Title: State v. Boone
Citation: 239 S.E.2d 459, 293 N.C. 702
Docket Number: 51
State: north-carolina
Issuer: north-carolina Supreme Court
Date: December 15, 1977

239 S.E.2d 459 (1977) 293 N.C. 702 STATE of North Carolina v. Vernon BOONE. No. 51. Supreme Court of North Carolina. December 15, 1977. *460 Atty. Gen. Rufus L. Edmisten by Associate Atty. Nonnie F. Midgette, Raleigh, for the State. Boyan &amp; Slate by Clarence C. Boyan, High Point, for defendant-appellant. MOORE, Justice. Prior to the introduction of evidence, defendant moved to suppress all evidence obtained by Officer W. F. Clay's entry onto defendant's property without a valid search warrant, and all evidence obtained thereafter as the result of the allegedly illegal search. Following the voir dire hearing, the State introduced testimony before the jury which was substantially in accord with Judge McConnell's findings of fact. The threshold question is the legality of Officer Clay's entry onto the land of defendant's wife and his obtaining the serial number from the tractor parked under the lean-to shed. The Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States provides: G.S. 15A-974 provides that upon timely motion evidence must be suppressed if its exclusion is required by the Constitution of the United States or the Constitution of the State of North Carolina. Before resorting to the rules of search and seizure, it must first be determined whether the conduct complained of was within the sphere of Fourth Amendment protection. Though title to the real property on which the stolen tractor was discovered was in defendant's wife's name, it is clear that "capacity to claim the protection of the [Fourth] Amendment depends not upon a property right in the invaded place but upon whether the area was one in which there was a reasonable expectation of freedom from governmental intrusion.. . ." Mancusi v. DeForte, 392 U.S. 364, 88 S. Ct. 2120, 2124, 20 L. Ed. 2d 1154 (1968). Thus, what a person knowingly exposes to the public, even in his own home or office, is not a subject of Fourth Amendment protection, but what he seeks to preserve as private, even in an area accessible to the public, may be constitutionally protected. Katz v. United States, 389 U.S. 347, 88 S. Ct. 507, 19 L. Ed. 2d 576 (1967). The crucial issue, therefore, is whether in light of all the circumstances the open lean-to shed under which the tractor was parked was an area in which defendant had a reasonable expectation of freedom from governmental intrusion. The shed was located in an open field on a 19.9 acre tract of land, some 100 feet from public school grounds, a place where the public had a right to be. The shed was an open-air type structure, and the tractor was visible from the school property. Defendant's home was located in the town of High Point, some 1½ miles from the property. There was no residence within the fenced-in area, nor was there a residence contiguous thereto. The lean-to and the barn to which it was attached were the only structures within the fenced-in area. There were no "No Trespassing" signs on the property. Whether a search or seizure is reasonable is to be determined on the facts of each individual case. State v. Howard, 274 N.C. 186, 162 S.E.2d 495 (1968); Cooper v. California, 386 U.S. 58, 87 S. Ct. 788, 17 L. Ed. 2d 730 (1967); Preston v. United States, 376 U.S. 364, 84 S. Ct. 881, 11 L. Ed. 2d 777 (1964). Generally, an open field is not an area entitled to Fourth Amendment protection. The "open field" doctrine was enunciated by Justice Holmes in Hester v. United States, 265 U.S. 57, 44 S. Ct. 445, 446, 68 L. Ed. 898 (1924). That case involved the discovery of illegal whiskey in a field by officers who went on defendant's premises without a search warrant. Speaking for the Court, Mr. Justice Holmes said: As is noted in Rosencranz v. United States, 356 F.2d 310, 313 (1st Cir. 1966), ". . . This amendment [the Fourth] speaks of the `houses' of persons, which word has been enlarged by the courts to include the `curtilage' or ground and buildings immediately surrounding a dwelling. . .. The reach of the curtilage depends on the facts of a case. . . ." More recent decisions by the federal courts have not abrogated the principles set forth in Hester v. United States, supra. Thus, in the recent case of United States v. Capps, 435 F.2d 637, 640 (9th Cir. 1970), the Court said: "[I]nformation gained as a result of a civil trespass on an `open field' *464 area is not constitutionally tainted, nor is the search and seizure which ultimately results from acquiring that information. Hester v. United States, 265 U.S. 57, 59, 44 S. Ct. 445, 68 L. Ed. 898 (1924); Wattenburg v. United States, 388 F.2d 853, 856 (9th Cir. 1968); McDowell v. United States, 383 F.2d 599, 603 (8th Cir. 1967); Giacona v. United States, 257 F.2d 450, 456 