Court Opinion

ID: 9466402
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-05 01:14:43.539803+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:39:42.722777
License: Public Domain

WEICK, Circuit Judge,
dissenting.
In his appeal Montano raised questions relating to: (1) the DEA agents’ forcible entry into his motel room;1 (2) the existence of probable cause for his arrest without a warrant; (3) the search of his suitcase found in the motel room at the time of the arrest.
In an earlier order in this case, we rtemanded the cause to the District Court for findings of fact and conclusions of law, as well as the taking of any necessary additional evidence concerning whether the federal “knock and announce” statute, 18 U.S.C. § 3109, was violated by the government agents, and if so, whether that violation was excused by exigent circumstances. The remand was necessary because in the District Court at the hearing on the defendant’s motion to suppress, the defendant claimed only a violation by the federal agents of the Michigan forcible entry statute, MCLA § 764.21, MSA § 28.880, which he asserted was applicable and he claimed no violation of 18 U.S.C. § 3109. Although the two statutes are worded similarly, the Michigan Court of Appeals followed the state’s substantial compliance rule rather than a literal compliance with the statute enunciated by the Supreme Court and federal appellate courts.2 People v. Brown, 43 Mich.App. 74, 79-90, 204 N.W.2d 41 (1974).
The facts in this case show that the defendant was extensively involved in narcotics trafficking along with one Charles Benevides. During the summer of 1977, an undercover DEA agent completed several purchases of drugs from Benevides. One such transaction was concluded at the Pittsburgh International Airport at which time Benevides pointed to a man in an adjacent car, referring to him as “his man, Arty.” The undercover agent thereafter negotiated over the telephone with “Arty” for a second narcotics sale. After the actual exchange took place between the agent and Benevides, DEA agent Mateer followed Benevides to a local Holiday Inn where he was met by several men, one of whom later proved to be the defendant.
Thereafter, agent Mateer received information from the undercover agent and from an informer whose reliability and credibility have not been challenged that Benevides would soon travel to Florida with “Arty” to procure more narcotics. The informer advised Mateer that “Arty” had previously been arrested for armed robbery and kidnapping. Neither the informer nor the undercover agent knew “Arty’s” full or correct name. In fact, although unknown to the agents, “Arty” had a long criminal record that included convictions on the above mentioned charges as well as for previous narcotics violations.
On September 14, 1977, the undercover DEA agent telephoned “Arty” in Detroit to arrange yet another purchase of narcotics. The exchange was completed with Benevides on the evening of September 19-20, 1977. During the course of the transaction, Benevides placed a telephone call to “Arty.” This call was traced to room 229 of the Compton Village Motel in Livonia, Michigan. Thereafter, Benevides and others were arrested in Pittsburgh. These arrests *155occurred' at approximately 3:30 a. m. on September 20th.
Detroit DEA agents were advised of Benevides’ arrest and were also informed that an arrest for “Arty” was “authorized” and would be “issued” at 9:00 a. m. the following morning. It does not appear that such a warrant was ever actually procured.
At approximately 7:00 a. m. on September 20th, four DEA agents assembled at the Compton Village Motel for the purpose of arresting the man then known to them only as “Arty.” The agents learned from the motel desk clerk that an “A. Montano” from Tampa, Florida was registered in room 229. The clerk reported that Montano was accompanied by two or three adults. The motel registration showed that he was driving a car with Florida license plates, and such a vehicle had been observed in the parking lot.
Armed with this information, the agents proceeded to room 229 and knocked on the door. An individual dressed only in boxer shorts (and perhaps a T-shirt) opened the door partially, as it was held by a door chain. At this point the door was open about eight inches and the agents could see that the chain on the door was not securely fastened because the door molding to which the chain was attached was decrepit and was “flopping.” Agent Mateer immediately recognized the man at the door as one of the individuals he had. earlier seen with Benevides at the Holiday Inn. The motel room was dark and small and the agents' could not see the interior clearly.
At this point, agent Mateer did not identify himself or his purpose, but instead he attempted to verify the identity of the man standing across the threshold from him. Agent Mateer asked either “are you Arty?” or simply “Arty?” The man responded affirmatively. At that point, according to the testimony credited by the District Court, the agents forced their way into the room by pushing on the door and thus ripping the door chain off the molding. The District Court found as a fact that the agents announced their identity and purpose “simultaneously” with their entry.
When the agents entered, they found that in addition to Arty the room was occupied by his wife, their small child, and another adult male. The room contained two beds. After “Arty” (the defendant herein) was informed that he was under arrest, the other adults were ordered out of bed and the agents began a search of the room. They opened an unlocked suitcase which was in plain view protruding out from under one of the beds near the defendant and the other man in the room. The agents found money and a quantity of cocaine inside the suitcase. The cocaine taken from the suitcase formed the basis for the present prosecution.
The agents testified at the suppression hearing that the suitcase was opened at least in part because the defendant had requested them to do so in order to remove certain items of clothing for him. The District .Court refused to believe all of this testimony, and held that the search could only be justified as incident to the arrest.
After narcotics were found, the agents briefly discussed among themselves whether the other two adults should be arrested. Hearing this, the defendant voluntarily interjected before any questioning of him that the “stuff” was his and that the others “didn’t know anything about it.” The agents then decided not to arrest the other adults and left with the defendant and his suitcase in their custody.

