Opinion ID: 2630631
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: district court rejects hansen's motion to suppress

Text: ¶ 17 On July 2, 1999, Hansen filed a motion to suppress evidence uncovered by the search. In his motion, Hansen argued that: (1) Officer Huntington illegally detained him by exceeding the scope of the traffic stop, (2) he did not give voluntary consent to the search, and (3) any evidence obtained from the search was tainted by the illegal detention. ¶ 18 On August 4, 1999, the district court held a hearing on Hansen's motion to suppress where Officer Huntington testified about the stop and search of Hansen's vehicle. Following the suppression hearing, the district court expressly stated that Officer Huntington was a credible witness, and it found that his testimony established Hansen clearly and unequivocally consented to the search of his vehicle. ¶ 19 The court also ruled that Hansen's consent was voluntary, supporting this ruling with several findings of fact. First, the court found that [t]he officer's question was permissive and did not suggest that he had a right to search. Second, the court found that [t]here was no coercive conduct on the part of the officer to secure defendant's consent to search. Third, the court found that the officer's demeanor, voice, and stature were not coercive in nature. Finally, the court found that there were no other officers surrounding defendant when the officer sought Hansen's consent. ¶ 20 In addition, the court ruled that Hansen was not seized at the time Officer Huntington sought his consent because, [f]rom an objective viewpoint, defendant was clearly free to leave after his documents had been returned to him. ¶ 21 Accordingly, the court denied Hansen's motion to suppress the methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia that were seized during Officer Huntington's search. Hansen then pleaded guilty to one count of illegal possession of a controlled substance, a third degree felony, but reserved his right to appeal the district court's rulings from the suppression hearing.