Title: Scott v. State
Citation: 266 So. 2d 567
Docket Number: 46815
State: Mississippi
Issuer: Mississippi Supreme Court
Date: July 3, 1972

266 So. 2d 567 (1972) Ronald SCOTT v. STATE of Mississippi. No. 46815. Supreme Court of Mississippi. July 3, 1972. Rehearing Denied October 2, 1972. Clinton E. Lockard, Karl Wiesenburg, Pascagoula, for appellant. A.F. Summer, Atty. Gen. by Timmie Hancock, Sp. Asst. Atty. Gen., Jackson, for appellee. *568 INZER, Justice: Appellant Ronald Scott was convicted for the unlawful possession of marijuana in the Circuit Court of Jackson County and has appealed to this Court, contending among other grounds for reversal, that the search and seizure of the marijuana was illegal and the evidence obtained by the search was not admissible into evidence. We are of the opinion that this contention is well taken and that this case should be reversed and appellant discharged. The record reflects that on September 8, 1970, a search warrant was issued authorizing the search of Apartment 6-C, Brentstone Apartments, in the City of Pascagoula. The affidavit for the search warrant alleged that the apartment was occupied and controlled by Joseph Acquisto. The statement of the underlying facts and circumstances tending to establish the grounds for the issuance of the search warrant was based upon information furnished by an informer, said to be a credible person, who claimed to have purchased marijuana from Acquisto at the apartment some six days prior to the date of the affidavit. Upon the information furnished, the magistrate found that probable cause existed to issue the search warrant. The officers proceeded to the apartment and entered with a key furnished by the landlord. They found Acquisto asleep in one of the bedrooms and gave him a copy of the search warrant. During the course of the search the officers found the door to one of the bedrooms locked. When the officers requested Acquisto to unlock the door, he informed them that the room was occupied by appellant, and he did not have the key to it. The officers obtained a screw driver and managed to unlock the door. They proceeded to search the room, and in a sea bag with appellant's name stenciled thereon, a plastic bag was found containing a substance which was later determined to be marijuana. About the time the search was completed, appellant came into the apartment and inquired of the officers as to what was going on and informed them that the room belonged to him. Thereupon the officers arrested appellant and charged him with possession of marijuana. Prior to trial appellant made a motion to suppress the evidence obtained as a result of the search of his possessions. The trial judge held that the search of appellant's room was valid and that the evidence was admissible. There is no question that insofar as Acquisto was concerned, the officers had a right to search the apartment and any evidence obtained as a result of the search would be admissible against him. The question here is whether the officers had a right to search the room admittedly occupied by appellant without a search warrant for that purpose and to use the evidence obtained thereby against the appellant. The state does not contend that the officers had probable cause to search the room and the sea bag belonging to appellant, but contend that since the apartment was leased by Acquisto and the officers had a valid warrant to search the entire apartment, they had a right to search the entire apartment, including the possessions of the appellant, and that the evidence obtained as a result of the search was admissible against appellant. On the other hand appellant contends that Article III, Section 23, Mississippi Constitution (1890), protects him against unreasonable searches and seizures and that the search of his possessions without probable cause and without a warrant violated his constitutionally protected rights. There is no question from the record in this case that appellant was in possession of and exercised control over the room which he occupied in the apartment searched. The officers were forewarned that the room was occupied by appellant and knew appellant's name was stenciled on the sea bag that they searched. It is not contended that there was any probable cause to search the possessions of the appellant, but the officers relied entirely upon the search warrant issued to search the entire apartment. *569 We are of the opinion that the question raised in this case was settled by this Court many years ago in the case of Brewer v. State, 142 Miss. 100, 107 So. 376 (1926), wherein Olivia Brewer and Nancy Tullos were convicted on a charge of having possession of a still. The search of the premises was made by virtue of a "John Doe" warrant which was held to be invalid. The evidence was conflicting as to whether Nancy Tullos was a guest in the house, or whether she rented and occupied a part of the house. This Court stated: In Cox v. State, 201 Miss. 568, 29 So. 2d 661 (1947), we said: These cases establish the rule in this state that where the proof shows that a person is renting a room or is in possession of a room in a house or an apartment under such circumstances as to make such person the owner thereof for the time being, such person is entitled to the protection afforded by Section 23 of the Constitution. Therefore, we hold that under the facts and circumstances of this case, the search of the room and possessions of appellant, without probable