Case Name: Daniel McCLELLAN, Appellee, v. STATE of Florida, Appellant
Court: Florida District Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Florida
Decision Date: 1978-04-25
Citations: 359 So. 2d 869
Docket Number: No. FF-98
Parties: Daniel McCLELLAN, Appellee, v. STATE of Florida, Appellant.
Judges: McCORD, C. J., and MELVIN, J., concur.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 359
Pages: 869–880

Head Matter:
Daniel McCLELLAN, Appellee, v. STATE of Florida, Appellant.
No. FF-98.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, First District.
April 25, 1978.
Rehearing Denied June 26, 1978.
Michael J. Minerva, Public Defender, for appellant.
Robert L. Shevin, Atty. Gen., Richard W. Prospect, Asst. Atty. Gen., for appellee.

Opinion:
BOYER, Judge.
Defendant (appellant here) convicted of first degree murder and robbery, now appeals the judgment and sentence.
Defendant was charged with the murder of David (Boy) Wood, who was beaten, robbed and died of a heart attack while in route to the hospital. He was arrested more than a month later by Alabama deputies on the basis of a Florida arrest warrant.
After defendant was arrested, he was taken to jail and his car impounded. The Alabama arresting officer signed an affidavit requesting a search warrant to search defendant's car, which affidavit recited:
"Before me, Robert L. Bowers, the undersigned magistrate personally appeared William S. Grover, who after first being duly sworn according to law, does depose and say as follows:
"That he is a deputy sheriff of Chilton County, Alabama and he is presently working with the state investigators and some Florida authorities on the investigation and apprehension of a fleeing, wanted felon who is a fugitive from Washington County, Florida, on a certified copy of a first degree murder warrant and a robbery warrant from said county, which is in the hands of the affiant and calls for the arrest of one Daniel L. McClellan for the murder and robbery of one David 'Boy' Wood, that last night the affiant sighted the car of said fugitive at Summers Used Car Lot in Clanton, Alabama that fit the description that the affiant had been given: Affiant followed the said car away and some 5 miles away affi-ant and another car of officers stopped said car on highways 65; before stopping the car affiant also noticed that it had a new and different license tag on it from the last time affiant had seen the car and he thought that it was probably a switched tag (this has later been checked through the tag records and is verified that it is switched). Upon seeing the driver license of the driver which was in the name of Daniel L. McClellan, affiant recognized said man as fitting the physical description that he had been given as a white male, approximately 5 feet 10 inches tall with long black hair. Affiant arrested him there on probable cause for murder and robbery and brought him to the Chilton County jail and the car. The Florida officials are also appearing with the affiant with their warrant and complete file on the murder and robbery and there is now an immediate need to search said car for weapons and items used in and connected with said murder and robbery, these being a pair of surgical gloves, a stocking type mask (two masks) with tape around the eye holes, a multiple colored long sleeved cloth shirt, a pair of zipper boot type shoes, a 38 pistol, a 357 magnum pistol, a ger-man luger pistol, and any other firearms and weapons that may be in the car, a small zipper 'AWOL' flight bag. The said car is now parked at the Chil-ton County jail and is described as a 1974 Mark IV Lincoln Continental 2-door, tan over copper with vinyl top, bearing license tag Alabama 14-11520 at time of apprehension, with VIN # F4Y89A825681F, and search for any other items that may be evidence of said murder and robbery."
In addition to that affidavit, a Florida law enforcement officer, Doug Wright, appeared before the Alabama judge and gave sworn oral testimony in support of the issuance of the warrant. Wright later testified at the trial that he told the Alabama judge the defendant was wanted for first degree murder, that he had been told by the brother of defendant's girl friend that certain paraphernalia and weapons connected with the crime were in the defendant's possession and that the defendant's girl friend had told him there were guns in the back of the car. Wright further testified that the Alabama official told him there was a man in the back seat of the car when defendant was arrested and the description of that man matched that of an alleged accomplice in the murder, Joe Brown. Because of his suspicion that Brown had been in the car at time of defendant's arrest, Wright told the Alabama magistrate of his belief that weapons and other evidence connected with the murder were still in the car. The search warrant was issued. The evidence seized from the car as a result of the search was a shirt allegedly worn by the defendant at the time of the offense, a bag containing masks and rolls of tape allegedly used during the offense, a pair of gloves, one of which contained defendant's fingerprints, and another bag later identified by Joe Brown. The defendant moved to suppress the evidence obtained as a result of the search which motion was denied. The trial judge ruled that under Alabama law the affidavit could be supplemented by oral testimony to establish probable cause.
At the trial, several witnesses including co-defendant, Joe Brown, testified against defendant. Brown testified that when he and defendant attacked Wood to rob him, Brown hit Wood in the back of the head with the gun he was holding while defendant hit Wood in the front of the head with the gun he was holding. Brown stated Wood put up quite a fight but they were finally able to wrestle him into the woods whereupon a truck drove by and he and defendant discontinued their attack and left. Wood died a few minutes later as a result of a heart attack.
