Court Opinion

ID: 9777010
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 19:51:44.965815+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:14:14.322531
License: Public Domain

LOPEZ, Justice,
dissenting.
I agree with the majority’s conclusion that Officer Skrzycki’s initial stop and detention of appellant was an arrest, and not an investigatory detention. However, because I do not agree that the arrest was a legal war-rantless arrest, I respectfully dissent.
a. Investigatory Detention
I concur with the majority that the initial detention at gunpoint was an arrest, not an investigatory detention, but I would add these further comments. The Court of Criminal Appeals has construed article 15.22 to mean that an arrest is complete at the moment a person’s freedom of movement is restricted or restrained. Amores v. State, 816 S.W.2d 407, 411 (Tex.Crim.App.1991); Hoag v. State, 728 S.W.2d 375, 379 (Tex.Crim.App.1987); White v. State, 601 S.W.2d 364, 366 (Tex.Crim.App.1980); Colston v. State, 511 S.W.2d 10, 12 (Tex.Crim.App.1974); Jefferson v. State, 830 S.W.2d 320, 323 (Tex.App.-Austin 1992, pet. ref'd); Tex. Code Crim.Proc. art. 15.22 (Vernon 1977). Clearly appellant was placed under restraint, within the meaning of article 15.22, when at gunpoint he was forced to exit his car, assume a spread-eagled position with his hands on the roof of the car, and remain there for an unspecified length of time. Hoag, 728 S.W.2d at 379; Colston, 511 S.W.2d at 12.1 I state unspecified length of time because, con*447trary to the State’s assertion and the majority’s inference that the backup officer who conducted the search arrived on the scene immediately after Officer Skrzycki, the record actually reflects that the duration between the stop and the search was somewhat longer. Officer Skrzycki testified at trial that she pulled appellant over at approximately 9:00 p.m., while Officer Meeley, the backup officer, testified at trial that he arrived on the scene at 9:55 p.m. Officer Mee-ley testified at the hearing on the motion to suppress that he received the dispatch at 9:55 p.m. I would infer that appellant was detained by force for some length of time. Furthermore, during this time, Officer Skrzycki did not attempt to conduct any sort of investigation by asking questions, or “frisking” appellant, or otherwise. Appellant was not even requested to provide his drivers’ license or other identification until after he had been transported to the police station. In light of the officers’ testimony, I do not believe that they pursued a means of investigation which confirmed or dispelled their suspicions quickly and in a manner that did not exceed the scope of the detention. See Ussery v. State, 651 S.W.2d 767, 770 (Tex.Crim.App.1983); Anderson v. State, 787 S.W.2d 221, 229 (Tex.App.-Fort Worth 1990, no pet.). Further, I do not believe that the methods of investigation utilized by the officers were the least intrusive reasonably available to confirm or dispel their suspicions in a brief period of time. Anderson, 787 S.W.2d at 229. The State simply failed to meet its burden of proof on this issue.
b. Warrantless Arrest
Having determined that appellant had been arrested without a warrant when the first search of the Bronco occurred, the next step is to determine whether the warrantless arrest was legal. I disagree with the majority’s contention that the arrest was valid under Tex.Code CRIM.PROC. art. 14.03(a)(1) (Vernon Supp.1995).
