1 In The 

### Court of Appeals Ninth District of Texas at Beaumont

__________________ N O . 09
- 18
- 00 251
- CR

__________________
DONALD RAYSHON COLLIER , Appellant
V. THE STATE OF TEXAS , Appellee

__________________________________________________________________ On Appeal from the Criminal District Court Jefferson County, Texas Trial Cause No. 17
- 26695

__________________________________________________________________ MEMORANDUM OPINION Donald Rayshon Collier 1 appeals his conviction for possessing cocaine. 2 In three issues , Collier challenges the trial court ’s rulings denying his motion to
suppress
. According to Collier, a state trooper violated his Fourth Amendment rights

1 The record shows that Donald Rayshon Collier is also known as Donald Rashawn Collier. 2 See Tex. Health & Safety Code Ann. § 481.115(c)

.2 by (1) stopping a car he was a passenger in , (2) unduly prolonging the stop , and ( 3 ) arresting him for warrants that were no longer active

. W e hold Collier’s issues lack

m erit and affirm the trial court’s judgment. Background In 2017, a grand jury returned an indict ment charging Collier with possessing between one and four grams of cocaine. The indictment was based on drugs a state trooper found incident to Collier’s arrest during a traffic stop

. About two months before the trial, Collier moved to suppress the evidence obtained incident to his arrest because the trooper who stopped the car allegedly violat ed Collier’s rights under the Fourth Amendment, articl e I, section 9 of the Texas C onstitution , and a rticle 38.23 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. 3 The State opposed the motion. At a hearing, the State argued that Trooper Dane Sted, the state trooper who conducted the stop, obtained the evidence in a legal manner and, that even if he did not, the law did not require the trial court to suppress the evidence. To support its arguments, the State presented testimony from Trooper Sted, as well as dash

- cam video from the stop.

3 U.S. C ONST . amend. IV; Tex. Const. art. I, § 9; Tex. Code Crim. Proc. Ann. art. 38.23.3 The evidence shows Trooper Sted arrested Collier about thirty

- one minutes into the stop shortly after learning that Collier had warrants out for his arrest

. According to the trooper , in October 2016, he saw a car make unsafe lane changes without signaling the changes the car made between two lanes

. 4 The trooper explained he stopped the car for the traffic violations and saw t wo individuals in the

car

— the driver and Collier. 5 According to the trooper, the driver handed him a driver’s license, proof of insurance, and registration.
T rooper Sted stated the driver seemed extremely nervous during the stop

. T he driver volunteered that he had recently been pulled over and his car searched

. The trooper asked the driver whether he needed to know about anything in the car. The driver replied he was not carrying anything illegal and without being asked, told the trooper he could search the car. T rooper Sted testified the fact the driver volunteer ed to allow the search befor e he asked for permission struck him as “very unusual.” The trooper also testified t he driver vo luntarily told him that the paneling around the CD changer in the car was worn
. Seven minutes into the stop, Trooper Sted accepted the driver’s offer and searched the car , a process that took around eight minutes

. When searching the car,

4 See , e.g. , Tex. Transp. Code Ann. §§ 545.060 , 545.104 (a), 545.106

. 5 No one asked the trooper to identify the driver’s name in the hearing.4 the trooper noticed the paneling just above the car’s CD changer was loose. According to the trooper , the condition of the car’s interior caused him to suspect there might be contraband hidden inside

. T rooper Sted explained the circumstances

— the condition of the car’s interior and the fact the driver was extremely nervous

— justified a more thorough search of the car

. T rooper Sted testified he decided to ask a dispatcher to se nd a canine unit to the scene because he did not want to start remov ing parts of the car , damage it, or detain the car’s occupants any longer than necessary to determine whether the car was being used to carry contraband

. While waiting for the unit , the trooper learned both the driver and Collier had criminal histories involv ing drugs. The trooper asked the dispatcher to find out if the driver or Collier had warrants out for their arrest

. Seven minutes later, t he dispatcher told the trooper Collier was wanted on misdemeanor warrants issued by the City of
Beaumont. Trooper Sted asked the dispatcher to confirm the warrants . Nine minutes later, the dispatcher to ld the trooper that the warrants were valid.
T rooper Sted left his patrol car and placed Collier under arrest. Following the arrest, T rooper Sted searched Collier and found a small bag contain ing cocaine in Collier’s shoe

. On cross

- examination, Collier presented exhibits show ing that , on the day of Collier’s arrest , the warrants issued by the City of Beaumont had been5 “cleared

. ” Trooper Sted agreed the exhibits showed the warrants were no t active when he arrested Collier