The Forcible Entry

The defendant has claimed that the agents’ entry into the motel room violated 18 U.S.C. § 31093 and that the violation was not excused by exigent circumstances. Viewing the evidence seized upon the search of the suitcase as a product of the forcible entry, the defendant contends that *156such evidence should have been suppressed. Although section 3109 was violated in this case, I believe that the evidence need not be suppressed because the agents’ conduct was justified by the presence of exigent circumstances.
Although section 3109 is phrased in terms of entries made to execute search warrants, the section has been held to apply equally to entries made by federal officers to effectuate an arrest with or without a warrant. Sabbath v. United States, 391 U.S. 585, 88 S.Ct. 1755, 20 L.Ed.2d 828 (1968); United States v. Murrie, 534 F.2d 695 (6th Cir. 1976); accord, United States v. Raines, 536 F.2d 796, 798-99 n.2 (8th Cir.), cert. denied, 429 U.S. 925, 97 S.Ct. 327, 50 L.Ed.2d 293 (1976); United States v. Allende, 486 F.2d 1351, 1353 (9th Cir. 1973), cert. denied sub nom Montoya v. United States, 416 U.S. 958, 94 S.Ct. 1973, 40 L.Ed.2d 308 (1974); United States v. Sheard, 154 U.S.App.D.C. 9, 12, 473 F.2d 139, 142 (D.C. Cir. 1972), cert. denied, 412 U.S. 943, 93 S.Ct. 2784, 37 L.Ed.2d 404 (1973); United States v. Davis, 461 F.2d 1026, 1034 & nn.10, 11 (3d Cir. 1972); United States v. Bradley, 455 F.2d 1181, 1185 & n.8 (1st Cir. 1972), affirmed, 410 U.S. 605, 93 S.Ct. 1151, 35 L.Ed.2d 528 (1973); United States v. Manning, 448 F.2d 992, 1000 n.5 (2d Cir.) (en banc), cert. denied, 404 U.S. 995, 92 S.Ct. 541, 30 L.Ed.2d 548 (1971); see United States v. Syler, 430 F.2d 68 (7th Cir. 1970).
Although worded in terms of a “breaking,” the Supreme Court has explained that virtually any unannounced entry through a closed door is within the scope of section 3109. The court in Sabbath stated:
An unannounced intrusion into a dwelling — what § 3109 basically proscribes — is no less an unannounced intrusion whether officers break down a door, force open a chain lock on a partially open door, open a locked door by use of a passkey, or, as here, open a closed but unlocked door. The protection afforded by, and the values inherent in, § 3109 must be “governed by something more than the fortuitous circumstances of an unlocked door.” Keiningham v. United States, 109 U.S. App.D.C. 272, 276, 287 F.2d 126, 130 (1960). [391 U.S. at 590, 88 S.Ct. at 1758-1759 (footnote omitted) (emphasis added).]
Thus in this case the entry is within the scope of section 3109 notwithstanding the “decrepit” condition of the door chain that was broken to gain admittance. Accordingly, in order to avoid the application of the exclusionary rule to the fruits of the forcible entry, the evidence must show either compliance with section 3109 or exigencies sufficient to excuse noncompliance. United States v. Murrie, supra; see Sabbath v. United States, supra, 391 U.S. at 591, n.8, 88 S.Ct. 1755.
Under section 3109, there are three conditions which must be met before a forcible entry is permitted: “1) announcement of authority, 2) announcement of purpose, and 3) grounds for believing entry has been refused.” United States v. Murrie, supra, 534 F.2d at 698. And in Miller v. United States, 357 U.S. 301, 78 S.Ct. 1190, 2 L.Ed.2d 1332 (1958), the court explained that it is not enough simply for the officers to identify themselves, they must also make their purpose known to the occupants of the room sought to be- entered. Id. at 312-13, 78 S.Ct. 1190.
In this case, the District Court found that the agents’ announcement of authority and purpose was “simultaneous” with entry. From the testimony of agent Mateer, which was quoted by the court, and which was specifically credited in areas where it conflicted with other testimony, it was clear that no announcement at all was made until after the door chain had been broken. Moreover, his testimony also shows that there was no announcement of purpose until after at least two of the four agents had entered the motel room. The conclusion is therefore inescapable that section 3109 was violated by the forcible entry in this case.4 See Miller v. United States, supra.
*157In considering the presence of exigent circumstances, the District Court correctly observed that the situation must be evaluated at the moment that the agents broke the door chain and forced their way into the motel room. The exigency of the circumstances at that moment must then be measured by considering the conduct sought to be excused.
At the moment the agents made their forced entry, they knew they were standing across the threshold from the man they intended to arrest. The door was open about eight inches' and the agents could see that the chain was not securely fastened to the molding. “Arty” was known to be involved in the narcotics trade at a level where the use of weapons is common. He was believed to have been involved in armed robbery and kidnapping in the past so that he could be considered capable of violence. Indeed, as noted above, the defendant has a long history of arrests and convictions for crimes involving violence and narcotíes, so that he might well have been a good deal more dangerous than the agents even believed. Further, the agents had been told that “Arty” was accompanied by perhaps two other adults. In addition, the motel room was small and its interior was dark so that the agents could not see the inside very clearly. Finally the District Court found that the agents forced the door open just as the defendant was moving to close it.
Although it would have taken only a few additional seconds for the agents to comply with section 3109, I believe that they were justified in preventing the defendant from closing the door, even for a brief moment, because of the real danger from the agents’ viewpoint that someone in the room might procure a weapon.5 Thus I believe that the District Court was correct in concluding that the circumstances were sufficiently exigent to justify their agents’ action, and his findings of fact are not clearly erroneous.6

