Court Opinion

ID: 9577001
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 21:30:41.372033+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:19:49.382202
License: Public Domain

Chief Justice VOLLACK
dissenting:
The majority reverses the court of appeals and holds that a temporary caretaker assuming various duties while a property owner is away lacks common and apparent authority to consent to a search of the owner’s property. Consequently, the majority holds that the police officers’ warrantless search of the owner’s property violated the Fourth Amendment prohibition against unreasonable searches and seizures. In my view, the caretaker in this case had a sufficient relationship with the property to establish the caretaker’s authority to consent to a search. I therefore disagree with the majority’s conclusion that the caretaker in this case lacked authority to consent to the officers’ entry and subsequent search of the property and would affirm the court of appeals. Accordingly, I dissent.
I.
Acting on a tip from a confidential informant, El Paso County Deputy Sheriff Scott Rosenbaum (Deputy Rosenbaum) and Calhan Town Marshall Terry Bronson proceeded to investigate possible marijuana cultivation at a farm owned by the defendant Carl Petersen (Petersen). Upon their arrival at the farm, the two officers encountered nineteen-year-old Michael Weller (Weller) at a locked gate on the edge of the Petersen property. Weller was a friend of the Petersens and had known Carl Petersen for seven years, during which time he occasionally spent the night and ate meals at the Petersen property in exchange for doing chores. Weller informed the officers that Petersen was out of town and that he was feeding the dogs, watering the plants and lawns, and taking out the trash while Petersen was away.
Deputy Rosenbaum asked Weller if he could come inside the gate to speak with him. Weller agreed. The officers and Weller proceeded across the courtyard and into Petersen’s residence. After the officers questioned Weller about the presence of marijuana on the farm, Weller agreed to let the officers “look around.” This inspection led the officers to a locked outbuilding which had a window covered with an opaque plastic material. Looking through this window, Officer Rosenbaum observed what he believed to be marijuana plants. Based upon this information, the officers proceeded to obtain a search warrant which resulted in the seizure of approximately 150 marijuana plants.
*833Prior to his trial, Petersen moved to suppress the evidence obtained during the search of his property. The trial court denied the motion, finding that Weller voluntarily gave his consent to search the premises and that Weller “possessed the authority to consent to the entry of the officers to look around the property.” In an unpublished opinion, the court of appeals affirmed the trial court’s ruling on the motion to suppress.
II.
The Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution prohibits the warrantless search of a person’s home or property because such a search is presumptively unreasonable. See Payton v. New York, 445 U.S. 573, 586-90, 100 S.Ct. 1371, 1380-82, 63 L.Ed.2d 639 (1980); People v. Breidenbach, 875 P.2d 879, 888 (Colo.1994); People v. McKinstrey, 852 P.2d 467, 470 (Colo.1993). However, the prohibition against warrantless searches does not apply to situations where police officers obtain voluntary consent to search the property, either from the individual whose property is searched, or from a third party who possesses “common authority over or other sufficient relationship to the premises or effects sought to be inspected.” See United States v. Matlock, 415 U.S. 164, 171, 94 S.Ct. 988, 993, 39 L.Ed.2d 242 (1974); People v. Savage, 630 P.2d 1070, 1073 (1981). The relevant inquiry in evaluating third-party eases is whether the facts would have justified a reasonable officer’s belief that the consenting party had authority over the premises. See Illinois v. Rodriguez, 497 U.S. 177, 188, 110 S.Ct. 2793, 2801, 111 L.Ed.2d 148 (1990).
In the current case, Weller is not a full-time resident on the Petersen property and would not have the authority to consent to a search if Petersen were present. I therefore agree with the majority that Weller does not possess common authority over the Petersen farm. See Matlock, 415 U.S. at 171 n. 7, 94 S.Ct. at 993 n. 7 (explaining that the common authority determination involves “mutual use of the property by persons generally having joint access or control for most purposes”). However, the common authority analysis should not apply to situations where a third party possesses a heightened level of control over the property in the owner’s absence. In these situations, the proper standard to apply is whether the person entrusted to look after the absent owner’s property has a “sufficient relationship to the premises or effects sought to be inspected” which would authorize that person to consent to a search of the property. Matlock, 415 U.S. at 171, 94 S.Ct. at 993. It is this analysis that forms the basis of the trial court’s ruling.1 I agree with the trial court that Weller’s duties as caretaker of the Petersen property establish that he possessed a sufficient relationship with the premises to authorize a search of the property.
