Havre
F o r Respondent :
Law O f f i c e s o f F r a n k Altman; Ivan E v i l s i z e r argued,
Havre, Montana
-
Submitted: May 231 1985
Decided: August 5 , 1985
Filed:
AUG 6 -- 1985
Clerk
Mr. J u s t i c e F r e d J. Weber d e l i v e r e d t h e o p i n i o n o f t h e C o u r t .
The State appeals from a pre-trial order suppressing
e v i d e n c e s e i z e d i n a s e a r c h o f D e l b e r t J e n s e n ' s home by law
enforcement o f f i c e r s with a search warrant. The D i s t r i c t
Court determined that the Justice of t h e Peace issued the
warrant without probable cause. We find t h a t the application
contained s u f f i c i e n t probable cause t o support t h e issuance
of t h e search warrant. W e reverse the order of t h e D i s t r i c t
Court.
The i s s u e s on a p p e a l a r e :
1. Was t h e search warrant based upon p r o b a b l e cause?
2. If not, should the illegally seized evidence be
admissible under the "good faith exception1' to the
exclusionary rule?
On April 24, 1984, Hill County Deputy Sheriff Mark
Stolen applied t o J u s t i c e of t h e P e a c e Edward G. Vesecka,
Jr., for a search warrant f o r a t r a i l e r a t 936 2nd Street
North, Havre , Montana. Deputy S t o l e n ' s a f f i d a v i t i n s u p p o r t
of t h e a p p l i c a t i o n s e t f o r t h t h e following:
"On A p r i l 1 7 , 1984, Dorothy C o c h r a n , o f 2865 7 t h
S t r e e t E a s t , H a v r e , Montana, r e p o r t e d t o t h e H i l l
County S h e r i f f ' s Department t h e t h e f t o f a y e l l o w ,
McCullough c h a i n saw, a W i n c h e s t e r 30-30 c a l i b e r
l e v e r a c t i o n r i f l e , a M a r l i n 30-30 c a l i b e r l e v e r
a c t i o n r i f l e , a H & R 10 gauge s i n g l e s h o t s h o t g u n
and t a n c a n v a s b a g , and a M a r l i n .22 c a l i b e r r i f l e .
"On A p r i l 1 8 , 1 9 8 4 , a n i n d i v i d u a l v o l u n t e e r e d t o
Ms. Cochran t h a t h e had been i n v o l v e d i n t h e t h e f t
o f h e r g u n s and p r o p e r t y . H e a l s o informed h e r
t h a t some o f t h e i t e m s had b e e n pawned, w h i l e h e r
g u n s had b e e n t r a d e d f o r d r u g s . Subsequently, M s .
Cochran d i s c o v e r e d a t t h e R-Mew Pawn Shop, H a v r e ,
Montana, t h e c h a i n saw s h e had p r e v i o u s l y r e p o r t e d
stolen a s w e l l a s other i t e m s of personal property.
"On A p r i l 20, 1984, M s . C o c h r a n l s i n f o r m e r r e t u r n e d
t o h e r o n e o f t h e r i f l e s h e had s t o l e n and ex-
changed f o r d r u g s . H e a l s o t o l d h e r t h e exchange
had t a k e n p l a c e a t a w h i t e t r a i l e r , 936 2nd S t r e e t
N o r t h , Havre, Montana. A t that location, Ms.
Cochran c o n f r o n t e d a n i n d i v i d u a l named Ben and was
g i v e n h e r s t o l e n 30-30 W i n c h e s t e r r i f l e . Ms.
C o c h r a n ' s . 2 2 c a l i b e r r i f l e and M e r l i n [ s i c ] 30-30
c a l i b e r r i f l e h a v e n o t y e t been r e c o v e r e d .
"Ms. Cochran a l s o l e a r n e d from h e r i n f o r m a n t t h a t
h e r s h o t g u n had b e e n t r a d e d f o r $40.00 w o r t h o f
Columbian m a r i j u a n a . Ms. Cochran h a s a l s o b e e n
t o l d by a n i n d i v i d u a l named Sonny, who s t a y s w i t h
V i r g i n i a B e r n a r d i , t h a t he had t r a d e d a t t h e t r a i l -
e r a t 936 2nd S t r e e t N o r t h , Havre, Montana, a 30-30
r i f l e f o r $105.00 w o r t h o f m a r i j u a n a .
