Opinion ID: 435104
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Fourth Amendment Challenge by Hillison and Jacobson.

Text: 11 The procedure used to investigate, arrest, and search appellants Hillison and Jacobson violated no Fourth Amendment rights. The initial phase of investigation was triggered by nothing more than the subjective assessment by drug agents that Hillison and Jacobson behaved suspiciously in the San Diego Airport. While the agents' observations might under some circumstances justify a brief stop for questioning, see United States v. Post, 607 F.2d 847, 850 & n. 3 (9th Cir.1979); United States v. Chatman, 573 F.2d 565, (9th Cir.1977), they certainly did not give probable cause to suspect criminal activity, see Florida v. Royer, 460 U.S. 491, 103 S.Ct. 1319, 1323 n. 7, 75 L.Ed.2d 229 (1983). The subsequent observations that Hillison and Jacobson purchased supplies, checked into a motel, and later mailed a package did not add any new incriminating information to the agents' knowledge. If probable cause were required for the segregation of Jacobson's mailed package, the segregation and detention of the package would not have been authorized by law. 12 The Supreme Court has held, however, that probable cause is not needed to support a brief segregation and delay of a mailed package. United States v. Van Leeuwen, 397 U.S. 249, 253, 90 S.Ct. 1029, 1032, 25 L.Ed.2d 282 (1970). While theoretically an unduly long detention of mail could become unreasonable enough to intrude upon privacy interests protected by the Fourth Amendment, id. at 252, 90 S.Ct. at 1032, the main Fourth Amendment interest in a mailed package attaches to the privacy of its contents, not the speed with which it is delivered, id. at 253, 90 S.Ct. at 1032. For this reason, the Court ruled that no interest protected by the Fourth Amendment is invaded by forwarding a package on the following day rather than the day it is deposited. 1 Id.; see also United States v. Martell, 654 F.2d 1356, 1367-68 (9th Cir.1981) (Nelson, J., dissenting) cert. denied --- U.S. ----, 103 S.Ct. 3551, 77 L.Ed.2d 1397 (1983). The Court recently adhered to the holding of Van Leeuwen, characterizing the case as one in which the defendant was unable to show that the invasion intruded upon either a privacy interest in the contents of the packages or a possessory interest in the packages themselves. United States v. Place, --- U.S. ----, 103 S.Ct. 2637, 2643 n. 6, 77 L.Ed.2d 110 (1983) (quoting 3 W. LaFave, Search & Seizure Sec. 9.6, at 60; see also id. at 2650 n. 5 (Brennan, J., concurring). 13 This case is very similar to Van Leeuwen. As in Van Leeuwen, the drug agents segregated the package mailed by Jacobson without a sufficient basis to justify examining its contents. As in Van Leeuwen the agents, through independent investigation, within a few hours of the segregation acquired probable cause to believe that the package contained evidence of criminal activity. The total duration of the period of detention of the package prior to the search was nine hours, far less than the 29 hours held reasonable in Van Leeuwen. Based on Van Leeuwen, we conclude that the segregation and detention of the package mailed by Jacobson did not violate the Fourth Amendment. 14 The investigation that uncovered facts amounting to probable cause to search the package was also conducted in a lawful manner. The agents did not disturb, test, inspect, or allow the trained dog to sniff the segregated package until after they had searched the motel room vacated by Hillison and Jacobson. 2 There they discovered scraps of brown wrapping paper, ten marijuana seeds and marijuana debris, items that suggested the package mailed by Jacobson might contain marijuana. Whether or not this information gave probable cause to search the package, it certainly provided the founded suspicion, if any, needed to justify a dog sniff. See Florida v. Royer, 103 S.Ct. at 1328 n. 10 (plurality opinion); see also United States v. Place, --- U.S. ----, 103 S.Ct. 2637, 2644, 77 L.Ed.2d 110 (1983) (dictum). When the concededly reliable dog strongly alerted on the mailed package, the agents plainly had probable cause to believe that it contained illegal drugs. United States v. Spetz, 721 F.2d 1457 (9th Cir.1983). 15 When the search warrant authorizing examination of the package contents was executed, the agents discovered that it actually contained cocaine. They therefore had probable cause to believe that Hillison and Jacobson were engaged in criminal activity, and to arrest the pair the next morning at the San Diego airport. The search of Hillison's socks was valid as a search incident to his arrest. See Chimel v. California, 395 U.S. 752, 89 S.Ct. 2034, 23 L.Ed.2d 685, (1969). No Fourth Amendment violation tainted the evidence used to convict either of these appellants.