cause and without a warrant to search his property, was unlawful. We are aware that some courts of other jurisdictions have held to the contrary under similar circumstances, but this Court has heretofore followed the rule that the *570 protection afforded by Section 23 of our Constitution should be liberally construed in favor of our citizens and strictly construed against the state. We think this is the better rule, and we are content to continue to adhere to it. For the reasons stated, this case must be reversed, and since the only evidence upon which appellant was convicted was obtained by an illegal search, appellant must be discharged. Reversed and rendered. RODGERS, P.J., and JONES, BRADY, PATTERSON and SMITH, JJ., concur. GILLESPIE, C.J., and ROBERTSON and SUGG, JJ., dissent. SUGG, Justice (dissenting): I dissent from the majority opinion which holds that probable cause did not exist to search the room and sea bag of appellant. The officers were not aware of the fact that appellant occupied a part of the premises when the search warrant was secured, but obtained a warrant specifically describing the apartment to be searched. Before the search warrant was issued, the officers ascertained that Joseph Acquisto was the tenant who had leased the apartment in question from the owners. The appellant did not lease the apartment from the owners, but moved in shortly before the search. The first notice that the officers had that appellant was occupying a part of the apartment was at the time of the service of the search warrant. As stated in the dissenting opinion in Copertino, infra, "Our approach to problems involving the detection and prosecution of crimes should be on the basis of common sense, not super technicality." We should never lose sight of the fact that all searches are not constitutionally prohibited, but only unreasonable searches. In my opinion the search was reasonable when measured by decisions of this Court and the Supreme Court of the United States. Drugs were recovered not only in that part of the apartment occupied by Acquisto, who was named in the affidavit and search warrant, but also from the sea bag of appellant which was located in one of the bedrooms in the apartment properly described in the affidavit and search warrant. The majority opinion will, for all practical purposes, make it possible for criminals to possess narcotics, drugs or other contraband with impunity by the simple expedient of leasing or owning a single-family dwelling unit, whether located in a multiple-dwelling unit or existing as a separate residence, locking all doors except the ones chosen by them, placing the names of another person on luggage or storage compartments in such locked rooms, storing contraband therein and claiming that the premises so locked and designated are occupied by some other party. I do not agree with the majority that the fruits of the search should not have been admitted in evidence because the constitutional rights of the appellant were violated by the search. A different result was reached in Hanger v. United States, 398 F.2d 91 (8th Cir.1968), cert. denied, 393 U.S. 1119, 89 S. Ct. 995, 22 L. Ed. 2d 124, rehearing denied 395 U.S. 971, 89 S. Ct. 2106, 23 L. Ed. 2d 761 (1969) where the claim made by this appellant as to the validity of the search was there decided adverse to one of the defendants. Mrs. Loretta Myer, one of the defendants in Hanger, who was convicted of bank robbery and conspiracy, filed a motion to suppress evidence seized under a search warrant because she was not mentioned by name in the search warrant and a portion of the money was taken from her premises. In passing on this and other *571 contentions of the defendant, the Court stated: The holding in Hanger, supra, has long been the law in this State, and we have held that if the premises to be searched are sufficiently described, the name of the owner or occupant of the building is not essential when probable cause for such search exists. In Banks v. City of Jackson, 152 Miss. 844, 120 So. 209 (1929) this Court stated: In Traxler v. State, 244 Miss. 403, 142 So. 2d 14 (1962) a search warrant and affidavit particularly describing the location of a place to be searched and stating the name of the occupant as "John Doe" was held valid where the description enabled officers to locate property with reasonable certainty. This Court stated: In Traxler v. State, 220 Miss. 354, 67 So. 2d 292 (1953) an affidavit and search warrant which authorized the search of the residence and out-houses of an unknown owner on a parcel of land particularly described was held to be good. On the authority of the above cases, it was not necessary to name appellant as being an occupant of the premises, and if a contrary rule is to be adopted by this Court, the cases cited above should be overruled. Probable cause existed to search Acquisto's apartment and the right to search extended to the entire apartment and its contents, regardless of the owner or occupant. Since we have held that it is not necessary to name the owner or occupant of the premises searched for a search to be valid, it naturally follows that when a dwelling unit is occupied by more than one person, it should not be necessary to name all occupants for a search to be valid. People v. Gorg, 157 Cal. App. 2d 515, 321 P.2d 143 (1958) is a case strikingly similar in facts to the case at bar. Appellant, Alan Kent Gorg and Norman Fontaine were jointly charged with the