"On A p r i l 1 0 , 1 9 8 4 , Ron C r o c k e r , 926 2nd S t r e e t
N o r t h , H a v r e , Montana, complained t o t h e H i l l
County Sheriff 's Department that he believed
Delbert Jensen, Ben M o r r i s , and Penny Genger,
r e s i d e n t s o f a t r a i l e r on 2nd S t r e e t N o r t h , H a v r e ,
Montana, e a s t o f h i s home, w e r e s e l l i n g d r u g s . In
t h e l a s t week o f March, 1984, M r . C r o c k e r had
w i t n e s s e d a n exchange a t t h a t l o c a t i o n o f money and
what h e b e l i e v e d t o b e m a r i j u a n a . M r . Crocker a l s o
h e a r d , on a n o t h e r o c c a s i o n , o n e 1 3 o r 1 4 y e a r o l d
boy s a y t o a n o t h e r who had gone t o D e l b e r t J e n s e n ' s
t r a i l e r , ' d i d you g e t t h e s t u f f ? ' M r . Crocker a l s o
complained t h a t a - l a r g e amount o f t r a f f i c had been
s t o p p i n g , on a d a i l y b a s i s , a t D e l b e r t J e n s e n ' s
t r a i l e r ; t h a t a v e h i c l e ' s m o t o r o f t e n would b e l e f t
r u n n i n g w h i l e a n o c c u p a n t went i n t o t h e t r a i l e r f o r
a s h o r t t i m e and t h e n l e f t .
"On A p r i l 21, 1984, a c o n c e r n e d c i t i z e n a l s o com-
p l a i n e d a b o u t h e a v y t r a f f i c on 2nd S t r e e t N o r t h ,
Havre, Montana; t h a t h e r c a t had a l m o s t b e e n h i t by
a c a r d r i v e n by an i n d i v i d u a l d e s c r i b e d t o h e r by
neighborhood k i d s a s a 'dope d e a l e r . ' Neighborhood
k i d s a l s o t o l d h e r t h i s 'dope d e a l e r ' bought h i s
d r u g s from p e o p l e on 2nd S t r e e t N o r t h .
" I , Mark S t o l e n , have been a law e n f o r c e m e n t o f f i -
cer f o r 12 y e a r s . I t h a s been my e x p e r i e n c e t h a t
t h e e v e n t s and u n u s u a l t r a f f i c d e s c r i b e d by Ron
C r o c k e r and ' c o n c e r n e d c i t i z e n s ' a r e i n d i c a t i v e o f
t r a n s a c t i o n s i n dangerous drugs. I h a v e known M s .
Cochran f o r s e v e r a l y e a r s and b e l i e v e h e r s t a t e -
m e n t s a r e t r u s t w o r t h y and v a l u a b l e . It has a l s o
been my e x p e r i e n c e t h a t s t a t e m e n t s o f c o n c e r n e d
c i t i z e n s , p e r s o n a l l y u n i n v o l v e d , a r e r e l i a b l e and
important leads t o follow."
Based upon Deputy S t o l e n ' s a p p l i c a t i o n and s u p p o r t i n g a f f i d a -
vit, the Justice of t h e Peace i s s u e d a search warrant f o r
defendant's trailer. No o t h e r sworn t e s t i m o n y o r e v i d e n c e
was p r e s e n t e d t o t h e J u s t i c e o f t h e P e a c e p r i o r t o i s s u a n c e
of t h e warrant.
On A p r i l 27, 1984, H i l l County Deputy S h e r i f f s , Havre
C i t y P o l i c e and o f f i c i a l s from t h e S t a t e Department o f F i s h ,
Wildlife and Parks searched defendant's residence. They
s e i z e d more t h a n 60 grams o f m a r i j u a n a , drug paraphernalia,
cocaine and a rifle. Defendant Jensen was arrested and
charged w i t h t h e f t , criminal s a l e o f dangerous drugs (mari-
juana), c r i m i n a l possession o f dangerous drugs (marijuana),
criminal possession of paraphernalia, and criminal possession
of dangerous drugs (cocaine). He pled not guilty to each
count.