An arrest made without a warrant is deemed unlawful unless the State proves that a statutory exception to the warrant requirement applies. Dejarnette v. State, 732 S.W.2d 346, 349-50 (Tex.Crim.App.1987); Darden v. State, 783 S.W.2d 239, 242 (Tex.App.-Corpus Christi 1989, pet. ref'd). It is the State’s burden to show the warrantless arrest was supported by probable cause and fell within one of the statutory exceptions to the warrant requirement in chapter 14 of the code of criminal procedure. Smith v. State, 739 S.W.2d 848, 852 (Tex.Crim.App.1987); Lunde v. State, 736 S.W.2d 665 (Tex.Crim.App.1987); Brown v. State, 481 S.W.2d 106, 109 (Tex.Crim.App.1972). In the instant case, however, the State never even refers to chapter 14. Furthermore, the State never attempts to show that the detention at gunpoint was a valid warrantless arrest based on probable cause. Instead, they rely solely on their argument that, if an arrest occurred, it only occurred after the ammunition clip was seen on the console in the Bronco, which provided probable cause for the warrantless arrest. Given the finding that appellant was arrested before the officer saw the clip, the location of the clip obviously could not be probable cause. The State’s attempt to prove suspicious circumstances sufficient to justify an investigative detention is not, in my opinion, a sufficient showing that the warrantless arrest was based on probable cause and came within an exception in chapter 14. See Amores, 816 S.W.2d at 416. Since the State failed to address its burden to prove that the arrest was justifiable under chapter 14 or supported by probable cause, the majority helpfully addresses it for them. I dissent.
The test for probable cause is whether “the facts and circumstances within the officer’s knowledge and of which he has reasonably trustworthy information are sufficient in themselves to warrant a man of reasonable caution in the belief that a particular person has committed or is committing an offense.” Amores, 816 S.W.2d at 413; Johnson v. State, 722 S.W.2d 417, 421 (Tex.Crim.App.1986), overruled in part on other grounds, McKenna v. State, 780 S.W.2d 797 (Tex.Crim.App.1989); Woodward v. State, 668 S.W.2d 337 (Tex.Crim.App.1982), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 1181, 105 S.Ct. 939, 83 L.Ed.2d 952 (1985). The totality of the circumstances test is to be applied when determining probable cause for a warrantless arrest. Amores, 816 S.W.2d at 413. However, *448in determining whether probable cause exists, we must examine only “the cumulative information known to all the officers at the time of the arrest.” Muniz v. State, 851 S.W.2d 288, 251 (Tex.Crim.App.), cert. denied, — U.S. —, 114 S.Ct. 116, 126 L.Ed.2d 82 (1993); Woodward, 668 S.W.2d at 344. References to information which Patterson knew or observed, which was not included in the 911 transcript, are inappropriate in a discussion of probable cause.
The facts known to the dispatcher and Officer Skrzyeki at the time of arrest were undisputed. Officer Skrzyeki testified that she was en route to investigate a report of shots heard at an area three or four blocks from the park when Patterson made his 911 call. There is no evidence in the record on when or by whom the first report was made. The transcript of Patterson’s 911 call is in the record. He told the dispatcher that “some fool” was riding through the park area. The dispatcher asked if he was shooting, and Patterson replied, “Yes.” The dispatcher then told Officer Skrzyeki (Seguin 945) that “the shots [were] seen coming from a blue and white Ford Bronco ...” Patterson stated to the dispatcher that the Bronco was currently headed back into the park area on the east side of the park, and that the shots sounded like a “nine millimeter.” Patterson also confirmed that the Bronco was “coming up” to Guadalupe. Officer Skrzyeki was heading south on Guadalupe when she first saw the blue and white Bronco heading north on Guadalupe, coming out of the park on the east side. She made a U-turn and followed the Bronco, activating her sirens. The Bronco then pulled over into a convenience store parking lot and the driver opened his door but did not exit the car. At that point, Officer Skrzyeki ordered the occupants to exit the car, holding her revolver on them.2 They complied with her order.
These are the only facts which we may consider in a determination of probable cause in this case. The majority extensively, and inappropriately, relies on facts outside police knowledge to support their conclusion that probable cause existed. For example, the majority states twice (by unsubtle implication) that Officer Skrzyeki saw “only one vehicle in the vicinity of the shooting,” namely, the Bronco. I have reviewed all of Officer Skrzycki’s testimony, as well as the entire record, and do not find any evidence to back up this assertion. Patterson did testify that the Bronco was the only car he saw coming from the trees, but that is irrelevant because he did not communicate this information to the police, and also because he was in a different location from Officer Skrzyeki. The 911 transcript reveals that Patterson could no longer see the Bronco by the time he hung up the phone. Also, the majority states that when appellant was pulled over by Officer Skrzyeki, he “refused” to exit the car, implying that his action was somehow unreasonable or indicative of guilt. Officer Skrzyeki testified that she pulled her revolver on appellant and ordered him to exit the ear before saying anything at all to him. Appellant never really had an opportunity to “refuse” to exit the car.
