Opinion ID: 2630631
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Consent Is a Factual Finding

Text: ¶ 48 Before a court addresses whether consent was voluntary, it must first determine that there was consent. Consent is a factual finding that should be made based on the totality of the circumstances. State v. Durand, 569 P.2d 1107, 1108-09 (Utah 1977). Since a district court is in a unique position to assess the credibility of witnesses and weigh the evidence, Thurman, 846 P.2d at 1271 (citing State v. Vigil, 815 P.2d 1296, 1299 (Utah Ct.App.1991)), the court of appeals may not substitute its judgment as to a factual question unless the district court's finding is clearly erroneous. Id. Here, the district court entered a finding of fact that Hansen had consented to the search, which the court of appeals held was clearly erroneous. See State v. Hansen, 2000 UT App 353, ¶¶ 21, 25, 17 P.3d 1135. We therefore review whether the court of appeals properly substituted its judgment for that of the district court. ¶ 49 Officer Huntington asked Hansen if he had any alcohol, drugs, or weapons in the vehicle. Hansen responded, No. Officer Huntington then asked, Do you mind if I check? Hansen responded, Yes. Officer Huntington clarified during the suppression hearing that Hansen's response meant Yes, I could have consent to search. Hansen did not take the stand to challenge this statement. [4] ¶ 50 Hansen's response of, Yes, was ambiguous. But, the only evidence before the court regarding its meaning was Officer Huntington's statement. The fact that Hansen chose not to challenge the officer's statement has some significance in this instance. Based on these facts, we cannot conclude the district court's finding was clearly erroneous, and therefore, we reverse the court of appeals' decision on this issue. We emphasize, however, that the evidence in support of this conclusion, while adequate, was far from ideal. We now address whether Hansen's consent was voluntary.