Defense counsel filed a motion to suppress all of the
evidence seized during the search based upon lack of suffi-
cient facts in the application to show probable cause for
issuance of the warrant. Following a hearing on the motion
and relying solely on the information contained within the
four corners of the application, the District Court found a
lack of probable cause and granted defendant's motion. The
State appeals.
To determine whether there was probable cause to issue
the search warrant, we must look only at the information
contained in the four corners of the application. State v.
Isom (1982), 196 Mont. 330, 641 P.2d 417. The test for
determining whether an informant's tip establishes probable
cause for issuance of a search warrant is the "totality of
the circumstances" test set forth in Illinois v. Gates
(1983), 462 U.S. 213, 238-39:
"[Wle conclude that it is wiser to abandon the
'two-pronged test' established by our decisions in
~ ~ u i l a r Spinelli. In its place we reaffirm the
and
totality-of-the-circumstances analysis that tradi-
tionally has informed probable-cause determina-
tions. The task of the issuing magistrate is
simply to make a practical, common-sense decision
whether, given all the circumstances set forth in
the affidavit before him, including the 'veracity'
and 'basis of knowledge' of persons supplying
hearsay information, there is a fair probability
that contraband or evidence of a crime will be
found in a particular place. And the duty of a
reviewing court is simply to ensure that the magis-
trate had a 'substantial basis for ...
conclud [ing]' that probable cause existed. " (cita-
tions omitted)
This "totality-of-the-circumstances" analysis was adopted in
Montana in 1983. State v. Kelly (Mont. 1983), 668 P.2d 1032,
The issuing magistrate must only determine that there is
a probability, not a prima facie showing of criminal activi-
ty. State v. O'Neill (Mont. 1984), 679 P.2d 760, 764, 41
St.Rep. 420, 423. The d u t y o f a r e v i e w i n g c o u r t i s s i m p l y t o
e n s u r e t h a t t h e m a g i s t r a t e had a s u b s t a n t i a l b a s i s f o r con-
cluding t h a t probable cause t o i s s u e a search warrant e x i s t -
ed. S t a t e v. Erler (Mont. 1 9 8 3 ) , 672 P.2d 624, 627, 40
St.Rep. 1915, 1918.
We find that the information contained in Deputy
S t o l e n ' s a f f i d a v i t provides a s u b s t a n t i a 1 b a s i s f o r conclud-
ing that there was probable cause to issue the search
warrant.
The a f f i d a v i t d e s c r i b e d t h e p l a c e where s t o l e n p r o p e r t y
had b e e n exchanged f o r d r u g s and t h e k i n d o f d r u g s i n v o l v e d
i n t h e exchange. The a f f i d a v i t f u r t h e r s t a t e s t h a t : "At t h a t
location, Ms. Cochran c o n f r o n t e d a n i n d i v i d u a l named Ben and
was g i v e n h e r s t o l e n 30-30 Winchester r i f l e . " Retrieval of
t h e s t o l e n r i f l e by t h e c i t i z e n - i n f o r m a n t i s s t r o n g corrobo-
ration of her reliability. Ms. Cochran' s r e l i a b i l i t y is
f u r t h e r b u t t r e s s e d by Deputy S t o l e n ' s s t a t e m e n t t h a t h e had
known h e r "for s e v e r a l y e a r s and b e l i e v e [ d l h e r s t a t e m e n t s
a r e t r u s t w o r t h y and v a l u a b l e . "
The a f f i d a v i t f u r t h e r d e s c r i b e s i n f o r m a t i o n g i v e n by two
other citizen-informants who complained t h a t r e s i d e n t s o f t h e
t r a i l e r w e r e s e l l i n g d r u g s and t h a t , a s a r e s u l t , t h e r e was
heavy? d a i l y traffic on their street. Informant Crocker
complained that h e had w i t n e s s e d a n exchange o f money for
what he believed to be marijuana at the trailer and, on
another occasion, he had overheard a boy ask a companion
r e t u r n i n g from t h e t r a i l e r , "Did you g e t t h e s t u f f ? " This
information corroborates M s . Cochran's t i p t h a t s t o l e n prop-
e r t y had been exchanged f o r m a r i j u a n a a t t h e t r a i l e r .
