Source: http://openjurist.org/574/f2d/1283
Timestamp: 2015-08-02 22:42:04
Document Index: 59354178

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 952', '§ 960', '§ 2', '§ 963', '§ 841', '§ 2']

574 F2d 1283 United States v. Barger | OpenJurist
574 F. 2d 1283 - United States v. Barger Home
574 F2d 1283 United States v. Barger 574 F.2d 1283
UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee,v.Samuel Edward BARGER, Defendant-Appellant.
No. 78-5007Summary Calendar.*
June 13, 1978.Rehearing Denied Aug. 3, 1978.
Defendant Samuel Edward Barger was charged in the Southern District of Florida with importation of cocaine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 952(a), 21 U.S.C. § 960(a)(1), and 18 U.S.C. § 2, conspiracy to import cocaine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 963, and possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and 18 U.S.C. § 2. An evidentiary hearing on appellant's motion to suppress incriminating evidence was held on September 12, 1977. The motion was subsequently denied. Barger pleaded not guilty and the parties then stipulated that the same testimony introduced at the hearing would be introduced at trial. Based on the transcript of the hearing, the district court found Barger guilty on all counts.
The sole question presented on appeal is whether the customs agents had "reasonable suspicion" to conduct the limited strip search which uncovered the cocaine. We conclude that reasonable suspicion existed under the circumstances of this case and that the trial court properly denied the motion to suppress. Appellant's conviction is therefore affirmed.
The facts in this case are largely undisputed. On July 3, 1977, defendant Barger arrived at Miami International Airport aboard a flight from Lima, Peru. In response to routine questioning from Customs Agent Doris Curry, the defendant stated that he was presently employed as a salesman and had been in Colombia for a few days to attend the wedding of a former karate student. Agent Curry observed that the defendant "looked a little uncomfortable, a little bulky." His three-piece suit "seemed a little bulky . . . (a)round his coat and body area; the top part of his body." As a result of these observations, and based on her experience that Colombia was a "hot country,"