illegal possession of narcotics. They were tried separately and found guilty. Gorg appealed from his judgment of conviction and one of the errors assigned was that the search of his premises was based on a search warrant which was a "blanket" or "general" warrant and as such invalid. The Court stated: Apartment 6-C, Brentstone Apartments, described in the search warrant in this case consisted of two bedrooms, one and one-half baths, one kitchen and one living room. Without question, the living unit was one distinct unit occupied by two persons. The only difference in this case and Gorg, supra, are that three persons instead of two lived in the apartment of Gorg and the bedroom doors were not locked. When the officers served the warrant on Joseph Acquisto, searched the premises occupied by him and found drugs, they acted as reasonable and prudent men in searching the bedroom occupied by appellant which was an integral part of the living quarters. The second reason for this dissent is that Brewer v. State, 142 Miss. 100, 107 So. 376 (1926) is not authority for the position relied on by a majority of this Court. Brewer, supra, correctly held that a "John Doe" warrant, which did not describe the premises to be searched, was invalid. The opinion then contains the statement: "[B]ut, if the testimony offered by the State was true that is, that Nancy rented and occupied the part of the house in which they found her then the testimony of the officers was incompetent as to Nancy,... ." 142 Miss. at 104, 107 So. at 376. A careful reading of the original record in Brewer, supra, reveals that Oliver Brewer and his wife Olivia Brewer resided in a two room house. The front room was used for sleeping and the back room was used for cooking and eating. Nancy Tullos had been in the house for approximately four weeks before the search was made and the State did not prove that she was renting a portion of the premises. The only testimony about her right to be there was furnished by Olivia Brewer who said that Nancy was a mere visitor for the night and two defense witnesses who said that she had been there three to five weeks. There were no separate quarters in the house occupied by Nancy Tullos and the facts do not support the authority for the statement in Cox v. State, 201 Miss. 568, 29 So. 2d 661 (1947) that "Nancy Tullos was renting from the Brewers a room in that house ..." This case was put in the proper perspective in Banks v. City of Jackson, supra, where the Court stated: Cox v. State, supra, involved an affidavit and search warrant for the field, yard, garden and woods near the residence of Mrs. Herschel Scott and then described a 14 acre tract of land in Benton County, Mississippi. The proof showed that the appellant Cox and his wife, occupied a building on the described tract and used the front part of the building as a small store for the sale of merchandise, the rear being occupied by Cox and his wife as a residence. The building occupied by Cox and his wife was located 150 yards east of the Scott residence and the court in holding the search of the Cox building invalid stated: There were at least two residences on the 14 acres described in the search warrant, and although a single building containing multiple-dwelling units was not involved, the holding in Cox is in line with the weight of modern authority that where a building contains multiple dwelling units a warrant for the entire building is not good, but the affidavit and search warrant must describe the particular dwelling unit within the building sought to be searched. This is a sound rule because in modern times multiple housing accommodations, such as apartments and hotels have been constructed where many families live. Normally, separate living units of a multiple tenant building must be treated as if they were separate dwelling houses, and probable cause must be shown to search each one. It is not unreasonable to require that an affidavit and search warrant particularly specify the dwelling unit within the multiple housing accommodation sought to be searched. State v. Costakos, 101 R.I. 692, 226 A.2d 695 (1967); Fance v. State, 207 So. 2d 331 (Fla.App. 1968); Commonwealth v. Copertino, 209 Pa.Super. 63, 224 A.2d 228 (1966). Where a multiple-family unit has the appearance of a single-family dwelling, a search of the multiple-family unit having such appearance is legal. In United States v. Jordan, 349 F.2d 107 (C.A.6 1965) the Court stated: An even stronger case is United States v. Santore, 290 F.2d 51 (C.A.2 1960) cert. den. 365 U.S. 834, 81 S. Ct. 749, 5 L. Ed. 2d 744, where the defendant Orlando complained of the illegality of the search of his attic apartment and basement. On a warrant that stated that the applicant for the warrant had reason to believe that illegal narcotics were to be found "on the premises known as 164 Hill Street, Elmont, Long Island, New York, being a one family house, in the Eastern District of New York." The Court stated: In the instant case the officers were not warned of dual occupancy of the apartment until the search warrant was served on Acquisto. As noted in the original opinion appellant appeared about the time the search of his room was completed. At that moment it was too late for the officers to retreat and obtain a new warrant for the search of appellant's bedroom. For the foregoing reasons, I am of the opinion that the case should be affirmed. GILLESPIE, C.J., and ROBERTSON, J., join in this dissent.