Court Opinion

ID: 9694245
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-25 17:31:44.241155+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:19:58.022033
License: Public Domain

POPOVICH, J.,
dissenting:
¶ 1 I respectfully dissent from the opinion of the majority to the extent that it concludes Superintendent Joseph Daly acted as an instrument of the state, not as a private citizen, with respect to his encounter with appellee Thomas Bradley. Rather, I agree with the Commonwealth’s argument that under the facts of this case, Superintendent Daly was acting as a private citizen and his conduct did not amount to state action. Therefore, I am convinced that the lower court erred when it suppressed all evidence derived from the off-duty, plain-clothes officer’s conduct, and the exclusionary rule does not apply. Consequently, I would reverse the decision of the court below and remand for trial.
¶ 2 “When reviewing the Commonwealth’s appeal from the decision of the suppression court, ‘we must consider only the *357evidence of the ... appellee’s witnesses and so much of the evidence for the prosecution as read in the context of the record as a whole remains uncontradicted.’ Commonwealth v. Baer, 439 Pa.Super. 437, 654 A.2d 1058, 1058 (1995) (citation omitted). ‘If the evidence supports the factual findings of the trial court, we are bound by such findings, and we may reverse only if the legal conclusions drawn therefrom are in error.’ Commonwealth v. Espada, 364 Pa.Super. 604, 528 A.2d 968, 969 (1987) (citation omitted).” Commonwealth v. Brandt, 456 Pa.Super. 717, 691 A.2d 934, 936 (1997).
¶ 3 Herein, the Commonwealth raises the following issue for our consideration: “Whether the suppression court erred in ruling that an off-duty, out-of-jurisdiction police chief made an illegal arrest when while on his way home, he followed a car being driven in an erratic and reckless manner and when the car left the road and stopped, the chief pulled in front of it, removed the other car’s keys from the ignition and instructed the driver to wait for the police who arrived momentarily.” Commonwealth’s Brief on Reargument, p.4. More to the point, the Commonwealth submits that “[t]he out of jurisdiction police officer’s conduct did not constitute state action and, therefore, the exclusionary rule is inapplicable.” Commonwealth’s Supplemental Brief on Reargument, p. 2.7
¶4 In deciding that all evidence which resulted from Superintendent Daly’s actions must be suppressed, the lower court reasoned:
Applying the principles set forth above, it is clear that Chief Daly displayed conduct which can fairly be attributable to the state and that Chief Daly must be regarded as having acted as an instrument or agent of the state rather than as a private citizen. Daily [sic] trailed the Defendant at such close proximity as to cause the Defendant to pull off the road (N.T., 11/4/96 at 37.) In an unmarked car owned by Lower Merion Township, (N.T., 11/4/96 at 9), Chief Daly pulled in front of defendant and blocked him. (N.T., 11/4/96 at 37.) Daly then got out of his car, walked over to the Defendant’s car, opened Defendant’s door and reached in, turned off the ignition and took the Defendant’s keys (N.T., 11/4/96 at 11, 36.) According to his own testimony, Chief Daly identified himself as an off duty police officer and instructed the Defendant to “just sit there”, explaining that the Haverford Township police were on their way. (N.T., 11/4/96 at 11.) Defendant agreed that Daly took his keys and identified himself as an off-duty police officer. (N.T., 11/4/96 at 36.) Of this encounter, Defendant stated, “And I didn’t know -1 thought I was under arrest ... I though it was a Havertown undercover agent or whatever.” (N.T., 11/4/96 at 36.) Defendant further testified that “— within a minute, there was somebody there, there was an officer there.” (N.T., 11/4/96 at 38.) Chief Daly used the radio to report his and the Defendant’s location, drove an unmarked police car, caused the Defendant to pull over, bloek[ed] him, took Defendant’s keys, identified himself as an officer and detained the Defendant with the uniformed Haverford Township police immediately on his tail. In essence, Chief Daly acted as an officer, not as a civilian, in depriving the Defendant of his freedom. Without jurisdiction, Chief Daly conducted an unlawful arrest.
