Opinion ID: 1887015
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Voluntariness of the Consent to Search

Text: Castellon argues that his consent to search was not voluntary. Specifically, he contends that the totality of the circumstances, including the presence of uniformed, armed officers; the significant curtailment of [his] freedom; his inability to understand English; and Officer Chaparro's unambiguously coercive language  render any consent given by [him] involuntary and invalid. The question of whether a person has voluntarily consented to a search is a question of fact to be determined from all the circumstances [.] See In re J.M., 619 A.2d 497, 500 (D.C.1992) (en banc) (quoting Schneckloth, supra, 412 U.S. at 227, 248-49, 93 S.Ct. 2041). As such, this court is bound to uphold the trial court's findings in this regard unless these findings are clearly erroneous. See id.; see also Jackson v. United States, 805 A.2d 979, 985 (D.C.2002). Having considered each of Castellon's arguments, in light of the totality of the circumstances, we conclude that the record supports the trial court's ruling that Castellon voluntarily consented to the search of his room. First, as previously indicated, there was no showing that more than three officers were in the apartment at the time they secured Castellon's consent to search. [15] The presence of multiple officers is only one factor to be considered in evaluating whether the consent was coerced. See, e.g., United States v. Winningham, 140 F.3d 1328, 1332 (10th Cir.1998). The officer's conduct during the encounter is also important to the voluntariness analysis. Here, the officers never drew or displayed their weapons in a threatening manner. Again, where the police officers keep their weapons holstered during the entire encounter, the court will have some difficulty finding that there was coercion simply because the officers had them available. See, e.g., Drayton, supra, 536 U.S. at 205, 122 S.Ct. 2105 (The presence of a holstered firearm ... is unlikely to contribute to the coerciveness of the encounter absent active brandishing of the weapon.). Second, although not free to leave, Castellon remained in the familiar surroundings of his home, and he was not subject to full arrest nor curtailed significantly in his freedom. Cf. United States v. (Juan) Pena, 924 F.Supp. 1239, 1245, 1252-53 (D.Mass.1996). Third, that Castellon spoke little English has no persuasive force here because a police officer who spoke Castellon's native language translated for him the request and Consent to Search form. The trial court's finding that Officer Chaparro had no difficulty communicating with [Castellon] because of the Spanish language[,] is supported by the evidence. Thus, in this case, any language barrier was eliminated. See, e.g., United States v. Marin, 761 F.2d 426, 434 (7th Cir.1985) (affirming denial of suppression motion where Spanish translation of consent form adequately communicated that defendant could refuse to consent to the search); United States v. (Amado) Pena, 542 F.2d 292, 294 (5th Cir.1976) (consent was voluntary where defendant was repeatedly advised of his right not to consent to the search in Spanish as well as English). Similarly, here, the record supports the trial court's finding that Castellon understood Officer Chaparro's Spanish translation, and specifically his right to refuse consent. Finally, Castellon argues that his consent was not voluntary because the language that Officer Chaparro used was coercive. Specifically, he refers to the officer's choice of words in explaining that the police wanted to search his room. Officer Chaparro testified that he told Castellon that they needed to go into his room and that they needed him to sign the consent form in order for them to do so. The trial court considered the officer's choice of words and their possible impact; however, the court considered also that the officer translated the form which explained to Castellon that he was not required to agree to the search. Castellon said that he understood everything, asked no questions and signed the consent to search. Considering all of the circumstances, the trial court concluded that the government had demonstrated that Castellon's consent to the search was voluntary. The record supports the trial court's ruling. The record shows that Castellon had no barriers to comprehension. He was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol, and there is no evidence of intellectual barriers to his understanding. His brother-in-law, who spoke English and lived in the apartment, was present, but Castellon did not ask him for assistance. See, e.g., United States v. Rojas, 783 F.2d 105, 109-10 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 479 U.S. 856, 107 S.Ct. 195, 93 L.Ed.2d 127 (1986) (although defendant was in custody, handcuffed, and had a slight language barrier, the presence of such subtly coercive factors was outweighed by the fact that defendant was of sufficient age and intellect and no direct force or intimidation was used).