Case Title: Com. v. Greber

Citation: 385 A.2d 1313, 478 Pa. 63

Docket Number: 

State: pennsylvania

Court: Pennsylvania Supreme Court

Date: 1978-04-28T00:00:00Z

Document:
478 Pa. 63 (1978) 385 A.2d 1313 COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Appellant, v. Gary A. GREBER and William R. Gullick, Appellees. Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. Argued March 8, 1976. Decided April 28, 1978. *64 *65 Robert E. Colville, Dist. Atty., Charles W. Johns, Asst. Dist. Atty., Pittsburgh, for appellant. John J. Dean, John H. Corbett, Jr., Pittsburgh, for appellee. Before EAGEN, O'BRIEN, ROBERTS, POMEROY, NIX and MANDERINO, JJ. MANDERINO, Justice. Appellees, Greber and Gullick, were charged with several violations of the Controlled Substance, Drug, Device and Cosmetic Act, conspiracy, and corrupting the morals of a minor. Prior to trial, appellees sought to suppress certain physical evidence obtained by police at the time of, and subsequent to, their arrest. This is an appeal by the prosecution from an order of the trial court suppressing this physical evidence. The trial court held that the evidence was the product of an illegal search and seizure because appellees' arrest was not based on probable cause. The Superior Court affirmed, per curiam, Commonwealth v. Greber, 231 Pa.Super. 767, 331 A.2d 523 (1975). We granted appellant's petition for allowance of appeal, and this appeal followed. We affirm. Following are the facts as stated by the trial court: The juvenile and appellees, Greber and Gullick, were placed under arrest. The vehicle was searched and then taken to the police garage. A search warrant was obtained, and pursuant to the warrant, the vehicle was again searched, this time more thoroughly. The search revealed a scale, and a half kilogram of suspected marijuana in the trunk of the car. Greber was also found to be carrying a vial containing a small amount of marijuana. The prosecution contends that the tangible evidence should not have been suppressed. It concedes that the conduct of the police officer, prior to his search of the bag, was not justified on the basis of probable cause. The prosecution, however, would have us apply the rationale of Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 88 S. Ct. 1868, 20 L. Ed. 2d 889 (1968) to the circumstances in this case. We decline to do so. The prosecution does not dispute that detaining appellees by blocking their automobile constituted a seizure within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment. Even if such an intrusion is not an arrest, as the prosecution argues, and if Terry is applicable, the seizure in this case does not meet the requirements of Terry. A stop for investigatory purposes is justified under Terry only if the "police officer observes unusual conduct which leads him reasonably to conclude in light of his experience that criminal activity may be afoot . . . ." (Emphasis added.) Terry, supra, 392 U.S. 1 at 30, 88 S. Ct. at 1884, 20 L. Ed. 2d 911. Even if we were to apply this rationale to the present case, the police conduct here would remain unlawful because the record satisfies us that these police officers did not observe any *68 unusual conduct. As correctly noted by the suppression court, the officer in question simply "assumed" that criminal conduct was occurring. In Commonwealth v. Lawson, 454 Pa. 23, 29, 309 A.2d 391, 394 (1973), we stated that "[e]very commercial transaction between citizens on a street corner when unidentified property is involved does not give rise to probable cause for an arrest." This statement applies equally to this situation. The facts here do not give rise to a reasonable conclusion that criminal activity was afoot. Whether an officer should briefly detain a citizen for purposes of investigating suspected criminal activity will, of course, depend on the facts and circumstances of each case. Commonwealth v. Jones, 474 Pa. 363, 378 A.2d 835 (1977). The acts of appellees here riding in a car, stopping at a bowling alley, exchanging a package were all acts that were outwardly innocent. Cf. United States v. Henry, 361 U.S. 98, 103-104, 80 S. Ct. 168, 4 L. Ed. 2d 134, 139-40 (1959). What occurred here was one isolated transaction, not a series of transactions which, under certain circumstances might indicate that an exchange of drugs was taking place. See, Commonwealth v. Larson, supra. Officer Matuszak had no prior information that a drug transaction would occur on this evening. There was simply no reasonable basis to conclude that this particular package, a shopping bag large enough to contain a countless number of objects, happened to contain illegal drugs. While the officer's curiosity might have been aroused by the action that was witnessed, and while he might have had a hunch that illegal contraband was involved, that is not sufficient. See Terry v. Ohio, supra; Commonwealth v. Jones, supra. Order Affirmed. JONES, former C.J., did not participate in the decision of this case. ROBERTS, J., filed a concurring opinion. EAGEN, C.J., and O'BRIEN, J., concurred in the result. NIX, J., dissents. *69 ROBERTS, Justice, concurring. I agree that the order of the suppression court suppressing physical evidence must be affirmed. The role of an appellate court in reviewing suppression orders is well-established. As stated by this Court in Commonwealth v. Brown, 473 Pa. 562, 566, 375 A.2d 1260, 1262 (1977): See Commonwealth v. Stafford, 451 Pa. 95, 101, 301 A.2d 600, 604 (1973); Commonwealth v. Sharpe, 449 Pa. 35, 44, 296 A.2d 519, 524 (1972). Here, the suppression court found that an arrest occurred when the officer positioned his vehicle so as to prevent movement of appellant's car. There is ample support in the record to support this finding. See Commonwealth v. Bosurgi, 411 Pa. 56, 68, 190 A.2d 304, 311 (1963). The suppression court further found that appellant's arrest was not based on probable cause. The Commonwealth agrees that probable cause to arrest did not exist at the time the police officer pulled directly in front of appellant's vehicle. Accordingly, the suppression court's conclusion that the evidence must be suppressed because the subsequent search followed an unlawful arrest is supported by the record and is not erroneous as a matter of law. Thus, we need not discuss the issue of whether the officer's search was justified under Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 88 S. Ct. 1868 (1968) and its progeny. *70 The order of the suppression court suppressing the evidence must be affirmed.