Trial Court Opinion, pp. 7-8.
¶ 5 My review of the parties’ briefs, the record, and pertinent case law reveals that the trial court, relying upon Commonwealth v. Price, 543 Pa. 403, 672 A.2d 280 (1996), erred when it suppressed all the evidence which the police seized following Superintendent Daly’s actions. Upon the facts presented, I find that Superintendent Daly did not act as an instrument or agent of the state. Accordingly, I do not believe that the evidence derived from his actions should have been suppressed under the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution or Article 1, § 8 of the Pennsylvania Constitution.
*358¶ 6 Presently, I agree with the Commonwealth’s assertion that Superintendent Daly acted as a private citizen when he approached Bradley’s vehicle, opened the car door, removed Bradley’s keys from the ignition, identified himself as an off-duty police officer and informed Bradley that the Haver-ford Township Police had been notified. In so finding, I find the present facts distinguishable from those of similar cases such as Price, supra, Commonwealth v. Kiner, 697 A.2d 262 (Pa.Super.1997), Commonwealth v. Bienstock, 449 Pa.Super. 299, 673 A.2d 952 (1996) and Commonwealth v. Gommer, 445 Pa.Super. 571, 665 A.2d 1269 (1996), allocatur denied, 546 Pa. 676, 686 A.2d 1308 (1996).
¶ 7 In the present case, “[t]he critical factor for purposes of determining whether state action is involved is whether the private individual, in light of all the circumstances, must be regarded as having acted as an ‘instrument’ or agent of the state.” Price, 672 A.2d at 283, citing Commonwealth v. Corley, 507 Pa. 540, 548, 491 A.2d 829, 832 (1985), citing Coolidge v. New Hampshire, 403 U.S. 443, 487, 91 S.Ct. 2022, 2049, 29 L.Ed.2d 564, 595 (1971). Where the relationship between the person committing the wrongful acts and the state is such that those acts can be viewed as emanating from the authority of the state, the principles established in Corley, supra, warrant a finding of state action. Price, 672 A.2d at 284. Upon comparison of the facts sub judice to those of similar cases, I am convinced that Superintendent Daly’s involvement with Bradley did not rise to the level of state action, but were merely those of a responsible citizen who admirably demonstrated his concern for the safety of the public.
¶8 First, in Price, supra, our Supreme Court found that the actions of Special Agent Mark Sites of the Federal Bureau of Investigation amounted to state action when he stopped defendant James Price’s vehicle, and evidence seized as a result of Agent Sites’ actions should have been suppressed. After observing Price fail to stop at a stop sign and then swerve into on-coming traffic, Agent Sites activated the police lights and siren of his unmarked FBI vehicle and, eventually, stopped Price. Agent Sites identified himself as an FBI agent and showed Price his badge. Upon smelling the odor of alcohol upon Price, Agent Sites asked a nearby resident to call the police. Although Agent Sites never told Price he was under arrest, he did tell Price to not move and remain seated until the police arrived. After the local police arrived, Agent Sites - briefed the officers on the events and, at their request, prepared a written report of the incident.
¶ 9 Applying the principles of Corley, supra, our Supreme Court stated:
.. .it is convincingly clear that Agent Sites here displayed conduct which can “fairly be attributable to the state” and that Agent Sites must be regarded as having acted as an “instrument” or agent of the state when he stopped Appellee. Despite the Commonwealth’s assertion to the contrary, Agent Sites’ use of the lights and sirens which were equipped on his unmarked government vehicle, together with his displaying of his FBI badge, is relevant, and, indeed, determinative of our conclusion that the instant case involves state action. It simply cannot be denied that Agent Sites’ obvious display of authority when he stopped [Price] imbued his action with an official aura. As such, we cannot escape the conclusion that illegal state action was here involved and that no subsequent action can erase that taint.
Price, 672 A.2d at 284.