During the trial, the state called William Gibbons to testify. Defense counsel objected on the grounds that he had been given the witness's name the preceding Wednesday before the trial, the witness's address was given as the Montgomery area, and counsel was unable to depose him because he had no idea where to find him. Counsel further objected because the witness was apparently going to testify to some sort of admission against interest or confession by the defendant and the state had responded to discovery that there were no confessions, no admissions, and no testimony or statements given by the defendant. In the discussion that followed, the trial judge noted that the name "Gibbons" had been referred to extensively in the material accompanying the motion to suppress filed prior to trial, and therefore there was no sufficient surprise to keep Gibbons off the stand. The trial judge acknowledged defendant was entitled to know what statements Gibbons was going to make and he ordered a recess for the day to give defense counsel an opportunity to depose the witness. The next day, on the stand, Gibbons testified that when defendant was told there was a murder warrant for him in Florida, he stated "the man was alive when they left him." On cross-examination, the defense counsel asked Gibbons the question, "you didn't testify to that yesterday, did you, sir?" To which Gibbons responded, "I don't remember whether I did or not". Although defense counsel attempted to impeach Gibbons on the basis of his prior inconsistent statement, he did not object to the admissibility of Gibbons statement nor otherwise move the trial court to determine what prejudicial effect, if any, those statements had on defendant's case. At this point, it is necessary to mention that this court does not have the benefit of a transcript of Gibbons' deposition with which to compare Gibbons testimony on the day of the trial.
Later in the trial, the state called Dale Newt. Defense counsel objected on the basis that Newt was a lab analyst and was going to testify as to lab work performed on some of the evidence seized, that such information was not furnished in the state's answer to discovery and counsel had not had an opportunity to depose Newt. The state responded that Newt's lab report had been furnished to the defense on the same day as to the state, which was the previous day. The trial judge allowed Newt's testimony because the report had been supplied "as early as could be done on the state knowing of it and that in view of the fact that the defendant had the opportunity to depose the witness prior to trial, although it may have been the eleventh hour, the court would hear the testimony." Newt testified that the two buttons found at the scene of the crime were similar to the remaining buttons on the shirt worn by the defendant the day Wood was killed and that they could have come from defendant's shirt. He further testified that the thread from the spool in the defendant's girl friend's house was similar to the thread used to sew the buttons on defendant's shirt.
Finally, Wood's autopsy showed that he had lacerations on the head, no broken bones, and the skull had not been fractured. None of those wounds were serious enough to be fatal. The cause of death was severe coronary arteriosclerosis and blood clots in one of the arteries that enter the heart. A pathologist testified at trial that Wood's death was caused by a heart attack brought on by a stressful situation and that the severe physical struggle Mr. Wood engaged in before his death could have caused his heart attack. The last person to testify was defendant. He denied any involvement either with the planning or the carrying out of the robbery of David Wood. The jury found defendant guilty of first degree murder and he was sentenced to life imprisonment.
The defendant contends that the affidavit submitted to the Alabama Magistrate without the accompanying oral testimony is insufficient under Florida law to establish probable cause, citing Swartz v. State, 316 So.2d 618 (Fla. 1st DCA 1975), and that without the warrant procured on the basis of the affidavit and accompanying oral testimony, the search was invalid because there were not exigent circumstances in this case which justified a search of defendant's car.
On the other hand, the state contends that it is not necessary to reach the issue of the sufficiency of the affidavit because the police officers were justified in searching the car without a warrant under the principles announced in Chambers v. Maroney, 399 U.S. 42, 90 S.Ct. 1975, 26 L.Ed.2d 419 (1970) and Texas v. White, 423 U.S. 67, 96 S.Ct. 304, 46 L.Ed.2d 209 (1975). The state also contends that even if we reach the issue of the sufficiency of the affidavit, the defendant's conviction should be affirmed because the affidavit used to procure the search warrant was sufficient to meet Florida probable cause standards and was valid under both Alabama and Florida law.
This court finds that a search warrant was necessary for a valid search of defendant's car and without the warrant, the search would have been invalid. We agree with defendant that the principle of Chimel v. California, 395 U.S. 752, 89 S.Ct. 2034, 23 L.Ed.2d 685 (1969) is controlling in this situation. Under the Chimel ease, a search incident to an arrest is limited to the person and the area in the immediate vicinity from which he might obtain a weapon or evidence. Searches beyond those boundaries are governed by the requirement that a warrant must be obtained, in the absence of exigent circumstances. We find no exigent circumstances in this case justifying a different rule. (See also Raffield v. State, 351 So.2d 945 (Fla.1977).
