People v. Wheeler

California Court of Appeal Dec 13, 1974 No. Crim. 25363Published

Before: Stephens

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Holding. The court held that police had sufficient suspicious circumstances to justify a temporary detention, that the subsequent investigatory questioning was permissible, and that the search and seizure of the vehicle's trunk were lawful based on both consent and probable cause.

Issues

Whether the police had sufficient cause to justify a temporary detention of the defendant.
Whether the defendant's Miranda rights were violated during the investigatory questioning.
Whether the search and seizure of the vehicle's trunk were lawful.

Disposition. affirmed

Quotations verified verbatim against the opinion

“Once it is determined that there was sufficient factual knowledge possessed by the officers to warrant the temporary detention to investigate, it necessarily follows that the inquiry which took place here was well within the permissive investigatory limits.”

“The officer had a reasonable right to conclude that defendant gave his consent when he stated he had no objection to the officer’s trying the key in the trunk lock.”

Opinion

STEPHENS, Acting P. J.

By amended information, defendant was charged with burglary (Pen. Code, § 459), grand theft (Pen. Code, § 487, subd. 1), and receiving stolen property (Pen. Code, § 496), and two prior felony convictions of defendant were alleged. He pled not guilty to each of the three counts and denied the alleged priors. After a de novo hearing, his motion to suppress evidence under Penal Code section 1538.5 was denied. Thereafter he entered a guilty plea to the charge of receiving stolen property. On motion of the prosecution, the other charges were dismissed and no finding was made as to the priors. Defendant was placed on five years’ probation, subject to special conditions, one of which was that he spend a stated period of time in the county jail. This appeal followed.

At 4 p.m. on October 2, 1973, Los Angeles Police Officers McGaff and Pettril, in plainclothes and in an unmarked police vehicle, were patrolling in the area of 78th Street and Central Avenue. As they passed the alley between 78th and 79th Streets, they observed a Buick car parked in the alley with its trunk-lid open. Within seconds of first seeing the Buick, two men (defendant and codefendant)

were seen emerging from between two residences, each carrying a cardboard box, walking to the open trunk. A portion of a typewriter carriage was protruding and a cord was hanging from the box which defendant was carrying. Because of the large size of the box, the hanging cord, and the protruding typewriter carriage, McGaff believed that the box contained a large commercial-type electric typewriter used in businesses. The two men placed the boxes and their contents inside the trunk. After the lid was shut, defendant drove the car to his residence, a short distance

away. The police followed defendant, parking behind the

[902]

Buick when it stopped in the driveway of the 78th Street residence. They ordered the occupants

of the Buick out of the car, and defendant and co-defendant were separately interrogated. Without benefit of the

People v. Wheeler

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