Court Opinion

ID: 9855389
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 06:23:59.491597+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:23:12.956532
License: Public Domain

Judge Smith
dissenting.
I respectfully dissent, as I do not think the police officer in this case had reasonable grounds to believe that defendant was “armed and presently dangerous,” Pennsylvania v. Mimms, 434 U.S. 106, 112, 54 L. Ed. 2d 331, 337 (1977), nor do I think the State has met its burden of showing that defendant consented to the frisk or search of his person or that the search was otherwise lawful. See State v. Hunt, 37 N.C. App. 315, 246 S.E.2d 159, disc. review denied, 295 N.C. 736, 248 S.E.2d 865 (1978).
Defendant first argues the trial court erred in concluding that the deputy had reasonable grounds to ask defendant to exit the car and to subsequently search defendant’s person. While an officer may ask a vehicle occupant to exit the car as a precautionary measure for his own protection, he may not search the person unless there exists objective facts justifying a conclusion that the subject could be armed ' and presently dangerous. Mimms, 434 U.S. at 112, 54 L. Ed. 2d at 337. The burden is upon the State to show that “a reasonably prudent man in the circumstances would be warranted in the belief that his safety *241or that of others was in danger.” Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 27, 20 L. Ed. 2d 889, 909 (1968); see State v. Butler, 331 N.C. 227, 415 S.E.2d 719 (1992).
Here, the officer stopped defendant for failure to wear his seat belt. The majority holds that, because the officer knew defendant was a convicted felon under investigation for cocaine trafficking and that it was the officer’s experience that cocaine traffickers “normally carry weapons,” the officer was justified in doing a pat-down search of defendant. However, in this case defendant was not stopped for suspicious drug activity. Rather, he was stopped for failure to wear his seat belt. He cooperated fully with Officer Butler and offered no threat or resistance. In addition, Officer Butler’s testimony that he pats down everyone he stops, “no matter what it’s for,” supports the conclusion that he did not believe defendant was presently dangerous in this case. In my opinion, the State has not shown that a reasonably prudent man in the same circumstances would have been warranted in the belief that defendant was armed and presently dangerous. For this reason, I disagree with the majority’s holding that the evidence supports a conclusion that there were reasonable grounds to justify the officer’s pat-down search of defendant.
In its brief, the State argues that, even if there were no objective facts to support the officer’s conclusion that defendant was presently dangerous, defendant’s Fourth Amendment rights were not violated, because by his conduct defendant consented to the search of his person. With this contention, I disagree.
It is well settled that a consensual search is constitutionally permissible as long as the consent is given freely and voluntarily, without coercion, duress or fraud. Schneckloth v. Bustamonte, 412 U.S. 218, 36 L. Ed. 2d 854 (1973); State v. Powell, 297 N.C. 419, 255 S.E.2d 154 (1979). To be voluntary, it must be shown that waiver was “not given merely to avoid resistance.” State v. Little, 270 N.C. 234, 239, 154 S.E.2d 61, 65 (1967). “[T]he question whether a consent to a search' was in fact ‘voluntary’ or was the product of duress or coercion, express or implied, is a question of fact to be determined from the totality of all the circumstances.” Schneckloth, 412 U.S. at 227, 36 L. Ed. 2d at 862-63; State v. Williams, 314 N.C. 337, 333 S.E.2d 708 (1985).
In this case, the only facts regarding defendant’s consent as found by the trial court were that, when the deputy asked defendant whether he had anything on him, defendant replied, “No” and raised *242his hands. The trial court made no conclusion as to what defendant intended by raising his hands. The State argues that, by raising his hands, defendant implied “to an objectively reasonable person that he was voluntarily consenting to a pat-down search.” I disagree.
The State’s evidence that defendant raised his arms is insufficient to demonstrate the voluntariness of defendant’s consent to be searched for weapons. At best, it shows an equivocal action which does not clearly evince consent to search. In order to meet its burden in this case, the State was required to show that defendant’s consent was “ ‘unequivocal and specific,’ ” Little, 270 N.C. at 239, 154 S.E.2d at 65 (quoting Judd v. United States, 89 U.S. App. D.C. 64, 66, 190 F.2d 649, 651). To meet this burden, the State must establish by “clear and positive testimony that consent was so given.” Id.
In this case, defendant could have been raising his arms as an act of submission to Officer Butler. Defendant’s gesture could have been nothing more than a shrug, in which case, he was certainly not giving consent to search. Lastly, the gesture may have been an indication to the officer that defendant posed no physical threat. From the record before us, defendant’s motivation for the gesture is simply unknown. Examining the totality of the circumstances in this case, I am of the opinion that the State has not met its burden of proving defendant consented to be searched. In such case, there is a presumption against waiver of fundamental constitutional rights. State v. Vestal, 278 N.C. 561, 579, 180 S.E.2d 755, 767 (1971). For the foregoing reasons, I dissent from the majority’s opinion.