*158
The Arrest

The defendant contends that the agents lacked probable cause when they effected his arrest. This argument is plainly without merit. We note at the outset that probable cause can be established from the collective knowledge of the arresting officers. United States v. McManus, 560 F.2d 747 (6th Cir. 1977), cert. denied, 434 U.S. 1047, 98 S.Ct. 894, 54 L.Ed.2d 798 (1978).
In this case the agents in Detroit were aware of the work of the undercover agent which established that a man known as “Arty” was deeply involved in narcotics trafficking with Benevides, and that “Arty” had travelled to Florida to procure narcotics. An informer whose reliability and credibility have not been challenged also corroborated this fact. The agents were also aware of the telephone call from Benevides to “Arty” which was traced to the motel room occupied by the defendant. Finally, when the agents arrived at the motel, the desk clerk confirmed that a man from Florida with the first initial “A” was registered in room 229 and that he was driving a car with Florida license plates. Such a car had been observed in the motel parking lot.
This information alone was sufficient to justify the belief that the man known to the agents only as “Arty” was dealing in narcotics and was located in room 229 of the Compton Village Motel.
In addition, when the defendant answered the knock on his door that morning, agent Mateer recognized him as a man he had seen previously in the company of Benevides; and that the defendant confirmed his own identity when he acknowledged that he was “Arty”. The sum of all of this information was plainly sufficient to establish probable cause for the defendant’s arrest. See Brinegar v. United States, 338 U.S. 160, 175-76, 69 S.Ct. 1302, 93 L.Ed. 1879 (1949).