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 358 U.S. 873, 79 S. Ct. 113, 3 L. Ed. 2d 104 (1958); Koth v. United States, 16 F.2d 59, 61 (9th Cir. 1926)." This principle has been applied by this Court on prior occasions. In State v. Spencer, 281 N.C. 121, 187 S.E.2d 779, 783 (1972), the defendant contended that the officer involved had engaged in an illegal search and seizure because he had illegally visited a field where marijuana was growing, prior to the issuance of a search warrant. Justice Branch, speaking for the Court, stated: Accordingly, we hold, in light of the circumstances in this case, that the lean-to shed located in an open field was not an area in which there was a reasonable expectation of freedom from governmental intrusion, and that the checking of the serial number by Officer Clay was reasonable. This assignment of error is overruled. In view of our holding that the obtaining of the serial number from the tractor was not an unreasonable search, we need not consider whether the search was justified by the fact that the tractor was in plain view. See 7 Strong, N.C.Index 2d, Searches and Seizures § 1, and cases cited therein. Defendant's other assignments of error are without merit. There was ample evidence to go to the jury. The trial judge, on motion to suppress and after a hearing, made extensive findings of fact and conclusions of law in compliance with G.S. 15A-977(f). Defendant expressly requested that the trial judge charge the jury on defendant's failure to testify. The judge charged: We have held that ordinarily it is better to give no instruction concerning defendant's failure to testify unless such an instruction is requested by defendant. If defendant does request such an instruction, as defendant did in this case, it is the duty of the trial judge to instruct the jury on this feature of the case. The judge charged that defendant's failure to testify "should not" be considered against him. Defendant contends that the judge erred because he failed to charge the jury that it "shall not" consider defendant's silence against him. While it is better practice to use the words of the statute, i. e., "shall not create any presumption against him," G.S. 8-54, we do not think the use of the words "should not" is such error as to require a new trial. See State v. Covington, 290 N.C. 313, 226 S.E.2d 629 (1976); State v. Bryant, 283 N.C. 227, *465 195 S.E.2d 509 (1973); State v. Barbour, 278 N.C. 449, 180 S.E.2d 115 (1971). After a careful examination of the entire record, we find no prejudicial error in the trial, and the decision of the Court of Appeals is affirmed. An unusual situation exists, however, concerning the sentence imposed upon the defendant. The following appears in the record: A sentence within the statutory limit will be presumed regular and valid. However, such a presumption is not conclusive. If the record discloses that the court considered irrelevant and improper matter in determining the severity of the sentence, the presumption of regularity is overcome, and the sentence is in violation of defendant's rights. State v. Swinney, 271 N.C. 130, 155 S.E.2d 545 (1967). Under Article I, Section 24, of the North Carolina Constitution, no person shall be convicted of any crime but by the unanimous verdict of a jury in open court. The General Assembly, however, may provide other means of trial for misdemeanors with the right of appeal for trial de novo. No other right of the individual has been so zealously guarded over the years and so deeply embedded in our system of jurisprudence as an accused's right to a jury trial. This right ought not to be denied or abridged nor should the attempt to exercise this right impose upon the defendant an additional penalty or enlargement of his sentence. The statement of the trial judge, expressed by him in open court, indicated that the sentence imposed was in part induced by defendant's exercise of his constitutional right to plead not guilty and demand a trial by jury. This we cannot condone. We agree with the Court of Appeals: "The trial judge may have sentenced defendant quite fairly in the case at bar, but there is a clear inference that a greater sentence was imposed because defendant did not accept a lesser plea proffered by the State." Defendant had the right to plead not guilty, and he should not and cannot be punished for exercising that right. See State v. Rhinehart, 267 N.C. 470, 148 S.E.2d 651 (1966); State v. Patton, 221 N.C. 117, 19 S.E.2d 142 (1942). The case must be remanded for entry of a proper judgment, without consideration of defendant's refusal to plead guilty to a lesser offense. For the reasons stated, the judgment imposed is vacated and the case is remanded to the Court of Appeals for remand to Guilford Superior Court, High Point Division, for proper judgment. The decision of the Court of Appeals is affirmed. Affirmed.