Court Opinion

ID: 9541396
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 16:25:03.73431+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T15:02:49.322396
License: Public Domain

JOHNSON, Judge,
dissenting:
I must dissent regarding the issue of whether or not there was even reasonable justification1 to stop Appellant. Although the majority justifies the stop by comparing the facts in the instant case with those in Lovette, 271 Pa.Super.Ct. 250, 413 A.2d 390 (1979), the issue of the stop was not even before the court in Lovette. Lovette, therefore, does not constitute a valid precedent by which the validity of the stop may be determined. Thus, we must direct our attention to cases involving a stop to determine whether or not there was even reasonable justification to stop Appellant.
When a police officer stops an individual and restrains his freedom to walk away, he has seized that person. Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 16, 88 S.Ct. 1868, 1877, 20 L.Ed.2d 889 (1968); Commonwealth v. Hicks, 434 Pa. 153, 157, 253 A.2d *287276, 278 (1969). The Fourth Amendment requires that such seizures must be reasonable. Brown v. Texas, 443 U.S. 47, 50, 99 S.Ct. 2637, 2640, 61 L.Ed.2d 357 (1979); United States v. Brignoni-Ponce, 422 U.S. 873, 878, 95 S.Ct. 2574, 2578, 45 L.Ed.2d 607 (1975).
Although the majority contends that the police were justified in stopping and frisking Appellant as an “intermediate response,” even a brief stop must be supported by articulable and objective criteria which indicate that the person seized is, or is about to be, engaged in criminal activity. United States v. Cortez, 449 U.S. 411, 418, 101 S.Ct. 690, 695, 66 L.Ed.2d 621 (1981); Reid v. Georgia, 448 U.S. 438, 440, 100 S.Ct. 2752, 2753, 65 L.Ed.2d 890 (1980). The term, “intermediate response,” was employed by the Court in Adams v. Williams, 407 U.S. 143, 92 S.Ct. 1921, 32 L.Ed.2d 612 (1972):
The Fourth Amendment does not require a policeman who lacks the precise level of information necessary for probable cause to arrest to simply shrug his shoulders and allow a crime to occur or a criminal to escape. On the contrary, Terry recognizes that it may be the essence of good police work to adopt an intermediate response.
Id. at 145, 92 S.Ct. at 1922. A brief review of Adams, as well as other United States Supreme Court, and Pennsylvania, cases, indicates that the policeman was not justified either to stop or to frisk Appellant in the instant case.
Several crucial distinctions must be made between Adams v. Williams and the instant case. In Adams, the officer acted upon a tip from a trusted informant. In the instant case, the policeman acted upon an unsubstantiated radio message. In Adams, the informant personally provided specific information that was “immediately verifiable at the scene.” 407 U.S. at 146, 92 S.Ct. at 1923. The informant pointed to a specific vehicle and told the officer exactly where a loaded pistol was located. In the instant case, the radio message—even if reliable—did not identify Appellant but provided a general description of a suspect. Thus the instant case lacks the specificity and reliability that justified *288the officer’s “intermediate response” in Adams. See Commonwealth v. Anderson, 481 Pa. 292, 392 A.2d 1298 (1978); Commonwealth v. Pinney, 474 Pa. 210, 378 A.2d 293 (1977); Commonwealth v. Berrios, 437 Pa. 338, 263 A.2d 342 (1969).
Counsel stipulated that the radio message contained the following information: “2008 Pine Street. Committed by one Negro male with white raincoat, blue watch hat. May be armed with gun. Three minutes ago” (N.T. 12,10/1/79).2 Appellant was not even wearing the clothing described in the message. Instead of a white raincoat, Appellant wore a tan winter overcoat. Rather than a blue watch hat, Appellant did not wear a hat. Thus, Appellant’s only similarity to the radioed description was that he was a black male who wore a tan—not a white—coat.
The majority seems to concede that there was little evidence to connect Appellant with the crime. Despite this concession, and in light of the many dissimilarities between Appellant’s appearance and the radioed description, the majority contends that the stop was “legitimate” because the Commonwealth argued that few people would be in or near the geographical area in which the crime occurred. A mere argument by the Commonwealth does not constitute evidence to justify the stop. Mosey v. Mosey, 147 Pa.Super.Ct. 466, 24 A.2d 59, 61 (1942). While the policeman testified that Appellant was the only person on the street at the time the officer stopped him, no testimony was presented to establish either the frequency with which people appeared in the area between certain early morning hours (e. g. 2:00 a. m. to 4:00 a. m.) during a two-week or other designated period of time, or that no one else was in the area during the entire early morning of the day on which the crime occurred.
*289Absent such testimony by a competent witness, the Commonwealth’s argument concerning the presence of other individuals in the area is certainly not sufficient to “legitimize” the stop. In fact, it totally lacks any evidentiary value.