The Search of the Suitcase

As noted above, the agents testified at the suppression hearing that the suitcase containing money and contraband was only opened and searched after the defendant asked agent Mateer to remove come clothes from it so that he could get dressed. Although the District Court specifically credited the remainder of agent Mateer’s testimony, it refused to believe that the search was consensual and upheld it only on the ground that it was lawful as incident to the arrest of the defendant, which had occurred moments before. In this court the government has not renewed its claim that the search was pursuant to Montano’s consent.
The defendant’s primary argument with respect to the search is that the suitcase was not within his “immediate control” under Chimel v. California, 395 U.S. 752, 763, 89 S.Ct. 2034, 23 L.Ed.2d 685 (1969), because it was closed and was protruding in plain view out from under one of the beds. The defendant also argues that under United States v. Chadwick, 433 U.S. 1, 97 S.Ct. 2476, 53 L.Ed.2d 538 (1977), the agents should have merely seized the suitcase, removed it from the room, and then attempted to obtain a search warrant. See Arkansas v. Sanders, 442 U.S. 753, 99 S.Ct. 2586, 61 L.Ed.2d 235 (1979).
The court in Chimei explained the rule regarding searches incident to a valid arrest as follows:
[I]t is reasonable for the arresting officer to search the person arrested in order to remove any weapons that the latter might seek to use in order to resist arrest or effect his escape. Otherwise, the officer’s safety might well be endangered, and the arrest itself frustrated. In addition, it is entirely reasonable for the arresting officer to search for and seize any evidence on the arrestee’s person in order to prevent its concealment or destruction. And the area into which an arrestee might reach in order to grab a weapon or evidentiary items must, of course, be governed by a like rule. A gun on a table or in a drawer in front of one who is arrested can be as dangerous to the arresting officer as one concealed in the clothing of the person arrested. There is ample justification, therefore, for a search of the *159arrestee’s person and the area “within his immediate control” — construing that phrase to mean the area from within which he might gain possession of a weapon or destructible evidence. [395 U.S. at 763, 89 S.Ct. at 2040.]
In United states v. Chadwick, supra, the court held that with respect to containers such as luggage that are seized at the time of the arrest, the constitution requires the following line to be drawn:
[W]hen no exigency is shown to support the need for an immediate search, the Warrant Clause places the line at the point where the property to be searched comes under the exclusive dominion of police authority. [433 U.S. at 15, 97 S.Ct. at 2486.]
See Arkansas v. Sanders, supra; United States v. Calandrella, 605 F.2d 236 (6th Cir. 1979). The court in Chadwick explained that this rule is required in order to protect the arrested person’s privacy interest in the contents of his luggage, which unlike the arrestee’s privacy interest in his person, is not eliminated simply by virtue of his arrest. 433 U.S. at 16 n. 10, 97 S.Ct. 2476; see Arkansas v. Sanders, supra, 442 U.S. at 766, 99 S.Ct. 2594 (concurring opinion).
In the present case, I am satisfied that the suitcase was within the “immediate control” of the defendant at the time of his arrest. The suitcase was unlocked and was protruding out from under one of the beds near the defendant. It was thus within the area from which he might have secured either a weapon or destructible evidence. Accordingly, at minimum, the officers were entitled to seize the suitcase in order to prevent the defendant’s access to it. See Chimel v. California, supra; cf. United States v. Giacalone, 588 F.2d 1158, 1160-61 (6th Cir. 1978).
The only remaining question is whether the circumstances were sufficiently exigent to excuse the agents’ failure to obtain a warrant prior to the search. I hold that they were. Again it must be emphasized that the agents justifiably feared a potentially dangerous situation as they entered the motel room. They had reason to believe that the defendant was capable of violence. And they had been told that he was accompanied by at least two other adults, which proved to be true. It was reasonable for the agents to act quickly to secure the premises and eliminate any opportunity for either escape or for the use of weapons. Although the agents outnumbered the adult occupants four to three, I reject the defendant’s contention that the agents should have dispatched one of their number to take the suitcase and leave the room. Although this procedure may be required in most other less dangerous situations, see United States v. Chadwick, supra, we decline to impose it here where the situation faced by the agents required quick decisive action. To do so would likely have increased the risk of harm to the federal officers. See Warden v. Hayden, 387 U.S. 294, 298-99, 87 S.Ct. 1642, 18 L.Ed.2d 782 (1967).
In addition, although somewhat less likely, it was possible that one of the two adults left behind could have claimed the suitcase before the agents had the opportunity to present the facts to a magistrate. But cf. United States v. Giacalone, supra, 588 F.2d at 1160-61.
Thus, I hold that the search of the suitcase at the time and place of the defendant’s arrest was justified by exigent circumstances and was not barred by United States v. Chadwick, supra.
In my opinion, the factual findings of the district judge with respect to the exigent circumstances are supported by substantial evidence and are not clearly erroneous.
I would affirm the judgment of the District Court.