The majority also asserts that Patterson’s “reliability” was a factor which the trial court could take into consideration when determining whether probable cause existed. I find this surprising in light of both Officer Skrzycki’s and the dispatcher’s testimony that neither knew Patterson or of his reputation for credibility or reliability at the time of the arrest. If a police broadcast is insufficient, standing alone, to support an arrest, how is the report of an informant of unknown reliability sufficient, standing alone, to support that arrest?
I do recognize that, when reviewing a trial court’s ruling on probable cause, all inferences must be taken in the light most favorable to the ruling. However, there is another reason that article 14.03(a)(1) is inapplicable to support the warrantless arrest. Article 14.03(a)(1) states that police officers may arrest without a warrant:
[PJersons found in suspicious places and under circumstances which reasonably show that such persons have been guilty of some felony or breach of the peace, or *449threaten, or are about to commit some offense against the laws.
The only information given by the informant, Patterson, which was independently corroborated by Officer Skrzycki was that a blue and white Bronco was travelling on Guadalupe shortly after Patterson confirmed that it was “coming up” to Guadalupe. Officer Skrzycki neither heard or saw any shots fired nor saw any guns. There was no evidence that the Bronco was speeding, or committing any other traffic violations. Further, there was no evidence that appellant attempted to escape or otherwise acted in a suspicious manner when he was apprehended. In short, none of the activity which Officer Skrzycki observed prior to the point at which the weapons were found was inconsistent with innocent activity. The Court of Criminal Appeals has held repeatedly that “where events [observed by the officers] are as consistent with innocent activity as with criminal activity, the detention of a suspect based on those events is unlawful under Article 14.03(a)(1).” Amores, 816 S.W.2d at 414; Hoag, 728 S.W.2d at 379.3 All appellant was doing was driving along a road. I would conclude that article 14.03(a)(1) simply does not apply to these circumstances.
Furthermore, none of the other statutory exceptions to the warrant requirement listed in Chapter 14 are applicable to this case. Appellant was never shown to be committing an offense within Officer Skrzycki’s view. There was no claim that appellant had earlier committed any assault. There was no court order implicated in this cause. And finally, there was no evidence that it was represented to Officer Skrzycki by a credible person that appellant had committed a felony and was about to escape. Both she and the dispatcher testified that neither of them knew the callers who reported the shots, or of their reputation for credibility at the time of the arrest. See Amores, 816 S.W.2d at 415-16; Smith, 739 S.W.2d at 852; Colston, 511 S.W.2d at 12. Because I would hold that appellant’s arrest was an illegal warrantless arrest, I respectfully dissent.

. I would also note that Officer Skrzyeki testified that the dispatcher’s report on the 911 call from Patterson was the only basis on which she made the initial stop.

. In Amores, the arresting officer relied on information given him by an informant in making an arrest. The informant told him that a black male was committing a robbery in an apartment complex and was loading things into the trunk of his car. The informant also gave the officer the address of the complex. The officer arrived on the scene immediately and arrested a black male sitting in his car, about to drive away. The officer testified that he knew it was common practice during robberies to park backwards in a parking space, like the suspect was, because it was easier to load things into the trunk. The officer also testified that he was familiar with the apartment complex, and that it was in a high crime area, and that he knew that no “blacks” lived there. The Court of Criminal Appeals held that the events which the officer observed upon arriving at the scene were as consistent with innocent activity as with criminal activity, and that the arrest of the suspect based on those events was unlawful under Article 14.03(a)(1). Amores, 816 S.W.2d at 413-14.