The Court in Adams states that “[a] brief stop of a suspicious individual. . . may be most reasonable in light of the facts known to the officer at the time.” 407 U.S. at 146, 92 S.Ct. at 1923. Recent decisions of the United States Supreme Court have defined some definite boundaries by which a policeman’s suspicions must be guided.
In Reid v. Georgia, 448 U.S. 438, 100 S.Ct. 2752, 65 L.Ed.2d 890 (1980), an agent of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) stopped two passengers whose conduct was suspicious in light of a “drug courier profile” prepared by the DEA. The agent considered the following facts to be especially relevant: (1) the suspects had arrived from Fort Lauderdale, which is the principal outlet where cocaine is obtained; (2) the suspects arrived in the early morning, when law enforcement activity is lessened; (3) the suspects tried to conceal the fact that they were traveling together; and (4) they had no luggage other than their shoulder bags. Although the suspects agreed to have their persons and baggage searched, the petitioner dropped his bag and ran as they entered the terminal. The Court held that the cocaine, which was found in the petitioner’s bag, must be suppressed because the agent lacked sufficient justification to stop petitioner and his companion.
In United States v. Brignoni-Ponce, 422 U.S. 873, 95 S.Ct. 2574, 45 L.Ed.2d 607 (1975), the Court held that the Fourth Amendment precluded the Border Patrol from stopping petitioner’s car because the three occupants appeared to be of Mexican descent. The Court explained that, even though stopping and questioning a car’s occupants constituted a modest intrusion so that probable cause was not required, under Terry and Adams, the officer must be able to point to “specific and articulable facts” which warrant a belief that the officer’s or others’ safety is in danger. 422 U.S. at 880, 95 S.Ct. at 2579.
*290In the instant case, Appellant was a black man in a light-colored coat—not the coat described in the radio message—who merely walked on a street in the vicinity of the reported burglary. Unlike Adams, there was not a reliable informant to point specifically to Appellant as the suspect. We have merely a vague similarity between Appellant’s appearance and the radioed description, coupled with the fact that Appellant’s conduct in no way would have justified any rational belief that Appellant was engaged in criminal activity.
If the instant case is compared with the United States Supreme Court decisions discussed above, the vague similarity between Appellant’s appearance and the radio message constitutes no more reasonable justification to stop Appellant than the petitioner’s Mexican descent in Brignoni-Ponce or the similarity to the drug courier profile in Reid. Because Appellant was the only black male on the street at the time when the officer saw him, there was no testimony to indicate either that another black male may not have appeared a few minutes later or that it was unusual for a black male to appear in that area during the early morning. Absent such facts, and considering that Appellant’s behavior gave no indication that crime was afoot, there was no reasonable justification to stop Appellant.
Commonwealth v. Berrios, 437 Pa. 338, 263 A.2d 342 (1970), is on point with the instant case. Two black youths in dark clothing and one Puerto Rican in light clothing were believed to have been involved in a shooting. The defendant, a Puerto Rican in light clothing, and his companion, a black youth in dark clothing, walked in a normal manner near the scene of the crime approximately twenty minutes after the crime occurred. Id., 437 Pa. at 342, 263 A.2d at 344. The police had no reason to associate the defendant and his companion with the crime except their racial characteristics, the color of their clothing, and their proximity to the site of the crime. The court held that, under the Terry criteria, the police did not have reasonable justification to stop and search the defendant. Id., 437 Pa. at 342, 263 A.2d *291at 344. Berrios cannot be reconciled with the majority’s opinion in the instant case.
In Commonwealth v. Anderson, 481 Pa. 292, 392 A.2d 1298 (1978), the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania again held that the police did not have reasonable justification under Adams and Terry to stop a person because his appearance corresponded with a general description transmitted by a police radio message. A black male, named “Perry,” who was 5'10" with a large bush hair style and a dark coat, was in a particular bar. The court distinguished between the general description, transmitted by radio, and Adams in which the informant was known to the officer, the informant pointed to a specific individual, and the information could be verified immediately. Like Anderson, the instant case lacks these aspects of specificity and reliability.
Without either the specificity and reliability involved in Adams or the officer’s personal observations—based upon articulable facts rather than mere suspicion—involved in Terry v. Ohio, reasonable justification to stop a suspect does not exist. See Reid v. Georgia, 448 U.S. 438, 100 S.Ct. 2752, 65 L.Ed.2d 890 (1980); Brown v. Texas, 443 U.S. 47, 99 S.Ct. 2637, 61 L.Ed.2d 357 (1979); United States v. BrignoniPonce, 422 U.S. 873, 95 S.Ct. 2574, 45 L.Ed.2d 607 (1975); Commonwealth v. Anderson, 481 Pa. 292, 392 A.2d 1298 (1978); Commonwealth v. Pegram, 450 Pa. 590, 301 A.2d 695 (1973); Commonwealth v. Berrios, 437 Pa. 338, 263 A.2d 342 (1970); Commonwealth v. Hicks, 434 Pa. 153, 253 A.2d 276 (1969); Commonwealth v. Williams, 291 Pa.Super.Ct. 621, 435 A.2d 248 (1981); Commonwealth v. Mears, 283 Pa.Super.Ct. 416, 424 A.2d 533 (1981); Commonwealth v. Cruse, 236 Pa.Super.Ct. 85, 344 A.2d 532 (1975).