¶ 10 Presently, I acknowledge that Superintendent Daly did tell Bradley that he was an off-duty police officer and “to just sit there” and did remove Bradley’s keys from the ignition. N.T., 11/4/96, pp. 11, 36. However, I am not convinced those acts alone are sufficient to elevate Superintendent Daly’s acts from that of an ordinary citizen to that of the state. In my opinion, the acts that Superintendent Daly refrained from performing are more telling than those he performed. Superintendent Daly did not pull over appellant’s vehicle. Rather, Bradley pulled his unmarked vehicle into the church parking lot upon the mistaken impression that “a friend or somebody- who wanted [him]” was following his car. N.T., 11/4/96, *359p. 36.8 Superintendent Daly did not activate lights or sirens in his unmarked police car. He was in civilian clothing and did not show Bradley his police identification or badge. Superintendent Daly did not discuss the matter with Bradley, except to tell him “just to sit there and I [don’t] want any trouble[.]” N.T., 11/4/96, p. 11. Finally, the first Haver-ford police officer arrived only moments after Superintendent Daly took Bradley’s keys. Aside from Superintendent Daly’s statement to Bradley that he was an off-duty police officer, there were insufficient indicia of official authority to warrant a finding of state action. Thus, the present case is readily distinguishable from Price, supra, where there was abundant evidence that Agent Sites’ actions were “imbued ... with an official aura.” Price, 672 A.2d at 284.
¶ 11 Likewise in the recent case of Kiner, supra, where this court found state action, the indicia of official authority were considerably greater than those before us now. In Kiner, supra, William Gephart, an off-duty state trooper, was driving his unmarked, private vehicle and noticed defendant Kenneth Kiner driving his vehicle erratically. The trooper followed Kiner into a parking lot and, when given the opportunity, approached Kin-er’s vehicle. The trooper then displayed his badge, his weapon and handcuffs and identified himself as a Pennsylvania State Trooper to Kiner. After smelling a strong odor of alcohol, Trooper Gephart ordered Kiner out of his vehicle and requested Kiner’s driver license. The trooper then handcuffed Kiner, took his keys, ordered him to stand next to his vehicle and told him that he was “under detention” until an on-duty officer arrived because the trooper suspected Kiner of driving under the influence of alcohol. Trooper Gephart also physically restrained Kiner by holding his arm. After approximately twenty minutes, an on-duty officer arrived and arrested Kiner. Eventually, Kiner was convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol.
¶ 12 Upon review, we found that Trooper Gephart’s actions amounted to an arrest of Kiner. Clearly, Trooper Gephart’s action were “imbued ... with an official aura.” Price, 672 A.2d at 284. Presently, Superintendent Daly’s actions bear little parallel to those of Trooper Gephart. Superintendent Daly, other than informing Bradley that he was an off-duty police officer, did nothing to indicate that he was acting under authority conferred upon him by the state.
¶ 13 In Bienstock, supra, 449 Pa.Super. 299, 673 A.2d 952 (1996), we were presented with the question of whether an agent of the Pennsylvania State Police Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement was acting as a private citizen when he performed a traffic stop of defendant Richard Bienstock. Therein, Officer Bradley Trusal noticed the defendant driving erratically and also observed that the front of the defendant’s vehicle was smashed. Officer Trusal, who was travelling in an unmarked police vehicle, activated his siren, approached the defendant and directed him to pull his vehicle into a nearby parking lot. Finding the defendant incoherent with numerous conflicting stories about the damage to his vehicle, Officer Trusal radioed the state police for assistance. Later, the defendant was arrested by Trooper Marvin Wallace and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol.
¶ 14 Although there was no evidence of whether Officer Trusal identified himself as an officer, showed his badge or informed the defendant that he was under arrest, we affirmed the lower court’s decision to suppress *360the evidence seized as a result of Officer Trusal’s actions because “there was sufficient indicia of official conduct for the trial court to find that Trusal’s action constituted state action.” Bienstock, 673 A.2d at 955. The fact that Officer Trusal actually demonstrated, his official authority by activating his siren and directing the defendant where to stop his vehicle was dispositive. This is quite different from the present case where Bradley admittedly pulled into the church parking lot and stopped because he thought that “a friend or somebody who wanted [him]” was following his car. N.T., 11/4/96, p. 36. Clearly, under the present facts, Superintendent Daly did not exhibit any official authority by which he compelled Bradley to stop his vehicle.