M.
r C r o c k e r a l s o complained about t h e l a r g e amount o f
t r a f f i c stopping d a i l y a t t h e t r a i l e r , o f t e n with motors l e f t
running. Crocker's information regarding t h e unusually l a r g e
amount o f t r a f f i c a t t h e t r a i l e r was c o r r o b o r a t e d by a n o t h e r
citizen-informant's complaint that t h e r e was heavy traffic
and h e r c a t was a l m o s t h i t by a c a r d r i v e n by a n i n d i v i d u a l
whom neighborhood children described as a "dope dealer."
Deputy S t o l e n ' s a f f i d a v i t a l s o s t a t e s t h a t h e had been a law
e n f o r c e m e n t o f f i c e r f o r t w e l v e y e a r s and t h a t , i n h i s e x p e r i -
ence, the events and unusual traffic described by these
concerned c i t i z e n s a r e i n d i c a t i v e o f t r a n s a c t i o n s i n danger-
ous drugs.
In Montana, the citizen-informant is accepted as
reliable. Kelly, 668 P.2d a t 1043, 40 St.Rep. at 1411,
citing S t a t e v. Leistiko (1978), 176 Mont. 434, 578 P.2d
1161. Crime victim Dorothy Cochran was the primary
citizen-informant. Deputy S t o l e n had known h e r f o r s e v e r a l
years and believed her to be trustworthy. The other
citizen-informants witnessed a c t i v i t i e s t h a t corroborated M s .
Cochran's information.
Additional hearsay information in the affidavit came
from t i p s t e r s who made admissions against their own p e n a l
interests. This Court has upheld the issuance of search
warrants where an informant has seen or participated in
criminal activity or even in some innocent a c t i v i t y that,
given all the circumstances, supports the probability of
criminal activity. S e e S t a t e v. OfNeill (Mont. 1 9 8 4 ) , 679
P.2d 760, 4 1 St.Rep. 420; S t a t e v. Kelly (Mont. 1 9 8 3 ) , 668
P.2d 1 0 3 2 , 4 0 St.Rep. 1400. R e l i a b l e h e a r s a y i n f o r m a t i o n may
be c o n s i d e r e d t o e s t a b l i s h p r o b a b l e c a u s e . Kelly, 668 P.2d
a t 1043, 40 St.Rep. a t 1411. R e l i a b i l i t y may b e deduced from
corroborative evidence o r surrounding f a c t s t h a t possess an
internal coherence that gives weight to the whole and
supports the probability t h a t evidence of a c r i m e w i l l be
found i n a p a r t i c u l a r p l a c e . Massachusetts v. Upton (1984),
U.S. , 104 S.Ct. 2085, 2088.
W e f i n d t h a t t h e a p p l i c a t i o n c o n t a i n s an adequate b a s i s
f o r c o n c l u d i n g t h e r e was a f a i r p r o b a b i l i t y t h a t e v i d e n c e o f
a crime would b e found a t t h e J e n s e n t r a i l e r . W e hold t h a t
t h e i s s u a n c e o f t h e s e a r c h w a r r a n t was s u p p o r t e d by p r o b a b l e
cause.
Having found t h e w a r r a n t t o b e v a l i d , it i s u n n e c e s s a r y
t o d i s c u s s t h e s e c o n d i s s u e r a i s e d by t h e S t a t e r e g a r d i n g t h e
"good f a i t h e x c e p t i o n " t o t h e e x c l u s i o n a r y r u l e . The o r d e r
o f t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t i s r e v e r s e d , and t h i s c a u s e i s remanded
for trial.
W e concur: