Court Opinion

ID: 9496318
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-05 16:23:09.531409+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:57:29.540192
License: Public Domain

BYE, Circuit Judge,
Concurring.
While joining in the per curiam opinion, I write separately to express my frustration with how law enforcement obtained Kleinholz’s consent and how the court below sanctioned such troubling conduct.
Whether Kleinholz voluntarily gave consent to the initial entry of his home is a question of fact. United States v. Jones, 254 F.3d 692, 695 (8th Cir.2001). This court will review the district court’s conclusions on such questions for clear error only. Id. “A finding is ‘clearly erroneous’ when although there is evidence to support it, the reviewing court on the entire evidence is left with the definite and firm conviction that a mistake has been committed.” United States v. United States Gypsum Co., 333 U.S. 364, 395, 68 S.Ct. 525, 92 L.Ed. 746 (1948).
The Fourth Amendment, made applicable to the states by the Fourteenth Amendment, United States v. Ameling, 328 F.3d 443, 447 (8th Cir.2003), establishes “the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures,” and it requires probable cause for lawful searches and seizures. U.S. CONST, amend. IV. This means, generally, to search a private place, person, or effect, law enforcement must receive a warrant supported by probable cause from a judicial officer. E.g., Katz v. United States, 389 U.S. 347, 357, 88 S.Ct. 507, 19 L.Ed.2d 576 (1967) (“searches conducted outside the judicial process, without prior approval by judge or magistrate, are per se unreasonable under the Fourth Amendment — subject only to a few specifically established and well-delineated exceptions.”) (emphasis in original) (footnotes omitted). Where one voluntarily consents to a search, however, law enforcement needs neither warrant nor probable cause to legally execute the search. United States v. Matlock, 415 U.S. 164, 165-66, 94 S.Ct. 988, 39 L.Ed.2d 242 (1974); Schneckloth v. Bustamonte, 412 U.S. 218, 222, 93 S.Ct. 2041, 36 L.Ed.2d 854 (1973).
It is undisputed Kleinholz consented to the entries into his house, but Kleinholz contends his consent was not voluntary. Where a citizen later claims he or she did not voluntarily consent to a search revealing evidence of criminal activity, the government must show by a preponderance of the evidence, under the totality of the circumstances, the defendant did voluntarily consent to the search to allow the challenged evidence to survive a suppression motion. E.g., United States v. Severe, 29 F.3d 444, 446 (8th Cir.1994). Consent is voluntary if it was “the product of an essentially free and unconstrained choice by its maker,” Bustamonte, 412 U.S. at 225, 93 S.Ct. 2041, and not “the product of duress or coercion, express or implied.” Id. at 227, 93 S.Ct. 2041; see also, Florida v. Bostick, 501 U.S. 429, 434-35, 111 S.Ct. 2382, 115 L.Ed.2d 389, (1991) (‘We have stated that even when officers have no basis for suspecting a particular individual, they may generally ask questions of that individual; and request consent to search his or her luggage — as long as the police do not convey a message that compliance with their requests is required.”). We have posed the relevant inquiry as: “whether the officers did anything to affirmatively communicate to the defendant that [he or she] was not free to terminate the encounter or to refuse the consent request.” United States v. Zamoran-Coronel, 231 F.3d 466, 469 (8th Cir.2000).
*679Some of the circumstances to be considered were outlined in United States v. Chaidez, 906 F.2d 377, 381 (8th Cir.1990); see also United States v. Smith, 260 F.3d 922, 924 (8th Cir.2001) (applying the Chai-dez factors). Individual characteristics are relevant to the issue of the voluntariness of one’s consent, including (1) age; (2)-general intelligence and education; (3) whether the individual was under the influence of drugs or alcohol; (4) whether he or she was informed of the Miranda2 rights; and (5) whether he or she had experienced prior arrests and was thus aware of the protections the legal system affords suspected criminals. Smith, 260 F.3d at 924.
The environment in which the alleged consent was secured is also important; specifically (1) the length of time one was detained; (2) whether the police threatened, physically intimidated, or punished the suspect; (3) whether the police made promises or misrepresentations; (4) whether the suspect was in custody or under arrest when the consent was given; (5) whether the consent occurred in a public or a secluded place; and (6) whether the suspect stood by silently as the search occurred. Id. “The factors should not be applied mechanically, and no single factor is dispositive or controlling.” United States v. Bradley, 234 F.3d 363, 366 (8th Cir.2000) (internal citation omitted).
After applying the Chaidez factors, the magistrate judge concluded Kleinholz had voluntarily consented. On appeal Klein-holz draws attention to two facts he contends illustrate the coercive nature of the encounter and that were undervalued, ignored, or misunderstood by the court below. First, his physical condition compared to that of the handful of officers questioning him: Kleinholz is unable to walk. Second, and more importantly, his inability to break off the encounter and return to his house and his Thanksgiving dinner preparation.
It is undisputed law enforcement told Kleinholz he would not be allowed to reenter his house to check on his dinner or to enter for any other reason without a law enforcement escort. Thus, by allowing law enforcement into his house, he was not voluntarily consenting to a search; rather, he was merely acquiescing to a claim of lawful authority. See Bumper v. North Carolina, 391 U.S. 543, 550, 88 S.Ct. 1788, 20 L.Ed.2d 797, (1968) (“Orderly submission to law-enforcement officers who, in effect, represented to the defendant that they had the authority to enter and search the house, against his will if necessary, was not such consent as constituted an understanding, intentional and voluntary waiver by the defendant of his fundamental rights under the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution.”) (internal quotation and citation omitted).
It is inconceivable how the magistrate judge could find law enforcement did nothing to affirmatively communicate to Klein-holz he was not “free to terminate the encounter or to refuse the consent request” when they explicitly told him he would not be allowed to reenter his home without allowing law enforcement to follow. Zamoran-Coronel, 231 F.3d at 469.
I, therefore, disagree with the district court regarding the voluntary nature of Kleinholz’s consent: more is required of law enforcement. Nonetheless, because I agree, probable cause and exigent circumstances combine here to support the limited initial search executed by law enforcement, I concur.

. Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 473, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966).