Opinion ID: 2586281
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Auto Stop and Arrest of Defendants

Text: About 12:20 a.m., on May 27, 1992, El Cajon Police Officer William Pettus was on patrol when he noticed the rear license plate light was out on a passing Toyota Corolla. Officer Pettus stopped the Corolla, exited his patrol vehicle, and approached the car. He saw Alvarado in the driver's seat and defendant in the front passenger seat. Alvarado was shaking; he appeared nervous and was sweating, although the evening temperature was cool. Officer Pettus asked Alvarado for his driver's license and vehicle registration. Alvarado handed him a California Identification Card with the name Ralph Varela. Alvarado told the officer that defendant had a driver's license, and the officer asked both Alvarado and defendant for defendant's license, but defendant did not produce one. After returning to his patrol car and determining that there was no record that either defendant or Varela had a valid driver's license, the officer began to write a citation and called for police back-up. El Cajon Police Officer Christopher Pietrzak arrived at the scene shortly thereafter. Officer Pettus ordered defendant and Alvarado out of the car. Officer Pietrzak watched defendant and Alvarado, while Officer Pettus searched the Corolla. Officer Pettus searched the driver's side and found a nine-millimeter gun magazine (containing 12 rounds), and two large caliber rounds. On the passenger side, under the seat, he found a loaded nine-millimeter, semi-automatic, Egyptian-manufactured Helwan pistol. It had one round in the chamber and eight rounds in its magazine. The Helwan pistol matched a gun box later found in the victims' house for a gun that Daniel Magoon owned. Officer Pettus then searched the back seat of the car, where he found phone bills, rental agency forms, and a license plate. He searched the trunk and found approximately 28 pounds of marijuana, some of which was frozen, both in brick form and inside plastic baggies contained in boxes. A latent fingerprint removed from a piece of tape used to wrap the marijuana was later identified as Daniel Magoon's. Officer Pettus arrested Alvarado and defendant. The officer conducted a patdown search of Alvarado before placing him in a patrol car. He found an empty nine-millimeter casing in Alvarado's left front pants pocket. After placing Alvarado in a holding cell, the officer checked the back seat of the patrol car and found two nine-millimeter cartridges. A strip search of Alvarado yielded a rock of methamphetamine. At the police station, Officer Pietrzak searched defendant and found $1,033 in various denominations in his right rear pants pocket, and three $1 dollar bills in a front pocket. He also found defendant's Mexican driver's license.