. Bu t the trooper emphasized t he dispatcher told him otherwise the day Collier’s arrest occurred

. No other witnesses testified in the hearing

. At the end of the hearing, the trial
court overruled Collier’s motion to suppress

. Afterwards, t he trial court did not provide the parties with any findings of fact or conclusions of law , but th e record does not show any findings were requested . After the trial court overruled the motion, Collier pleaded guilty to possessing cocaine, reserv ing the right to appeal
t he trial court ’s ruling on his motion

. Two months later , the trial court sentenced Collier to serve a five

- year sentence

. 6 Standard of Review We review ruling s on motion s to suppress evidence under a bifurcated standard of review. 7 At a hearing on a motion to suppress, “ the trial judge is the sole trier of fact and judge of credibility of witnesses and the weight to be given to their testimony .” 8 For that reason, reviewing court s give the trial court almost complete

6 Possessing between one and four grams of cocaine is a third

- degree felony. See Tex. Health & Safety Code Ann. § 481.115(c)

. The reporter’s record of the punishment hearing shows Col lier ple a d ed true to one allegation that enhanced the range available for his punishment to the punishment available for second

- degree felonies

— two to twenty years in prison. See Tex. Penal Code Ann. § 12.42(a). 7 Lerma v. State , 543 S.W.3d 184, 189

- 90 (Te x. Crim. App. 2018)

. 8 Id. at 190.6 deference when determi ning a fact turned on the credibility of a witness

. That said,

we conduct a de novo review about whether th ose facts establish ed the trooper had an objectively reasonable basis to suspect a crime occurred

. 9 Here, the trial court did not issue written find ings . So we view the evidence in the light that favors the trial court ’ s ruling and assume the trial court made the implied findings needed to support its ruling if the court’s implied findings are supported by the record

. 10 We will affirm the trial court’s ruling if it was correct under any theory of law. 11 Analysis On appeal, Collier argues the trial court should have granted his motion to
suppress because Trooper Sted violated his Fourth Amendment rights by (1) stopp ing the car, (2) unduly pr olong ing the stop, and (3) arrest ing him on warrants that were no longer valid. According to Collier, because the trooper violated his rights under the Fourth Amendment in one of the se three ways, the evidence the trooper discovered is “fruit of the poisonous tree” 12 and is evidence the trial court should have suppressed

.

9 Id. 10 Id. 11 Id. 12 See Wong Sun v. United States , 371 U.S. 471, 485

- 86 (1963)

.7 The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution protects persons against unreasonable searches and seizures. 13 An arrest is “the quintessential seizure” of a person under the Fourth Amendment. 14 “A traffic stop for a suspected violation of law is a ‘seizure’ of the occupants of the vehicle and therefore must be conducted in accordance with the Fourth Amendment

. ” 15
If the police obtain evidence by violating a suspect’s Fourth Amendment rights , the federal exclusionary rule generally precludes the State from using the evidence in a criminal proceeding against the party whose rights were violated

. 16 And the rule extends not only to evidence obtained as a direct result of an illegal seizure, but also to evidence obtained as an indirect result of an illegal seizure . That evidence is often called the “fruit of the poisonous tree.” 17 W e note , however, that exceptions exist to th e general rule just discussed ; sometimes , the exception nevertheless allows the evidence to be admitted even if a Fourth Amendment violation occurred. 18

13 U.S. C ONST
. amend. IV ; see Lerma , 543 S.W.3d at 190. 14 California v. Hodari D ., 499 U.S. 621, 624 (1991) (cleaned up)

. 15 Heien v. N

. Carolina , 574 U.S. 54, 60 (2014)

. 16 Illinois v. Krull , 480 U.S. 340, 347 (1987)

. 17 See Wong Sun , 371 U.S. at 485

- 86 ; Smith v. State , 542 S.W.2d 420, 422 (Tex. Crim. App. 1976)

. 18 Utah v. Strieff , 136 S. Ct . 2056, 2061 (2016) (recognizing the “independent source doctrine,” “the inevitable discovery doctrine,” and the “attenuation doctrine” are exceptions to the exclusionary rule).8 Initial Traffic Stop First, w e will address whether it was reasonable for T rooper Sted to stop the car Collier occupied

. P olice officer s may conduct warrantless traffic stop s when the reasonable suspicion standard is satisfied. 19 “ Reasonable suspicion exists if the officer has specific articulable facts that, when combined with rational inferences from those facts, would lead him to reasona bly suspect that a particular person has engaged or is (or soon will be) engaging in criminal activity. ” 20 “The test for reasonable suspicion is an objective one that focuses solely on whether an objective basis exists for the detention and disregards the o fficer’s subjective intent[,]” so it hinges on “the totality of the circumstances” le ading to the officer ’s decision that launched the stop. 21 The evidence supports the trial court’s implied finding that T rooper Sted witnessed the driver he stopped commit several traffic violations before initiating the stop