¶ 15 The case most factually similar to the present case is that of Gommer, supra. Therein, Corporal Lisa Damore of the Pennsylvania State Police observed defendant Robert Gommer operating his vehicle in a reckless manner and followed him into a McDonald’s restaurant. When Gommer pulled away from the “drive-thru” window, Corporal Damore, who was off-duty and not in uniform, signaled for him to pull over. She identified herself as a state trooper, directed him to await the arrival of other troopers, informed him that she believed he was operating his vehicle under the influence of alcohol and took possession of Gommer’s keys so that he would no be able to leave the scene in his car. Based on those facts, we stated: “[E]ven though Corporal Damore was off duty and not in uniform, she conducted herself in an official manner and was acting as a police officer when she pulled over [Gommer’s] vehicle.” Gommer, 665 A.2d at 1273. Although we found that the officer was acting “acting within the scope of her employment as a member of the State Police when she stopped [Gommer’s] vehicle for suspicion of drank driving,” we rejected Gommer’s assertion that he was “arrested.” Gommer, 665 A.2d at 1273. Rather, we found that the nature of the encounter was that of “a brief investigative detention.” Gommer, 665 A.2d at 1273-1274.
¶ 16 Presently, I find that Superintendent Daly’s actions did not even rise to the same level of official action as those of Corporal Damore. While Superintendent Daly identified himself as an off-duty police officer and took possession of Bradley’s keys, he did not conduct himself in a manner consistent with that of a police officer acting within the scope of his official duties. Superintendent Daly did not direct Bradley to stop his vehicle, did not inform Bradley that he suspected him of driving while intoxicated and did not advise Bradley that he was under arrest.
¶ 17 Further, “[w]hether an arrest has been made is viewed in light of the reasonable impression conveyed to the- person subjected to the seizure rather than in terms of the subjective views of the police officer making the arrest.” Kiner, 697 A.2d at 265, quoting, Commonwealth v. Carter, 537 Pa. 233, 246, 643 A.2d 61, 67 (1994). Upon the facts before us, I reject Bradley’s claim that it was reasonable for him to believe that he was under arrest. Other than telling Bradley that he was an off-duty police officer, Superintendent Daly displayed no evidence of official authority. I opine that a reasonable person confronted by a person claiming to be an off-duty police officer and, yet, showing no outward signs of authority, would at least request to view the person’s identification or badge. Without making such a request, Bradley could not know whether Superintendent Daly was, as he claimed, an off-duty police officer, or a private citizen who claimed to be a police officer to avoid confrontation with Bradley while he waited for the police to arrive. Based upon the facts presented, I find that Bradley-’s belief that he was arrested by a “Havertown undercover agent” was not reasonable.
¶ 18 By my decision today, I do not intend to emasculate the Municipal Police Jurisdiction Act, 42 Pa.C.S.A. §§ 8951-8954, which limits municipal police officers’ authority to act beyond their primary jurisdiction to six specific situations. See 42 Pa.C.S.A. § 8953(a); Brandt, 691 A.2d at 937. My decision does not give unfettered power to off-duty police officers in civilian clothing to act outside of their primary jurisdiction. Rather, I submit that we must scrutinize the particular circumstances of each case, and if state action exists, then the actions of the off-duty, out-of-jurisdiction officer must fall *361within one of the six specifically enumerated eases set forth in the Municipal Police Jurisdiction Act. 42 Pa.C.S.A. § 8953(a). In the present case, unlike the majority, I believe that there is a dearth of indicia of authority, and I have concluded that Superintendent Daly was not a “state actor” at the time he took Bradley’s keys. Consequently, I do not believe that the Municipal Police Jurisdiction Act applies.9
¶ 19 In sum, I opine that Superintendent Daly was not acting as “an instrument of the state” when he approached Bradley’s stopped vehicle, identified himself as an off-duty police officer and seized the keys to Bradley’s vehicle, since there was insufficient indicia of official authority. Superintendent Daly did that which every citizen should do when confronted with a possible drunk driver, and the mere coincidence that he was an off-duty police officer at the time does not warrant suppression of the evidence which was gathered as a result of his civic-minded actions. Accordingly, I would reverse the decision of the court below and remand for trial.
