People v. Vallarta

COUGHLIN, J.

Defendant was indicted and convicted of the offenses of selling heroin and of possession of heroin for sale, i.e., violations, respectively, of sections 11501 and 11500.5

[130]

of the Health and Safety Code; received consecutive prison sentences; and appeals.

Reversal of the judgment is sought upon two grounds,

viz,

alleged errors (1) in admission into evidence of extrajudicial incriminating statements by the defendant; and (2) in imposing consecutive sentences.

On August 25, 1964, in Brawley, California, an undercover agent for the State Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement, accompanied by an informer, contacted the defendant; engaged the latter in conversation concerning his narcotic activities; negotiated a purchase of heroin from him; bought 10 bindles which defendant removed from a paper sack in a blue satchel which he was carrying; inquired concerning how many bindles he had left and received the reply, “Two Hundred forty, all the same. I figure I will get $600, and then with your money, we’ll really do business”; prevailed upon defendant to sell an additional 10 bindles, which he was reluctant to do for the reason, as he said, “. . . I need these in San Francisco because I know a lot of people there”; and, after the defendant had left, met with another state agent and a federal customs agent, pursuant to prearrangement, to whom the conversation with defendant was related and information as to the quantity of bindles of heroin remaining in the blue satchel was reported. Thereupon the state agent and the customs agent proceeded to look for defendant; located him at a gas station in Westmorland, which is about 7 miles from Brawley, identified themselves; asked the defendant if they could search him, in response to which he consented, stating he did not have anything; conducted such a search and found a bindle of heroin in one of his pockets; and thereupon arrested him, searched the blue satchel, and found 90 bindles of heroin.

The two officers making the arrest transported defendant to Brawley where they turned him over to a deputy sheriff in charge of the Juvenile Bureau, with instructions to transport defendant to the county jail and have him booked for narcotic violations. On the trip between Westmorland and Brawley defendant volunteered the statement, “this was just like the movies”; in response to a question by the officers as to what type of movie, replied “Two or three minutes more, I would have made it. I would have got away. I already had a ride with a semi-truck driver. He went to drink a Coke. Just like the movies. I would have got away in another two or three minutes”; then asked the state agent what “he would