. Defendant Montano was tried jointly with Eloy Augustine Garcia. Garcia was also convicted and he initially brought an appeal, No. 78-5321. Garcia’s appeal was dismissed, however, when it appeared that he had fled custody.

. Sabbath v. United States, 391 U.S. 585, 88 S.Ct. 1755, 20 L.Ed.2d 828 (1968); United States v. Murrie, 534 F.2d 695 (6th Cir. 1976).

. 18 U.S.C. § 3109 provides:
The officer may break open any outer or inner door or window of a house, or any part of a house, or anything therein, to execute a search warrant, if, after notice of his authority and purpose, he is refused admittance or when necessary to liberate himself or a person aiding him in the execution of the warrant.

. In our earlier order in this case the District Court was required to determine “(1) whether the provisions of 18 U.S.C. § 3109 have been complied with, and (2) whether any exigent *157circumstances existed which may excuse compliance.” Notwithstanding this command, the District Court in its own words “considered the question of forced entry in tandem with the question of exigent circumstances,” relying on an opinion of the Ninth Circuit in United States v. Bustamante-Gamez, 488 F.2d 4 (9th Cir. 1973), cert. denied, 416 U.S. 970, 94 S.Ct. 1993, 40 L.Ed.2d 559 (1974). The District Court then concluded that there was no violation of section 3109, but did so apparently because the court found the circumstances sufficiently exigent to justify the entry. As we stated in our order of remand, and as this court explained in Murrie and the Supreme Court explained in Sabbath, the question of compliance with section 3109 is wholly separate from the question of the presence of exigent circumstances to justify noncompliance.

. Statistics for a recent period showed that 95% of the assaults on DEA agents occurred during arrest situations. Assaults on DEA Agents July 1975 — December 1976, U.S. Dept, of Justice (1977). In these circumstances we believe that the potential for harm to the arresting officers ought not to be minimized.

. The defendant has made a rather oblique reference in his brief which may be construed as a contention that the warrantless aspect of the agents’ entry also rendered it illegal. In fact, it is the law in this and other circuits that the government must show exigent circumstances to justify a warrantless entry for the purpose of making an arrest. United States v. Scott, 578 F.2d 1186, 1189-90 (6th Cir.), cert. denied, 439 U.S. 870, 99 S.Ct. 201, 58 L.Ed.2d 182 (1978); United States v. Killebrew, 560 F.2d 729 (6th Cir. 1977); United States v. Shye, 492 F.2d 886 (6th Cir. 1974) (per curiam); accord, United States v. Reed, 572 F.2d 412, 417-24 (2d Cir.), cert. denied sub nom. Goldsmith v. United States, 439 U.S. 913, 99 S.Ct. 283, 58 L.Ed.2d 259 (1978); United States v. Calhoun, 542 F.2d 1094 (9th Cir. 1976), cert. denied, 429 U.S. 1064, 97 S.Ct. 792, 50 L.Ed.2d 781 (1977); Dorman v. United States, 140 U.S.App.D.C. 313, 435, F.2d 385 (D.C.Cir.) (en banc); see Coolidge v. New Hampshire, 403 U.S. 443, 480-81, 91 S.Ct. 2022, 29 L.Ed.2d 564 (1971). In an apparent response to this reference, the government in its main brief has urged that the circumstances excused the absence of a warrant. I agree.
Although it is conceivable that the agents could have attempted to obtain a warrant prior to the arrest, this fact alone is not fatal. See Cardwell v. Lewis, 417 U.S. 583, 595-96, 94 S.Ct. 2464, 41 L.Ed.2d 325 (1974) (Blackmun, J.). I believe that the agents’ limited identification of the man known as “Arty” coupled with the likelihood of his flight once he found out about Benevides’ arrest, and also coupled with the reasonable belief that “Arty” was capable of violence combined to create a need for prompt action and justified the warrantless early morning entry. We note that the agents discovered “Arty’s” likely location at around 3:30 a. m. Additional confirming information was obtained at around 7:00 a. m. the same morning, immediately before the arrest occurred.