State v. Sorenson, 180 Mont. 269, 590 P.2d 136 (1979), involves facts very similar to the present case. In Sorenson, the defendant was a homeowner who asked a neighborhood youth to care for his houseplants and animals while he and his wife were on vacation. The youth’s mother assured the defendant that either she or the youth would perform the necessary tasks. The youth subsequently exhibited violent tendencies after an incident at school which led police to search for his whereabouts. Upon receiving the mother’s permission to enter the defendant’s home to look for the youth, the police found marijuana and drug paraphernalia. The Montana Supreme Court reversed the defendant’s conviction, holding inter alia that under the Matlock standard, the youth’s mother did not have a sufficient relationship with the residence to authorize her consent to a search. Id. at 141. However, the court also noted that providing the youth with keys gave the youth constructive possession over the premises, thereby implying that the youth had a sufficient relationship with the residence to authorize him to consent to a search. Id. Cases from other jurisdictions similarly hold that a caretaker’s consent is sufficient to authorize a warrantless search of the proper*834ty. See State v. Perry, 502 So.2d 543, 557 (La.1986); State v. Cook, 242 Or. 509, 411 P.2d 78, 81-82 (1966); Shue v. State, 129 Ga.App. 757, 201 S.E.2d 174, 175 (1973).
In this ease, Petersen and Weller were closely acquainted due to the fact that Weller had spent considerable time at the Petersen farm and had slept and eaten there on prior occasions. Consequently, Petersen chose Weller to care for his property while he was out of town. Weller’s specified duties included taking out the trash, watering the plants and yard, and feeding the animals. As with most caretaking arrangements, Weller was also presumably entrusted with looking after the general condition of the property. Although Petersen did not provide Weller with his own set of keys, Weller had free access to the house and grounds and indicated that he could locate keys that would open locked areas. Weller’s closeness with the Petersen family, his familiarity with the property, and the nearly unlimited access he was afforded to fulfill his responsibilities establish that he possessed a sufficient relationship to the premises to consent to a search of the property. As the trial court explained in ruling on Petersen’s motion to suppress:
Weller identified himself as the caretaker of the property. He knew that Carl Petersen was gone to California and when he would return. He was assigned duties to look after the property and to care for Carl Petersen’s animals and plants. One look at the Defendant’s photographic exhibits showing inside the house indicates the importance of those plants to Carl Petersen. Further, Michael Weller’s presence inside the house was established by his marijuana in the kitchen. Clearly, the house would have the highest degree of privacy to it of all the buildings on the property, and the fact that Michael Weller had the authority to enter and remain in the house further supports his authority over the property. Michael Weller also had a longstanding relationship with Carl Petersen and his family. In Carl Petersen’s own words, he ate there and slept there in the past in exchange for doing chores. Clearly, Michael Weller possessed a sufficient relationship to Carl Petersen and his property to permit him to authorize the officers to enter and to look around.
(Emphasis added.)2
Furthermore, the scope of the warrantless search conducted in this case indicates that the search was reasonable' under the circumstances. After obtaining Weller’s consent to enter the Petersen property, the officers limited their search to those areas under Weller’s authority and control. After a cursory look inside the residence, the officers proceeded to “look around” the grounds. Once the officers observed what they thought were marijuana plants through an opaque window to a locked outbuilding, they withdrew and proceeded to obtain a search warrant. By choosing not to enter the locked outbuilding, the officers recognized that Petersen had a specific privacy interest in the property that was beyond the scope of Weller’s authority to consent. Therefore, the warrantless search was consistent with the scope of Weller’s authority and reasonable under the circumstances.
III.
In evaluating whether a temporary caretaker possesses authority to consent to a search of an absent owner’s property, a court must evaluate whether the caretaker possesses a sufficient relationship to the premises or effects sought to be inspected. In my view, Weller’s relationship with the Petersen family, his familiarity with the premises, and his nearly unlimited access establish that he possessed a sufficient relationship to the property to permit him to authorize the officers to enter and look around the Petersen farm. Furthermore, the search at issue was reasonable under the circumstances because it was limited in scope to areas over which Weller had dominion and control. For these reasons, I believe that evidence obtained during the search conducted pursuant to a valid *835search warrant was properly admitted into evidence. I would therefore affirm the decision of the court of appeals. Accordingly, I dissent.

. While the trial court specifically mentions apparent authority and cites Illinois v. Rodriguez, 497 U.S. 177, 110 S.Ct. 2793, 111 L.Ed.2d 148 (1990), as support for its ruling, it is my view that the primary focus of the trial court’s inquiry concerned whether Weller had a sufficient relationship with the property to authorize his consent to a search of the property.

. Because Weller had actual authority to consent to a search of the property, it is my view that a discussion of apparent authority under the United States Supreme Court’s holding in Illinois v. Rodriguez, 497 U.S. 177, 110 S.Ct. 2793, 111 L.Ed.2d 148 (1990), is unnecessary. See United States v. Dealing, 9 F.3d 1428, 1429 (9th Cir. 1993).