Opinion ID: 391404
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Barker's Responses to the Motions for Summary Judgment

Text: 34 After Agent Ballas moved for summary judgment, Barker filed an unverified Memorandum in Opposition to Defendant Ballas' Motion for Summary Judgment. In conclusory terms, the memorandum asserts that there are still genuine issues of disputed fact, and further asserts that Agent Ballas had been operating outside his authority in having the evidence picked up from Houston. 35 Officer Norman's summary judgment motion and affidavit were filed on September 21, 1979. In response, Barker filed on October 5, 1979, a responding memorandum with an attached affidavit. The memorandum asserts in conclusory terms that there are still genuine issues of fact remaining in the case, and then goes on to assert that Keller had no standing to consent to the apartment search and that among the papers seized by Officer Norman were bills of sale for several of the items seized as stolen. The memorandum further asserts that there was no adequate legal justification for the seizure or the retention of the property. 36 In the affidavit attached to the memorandum, Barker avers that after the property was seized, Keller told Barker that Officer Norman had told her at the time of the seizure that he was taking the property to induce Barker to contact him. Keller also told Barker that, at the time of the seizure, she had told Officer Norman that she had been with Barker when he had purchased several of the items at a Radio Shack store, and that several of the bills of sale were in the apartment. The affidavit then avers that Barker requested Knoff to contact Officer Norman; Knoff did so, and afterwards informed Barker that Officer Norman had told Knoff that he would return the seized property to Barker as soon as he determined that it was not stolen. 37 The affidavit further states that Barker went to Officer Norman's office on November 14, 1976, at which time Officer Norman returned the Volkswagen; but Officer Norman refused to return anything else, saying he was still checking to see if the items were stolen. The affidavit says that both Barker and Knoff contacted Officer Norman on several later occasions, seeking the return of the property without success. At no time, according to what Keller and Barker's mother told Barker, did either woman ever tell Officer Norman that any of the seized property was stolen; rather, they told Barker that they had told Officer Norman that the property was not stolen. Barker's mother also told him that she had offered to show Officer Norman bills of sale covering some of the property. 38 Finally, the affidavit states that there is nothing in the record to indicate Officer Norman's good faith belief that his seizure of the property was lawful, and if he did believe in the lawfulness of his acts, that belief was unreasonable because the property had not been reported as stolen. The property has never been verified as stolen, according to the affidavit; it concludes with the assertion that Barker is entitled to the return of the property or compensation for its loss.