The next question is whether or not the affidavit, sub judice, is sufficient on its face to justify the procurement of a search warrant. We hold that it is. Under Swartz v. State, supra, an affidavit forming the basis of a search warrant must, in and of itself, demonstrate probable cause for the issuance of the warrant and in Florida the affidavit cannot be supplemented by oral testimony to prove the probable cause. However, just as in Swartz v. State, supra, the affidavit, sub judice, even though it is not a model, was sufficient to demonstrate probable cause for searching defendant's vehicle for weapons and items used in and connected with the murder and robbery of David Wood where defendant was under arrest and charged with those crimes.
Further, we hold that evidence procured in a sister state pursuant to a search valid under the laws of that state is admissible in the trial of a criminal case in Florida notwithstanding that the warrant validly issued and executed in the sister state would not have been or was not valid under the laws of Florida; provided the warrant and its execution in the sister state does not offend U.S. Constitutional standards. In so holding, we have not overlooked the decision cited by defendant of People v. Rogers (Cal.App.1977), 141 Cal.Rptr. 412, but we do not find the principle of that case applicable here. The warrant, sub judice, issued on the basis of the affidavit supplemented by the oral testimony, does meet U.S. Constitutional standards. Accordingly, we affirm on this point.
The second point raised by defendant is whether or not there was insufficient inquiry by the trial judge regarding the state's violation of the discovery rules concerning the testimony of William Gibbons and Dale Newt. The defendant contends that the trial judge failed to make a full inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the state's breach of the discovery rules and that therefore the conviction should be reversed, citing Richardson v. State, 246 So.2d 771 (Fla.1971) and Cumbie v. State, 345 So.2d 1061 (Fla.1977). The state contends the trial court correctly recessed the trial and allowed the defendant to depose Gibbons thereby eliminating any prejudice defendant may have suffered, relying on Cooper v. State, 336 So.2d 1133 (Fla.1976).
W'hen the defendant asked for discovery of any of his statements, confessions or tape recordings, the state admittedly neglected to give Gibbons proposed testimony as to defendant's oral statement. In fact, the state notified defendant shortly before the trial that Gibbons would be a witness but defense counsel was unable to locate him or depose him prior to trial. The trial court's action in adjourning and allowing defendant to take Gibbons deposition may well have cured the prejudice to defendant caused by the state's late notification that it intended to call Gibbons as a witness, but that action did not cure the state's failure to give defendant the oral statement made by him to Gibbons pursuant to Fla.R.Crim.P. 3.220(a)(1)(iii).
Although defendant suggests that in his deposition Gibbons did not mention any admissions against interest made by defendant, this court cannot make that assumption since it does not have a copy of the deposition in the record on appeal. One thing is clear, the next day at trial Gibbons did testify that he heard defendant say "the man was alive when they left him". The question therefore arises whether at that point the trial court should have inquired into the prejudice to defendant under the rules announced in Richardson v. State, supra, and Cumbie v. State, supra. We hold that the admission into evidence of Gibbons' testimony concerning defendant's oral statement, without conducting inquiry into the question of prejudice, was reversible error.
We rely on Cumbie v. State, 345 So.2d 1061 (Fla.1977), wherein the court stated:
"It is clear that the trial court's investigation of the question of prejudice was not the full inquiry Richardson requires. No appellate court can be certain that errors of this type are harmless. A review of the cold record is not an adequate substitute for a trial judge's determined inquiry into all aspects of the state's breach of the rules, as Richardson indicates. Especially is this so in cases such as this, where a false response is given to a request for discovery. " (345 So.2d at page 1062).
Also, this court's decision in Bell v. State, 327 So.2d 869 (Fla. 1st DCA 1976) is instructive on this point. In that case the prosecutor failed to furnish statements of defendants made to a witness in response to a discovery demand. When the state called the witness and asked questions concerning the defendants statements, the defendants objected. The trial court allowed the witness's testimony, finding that the defendants had been furnished with the witness's name and could have taken his deposition, and that the statements made to the witness were the same in substance as those made to police officers which were furnished to defendants in discovery. As in this case, the trial judge there called a recess to give defense counsel an opportunity to interview the witness after which the witness was allowed to testify. The witness there testified to essentially the same statements made to the police officers, but did elaborate on the defendants' statements. Later during closing arguments, the prosecutor exploited the difference in statements made to the witness and to police officers in an attempt to attack the defendants' credibility. Because of the prejudicial effect of the failure to adequately respond to discovery, coupled with the statements made by the prosecutor during closing arguments concerning the differences in defendants' statements, this court reversed and remanded for a new trial. We agree that as in Bell v. State, supra, the defendant here is entitled to a new trial.
As above stated, the defendant denied any involvement at all with the planning or carrying out of the robbery. Accordingly, the conviction of murder and robbery were both infected with the error herein found.
Defendant's third and last point is that the state failed to present sufficient evidence to prove that the acts charged against defendant were the cause of death. We find that point to be without merit and controlled by the Florida Supreme Court's decision in Swan v. State, 322 So.2d 485 (Fla.1975).
AFFIRMED in part and REVERSED in part and remanded for a new trial.
McCORD, C. J., and MELVIN, J., concur.