The instant case lacks both the specificity and reliability of Adams and the observations of conduct that would lead the officer to believe that criminal activity was afoot as in Terry.
Although the majority cites Commonwealth v. Kazior, 269 Pa.Super.Ct. 518, 410 A.2d 822 (1980), Kazior included a degree of specificity, coupled with the officer’s personal *292observations, that is lacking in the instant case. In Kazior, the officer received a radio message that a burglary had occurred at a nearby store. When the officer approached the store, he saw two men—one in a green jacket—running from the store. As the policeman proceeded in the direction where the men had run, a resident directed him to a parked vehicle, where a search revealed the suspects were hiding. Thus the officer personally observed two specific individuals who ran from the scene of the crime. When the officer lost sight of the individuals who ran in a certain direction, a resident, who had observed the suspects, pointed to a specific vehicle. Unlike the generalities in the instant case, Kazior involves the specificity of Adams.
The majority relies most heavily upon Commonwealth v. Lovette, 271 Pa.Super.Ct. 250, 413 A.2d 390 (1979). Judge SPAETH, in his comprehensive dissent, notes the conflict between the decision in Lovette and that of the United States Supreme Court in Dunaway v. New York, 442 U.S. 200, 99 S.Ct. 2248, 60 L.Ed.2d 824 (1979). As noted above, Lovette did not discuss the validity of the stop or the frisk, which is the issue raised in the instant case. If reasonable justification for the stop did not exist, the “fruits” of the unlawful stop must be suppressed. Commonwealth v. Boyer, 236 Pa.Super.Ct. 214, 345 A.2d 187, 190 (1975) (citing Wong Sun v. United States, 371 U.S. 471, 83 S.Ct. 407, 9 L.Ed.2d 441 [1963]).
The majority attempts to justify the frisk on the grounds that Appellant did not answer the officer’s questions. In Brown v. Texas, 443 U.S. 47, 99 S.Ct. 2637, 61 L.Ed.2d 357 (1979), an officer observed the defendant and another man walking in opposite directions in an alley frequented by drug users. Under a Texas statute, the defendant was fined for refusing to identify himself when the officer stopped him. The United States Supreme Court reversed because the stop was not based upon objective criteria.
In the instant case, the policeman did not have reasonable suspicion to stop Appellant. Thus, adopting the rationale of Brown v. Texas, Appellant had no duty to identify himself. The refusal to talk with a policeman does not constitute *293cause to frisk the suspect. In Commonwealth v. Jeffries, 454 Pa. 320, 311 A.2d 914 (1973), the suspect ran when he saw the policeman. The court, on review, quoted United States v. Margeson, 259 F.Supp. 256 (E.D.Pa.1966):
[F]%ht, in and of itself, is not sufficient to constitute probable cause for otherwise anyone, who does not desire to talk to the police and who either walks or runs away would always be subject to a legal arrest.
454 Pa. at 324, 311 A.2d at 917. If flight does not constitute cause to stop a suspect, a suspect’s silence does not constitute cause to frisk him.
In light of the cases discussed above, I can only conclude that the officer lacked reasonable justification to stop or to frisk Appellant. Because both the stop and the frisk were illegal, the evidence thereby obtained should be suppressed. Commonwealth v. Boyer, 236 Pa.Super.Ct. 214, 219, 345 A.2d 187, 190 (1976). Since the complainant could not identify Appellant, the evidence to be suppressed constituted the entirety of the Commonwealth’s case. Thus, a new trial would serve no purpose. Id., 236 Pa.Super. at 219, 345 A.2d at 190. I would, with reluctance, reverse the order of the lower court denying the Motion in Arrest of Judgment, and discharge Appellant.

. The Courts have employed terms like “reasonable justification,” “articulable reasons,” and “founded suspicion” to designate a standard of justification, which is less than probable cause, to stop a suspect. See United States v. Cortez, 449 U.S. 411, 418, 101 S.Ct. 690, 695, 66 L.Ed.2d 621 (1981).

. The majority includes in the radio message a statement that the suspect’s height was 5'8". Although this statement was a finding of fact at the suppression hearing, it was not part of the radio message as stipulated by counsel at that hearing. (N.T. 12, 10/1/79). It is not at all clear how the trial court, and the majority, are able to disregard the stipulated facts since the issue is concerned with the identification that was broadcast in the police message.