¶ 20 ORIE MELVIN, J. joins Judge POPOVICH’s Dissenting Opinion.

. The Commonwealth concedes that Superintendent Daly, an officer of the Lower Merion Police Department, was out of his jurisdiction and did not possess the statutory authority to stop or arrest Bradley in Haverford Township. See 42 Pa.C.S.A. §§ 8951-8954.

. To the extent that the lower court’s decision to suppress the evidence herein was based upon its finding that Superintendent Daly “caused [Bradley] to pull over,” I reject this finding of fact because it has absolutely no support in the record. Brandt, 691 A.2d at 936 (appellate court is not bound by factual findings for which there is no support in the record). While Superintendent Daly's act of following Bradley may have given rise to Bradley's mistaken belief that Daly was a friend, N.T., 11/4/96, p. 36, it did not “cause" Bradley to stop his vehicle. In other words, Superintendent Daly did not display any signs of official authority through which he compelled Bradley to stop his vehicle. Further, the lower court’s finding of fact that Superintendent Daly “blocked” Bradley's vehicle also is not supported by the record. While it is clear that Superintendent Daly parked his car in front of Bradley’s vehicle, it is equally clear that Bradley could have backed his vehicle out of the church parking lot onto a public road. N.T., 11/4/96, pp. 11, 36, 37.

. Recently, our Supreme Court rendered its decision in the case of Commonwealth v. Mendenhall, 552 Pa. 484, 715 A.2d 1117 (1998), wherein our high court held that an on-duty police officer who engages in a "mere encounter” with a defendant outside of his primary jurisdiction has not violated the Municipal Police Jurisdiction Act. In Mendenhall, supra, Officer Roofner, an on-duty policeman in uniform and driving a police cruiser, went to an accident scene outside of his jurisdiction to see if he could render first aid or other assistance. When he arrived, he saw a red pick-up truck smashed against a utility pole and Mendenhall standing along side the truck. Upon inquiry by Officer Roofner, Mendenhall admitted that he was the driver of the truck. The officer then informed Mendenhall to remain at the scene until the State Police arrived because his accident was reportable. Officer Roof-ner did not attempt to restrict Mendenhall's movements, and Mendenhall even entered the vehicle and attempted to place a key in the ignition of the truck. Upon arrival of a state trooper, Mendenhall was arrested for driving under the influence.
_ Based upon the "totality of the circumstances,” our Supreme Court determined that Officer Roofner’s and Mendenhall’s interaction amounted to only a “mere encounter.” Since there was not an out-of-jurisdiction "investigative detention” of Mendenhall by Officer Roofner, the Municipal Police Jurisdiction Act was not violated, and suppression of Mendenhall’s blood alcohol test results and statements was not warranted. Mendenhall, 552 Pa. at -, 715 A.2d at 1120.
Clearly, our Supreme Court, in Mendenhall, supra, did not address the issue which we face presently, to-wit: whether Superintendent Daly was a "state actor.” In Mendenhall, supra, Officer Roofner was obviously vested with the authority of the state, given his arrival in a police cruiser and his appearance in a police uniform. However, I have herein determined that there were insufficient indicia of official authority to warrant a finding of state action. Thus, I need not reach the question presented in Mendenhall, supra, of whether there was an out-of-jurisdiction detention which violated the Municipal Police Jurisdiction Act, thus, warranting suppression.