. Under Texas law , driver s may not change lanes unless the driver can change lanes safely. 22 Texas law also requires drivers to signal their intention to change

19 Jaganathan v. State , 479 S.W.3d 244, 247 (Tex. Crim. App. 2015)

. 20 Id

. (cleaned up). 21 State v. Kerwick , 393 S.W .3d 270, 274 (Tex. Crim. App. 2013)

. 22 Tex. Transp. Code Ann. § 545.060(a).9 lanes. 23 According to T rooper Sted , he witnessed the car make two unsafe lane changes without displaying a signal. The dash

- cam video aligns with Trooper Sted’s testimony . Even more, none of the evidence Collier introduced contradicts the trial
court’s conclusion that the trooper witnessed a traffic violation occur

. Prolonged Detention Next, we address whether Trooper Sted unduly prolonged the stop

. Generally, the officer’s investigation into a traffic s top must reasonably relate to the purpose of the stop , so the officer may not prolong the stop beyond the time reasonably required to issue a ticket

. 24 Law enforcement officials may request information from the driver , including the driver’s license, the registration for the car , and proof of insurance during routine stops

. 25 O fficer s may also check th e information they get from drivers during stop s , using equipment in the ir cars, such as computer s , and

c alling dispatcher s for that purpose

. 26 And o fficers may ask driver s and passengers about matters unrelated to the traffic violation as long as th e officer’s questions do not measurably extend the duration of the stop. 27

23 Id. §§ 545.104 (a), 545.10 6; see , e.g. , Leming v. State , 493 S.W.3d 552, 559

- 60 (Tex. Crim. App. 2016)

. 24 Lerma , 543 S.W.3d at 190. 25 Id. 26 Id

. 27 Id.10 Because traffic stops can be dangerous, an officer may take certain precautions to complete the stop safely, including conducting an on - scene investigation into some other crime when the officer develops information during the stop that creates a reasonable suspicion some other crime involving the individuals the officer stopped occurred

. 28 In conducting that investigation, no per

se rule exists requiring the officer to first check the accuracy of driver’s license information before the officer question s the individuals removed from a car
. 29 And an officer’s decision to question both occupants before checking the accuracy of the information the driver an any passengers gave the officer is particularly reasonable when the officer is the only law enforcement official present since he has to control the scene during the stop

. 30
If

, during the stop, an officer develops reasonable suspicion that an individual he stopped engaged in some other criminal activity , the officer may , when reasonable, decide to extend the investigat ion for a reasona ble time to further investigate and to rule out (or in) whether some other criminal activity the officer suspected in fact occurred

. 31 Whether the duration of the detention was reasonable

28 See Kothe v. State , 152 S.W.3d 54, 6 3

- 64 (Tex. Crim. App. 2004)

. 29 Lerma , 543 S.W.3d at 190

- 91. 30 Id . at 196

- 97. 31 Martinez v. State , 500 S.W.3d 456, 468 (Tex. App.

— Beaumont 2016, pet. ref ’ d).11 hinges on “ whether the police diligently pursued a means of investigation that was likely to confirm or dispel their suspicions quickly [

. ] ” 32 As mentioned, the evidence shows Trooper Sted arrested Collier about thirty

one minutes into the stop. The t rooper was alone at the beginning of the stop and no other law enforcement officials were present to assist the trooper in control ling the scene before the unit carrying the canine arrived. During the stop, the driver of the

car told Trooper Sted ( without being asked ) that the trooper could searc h the car and that the car had a loose panel near the CD changer inside

. On this record, the question about whether the driver volunteered to allow the trooper to search the car was a matter of fact, and the trial court , as the factfinder, had the right to credit the trooper’s testimony about that fact as well as the trooper’s testimony that the driver of the car seemed extremely nervous. V iewed objectively, the evidence shows the trooper ’s suspicion s about other crime were reasonable based on specific fact s that he articulated in the hearing . Thus, the trooper did not unreasonably prolong the detention by search ing the car and calling a canine unit to the scene

. The search took less than ten minutes. During the search, T rooper Sted noticed the paneling around the CD changer was loose and there was unusual wear on the car’s interior

. After Trooper Sted search ed the car, he spent another six minutes

32 United States v. Sharpe , 470 U.S. 675, 686 (1985).12 questioning the driver , finding out where Collier and the passenger had been and

w h ere they wer e headed

. The trooper testified he thought the stories each man gave him were so consistent they were rehearsed

. According to Trooper Sted, he told the driver he wanted to have a dog sniff the car , t he driver agreed , and the y wait ed at the

scene for about fifteen minutes for the canine unit to arrive

. 33
While waiting for the canine unit , Trooper Sted called the dispatcher to check for warrants

. After a short delay, the dispatcher told Trooper Sted that Collier had
warrants out for his arrest. T rooper Sted asked the dispatcher to confirm whether the warrants were still valid

. S everal minutes later , the dispatcher told the trooper the
warrants were still active

. Viewing the facts in the light most favorable to the trial court’s ruling, we conclude the stop at issue was not unduly prolonged. Instead, the evidence shows the trooper investigated his suspicions, which were objectively reasonable, in a manner designed to dispel them at each step of the investigation that occurred

. We conclude the trooper did not subject Collier to a detention that violat ed his Fourth Amendment rights

.

33 Matthews v. State , 431 S.W.3d 596, 603

- 04 (Tex. Crim. App. 2014) ( “One reasonable method of confirming or dispelling the reasonable suspicion that a vehicle contains drugs is to have a trained drug dog perform an ‘open air’ search by walking around the car.” ).13 Arrest for O utstanding W arrants L ast, we must decide whether the trial court should have suppressed the evidence Trooper Sted discovered when he arrested Collier because Collier’s warrants were no longer active on the day the trooper arrested him . O n appeal, we note that Collier has not argued the arrest violated the Te xas Constitution or the Texas exclusionary rule

. 34 Thus, given Collier’s argument, we restrict our review to whether Collier’s arrest violated the Fourth Amendment

. 35 Usually , the Fourth Amendment requires police officer s to have probable

cause or a warrant before they may mak e an arrest. 36 “W hen a probable

- cause determination [is] based on reasonable but mistaken assumptions, the person subjected to a search or seizure has not necessarily been the victim of a constitutiona l violation .” 37 To resolve Collier’s issue, we assume (without deciding) the trooper violated Collier’s Fourth Amendment rights by executing inactive warrants. But just because we assume the arrest on inactive warrants violat ed Collier’s rights , the federal exclusionary rule does not necessarily automatically exclude the evidence

34 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. Ann. art. 38.23. 35 See Tex. R. App. P. 38.1(f), (i), 47.1; Frazier v. State , 115 S.W.3d 743, 746 n.5 ( Tex. App.

— Beaumont 2003, no pet.). 36 Herring v. United States , 555 U.S. 135, 136 (2009). 37 Id. at 139.14 that Collier had contraband on him if an exception to the rule applies under the circumstances at issue here

. To trigger the federal exclusionary rule, “ police conduct must be suff iciently deliberate that exclusion can meaningfully deter it, and sufficiently culpable that such deterrence is worth the price paid by the justice system. ” 38 For example, the rule does not require a trial court to suppress evidence when the evidence “ is discovered by officers in the course of actions that are taken in good

- faith and in the reasonable, though mistaken, belief that they are authorized. ” 39 So when a police officer has objectively rel ied on erroneous information that an arrest warrant is activ e by looking at computerized information from a database maintained by a court or a police employee , the belief a warrant is active is reasonable . Thus, the federal exclusionary rule does not apply to such evidence , when it is discovered incident to

an ind ividual’s arrest

. 40
In Collier’s case, t he evidence shows Trooper Sted reasonably relied on the information he received from his dispatcher about the status of Collier ’s warrant s
. While the dispatcher was mistaken, the trial court was entitled to find that Trooper

38 Id . at 144. 39 United States v. Lopez

- Valdez , 178 F.3d 282, 289 (5th Cir. 1999) (cleaned up). 40 See Herring , 555 U.S. at 136

- 37 ; Arizona v. Evans , 514 U.S. 1, 14

- 16 (1995)

.15 Sted acted in good faith by relying on the information the dispatcher gave him about the warrant. On this record, the evidence does not show the fact the information the dispatcher had and relayed to the tr ooper about the warrants was inaccurate was the result of any ordinary or recurring police (or even judicial ) negligence. Thus , even if a Fourth Amendment violation occurred because the trooper arrested Collier on

an inactive warrant , the federal exclusion ary rule d id not require the trial court to suppress the contraband the trooper found on Collier while placing him under arrest. Conclusion For the reasons explained above, Collier ’s three issues are overruled and the trial court’s judgment is
AFFIRMED

.

_________________________ HOLLIS HORTON Justice Submitted on J anuary 2 3 , 2020 Opinion Delivered April 29, 2020 Do Not Publish Before Kreger, Horton and Johnson, JJ.