PETER LYNN VILLARI, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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The court held that the defendant did not voluntarily consent to the search of his truck's cargo, rendering the search unlawful.
[1] Consent to a search must be free and voluntary, not merely a submission to the apparent authority of an officer.
[2] A defendant's question about whether a search warrant is needed for personal belongings indicates a lack of consent to further search.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAn agricultural inspector stopped a driver for failing to stop at a station. The driver initially consented to a visual inspection of his truck's carg…
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McCORD, Chief Judge.
Villari appeals his conviction for possession of 100 pounds of cannabis with intent to sell and sentence of five years entered pursuant to a nolo contendere plea reserving the right to appeal the denial of his motion to suppress. Appellant contends the search was conducted without his consent. We agree and reverse.
Villari, driving a pick-up truck, was stopped by agricultural inspector Leonard Pease, after having passed the station without stopping as he is required to do.
Section 570.15(2), Fla.Stat. (1977).
Pease asked if he could “see in the truck” and Villari opened the door to the bed of the truck. The inspector, using a flashlight, saw some luggage, two tires, and a blanket covering the remaining cargo. The inspector took Villari back to the station for further inspection because of the heavy highway traffic and darkness. He asked appellant to again open the truck. Villari did so and the inspector began to enter the truck. Villari then stated, “Don’t you need a search warrant to look at my personal belongings?” Pease pointed to the suitcases which were separated from the other cargo and stated, “I have no intention of looking in there.” Villari then stepped back, stating, “Un-huh” or “Okay.” Pease left and called his supervisor to be certain he could search the remaining cargo area. He returned and lifted the blanket covering several large bags. He then smelled the strong odor of marijuana, arrested Villari for violating § 570.15(2), and called Deputy Jones who placed Villari under arrest for possession of cannabis after the bags were opened and found to contain marijuana.
We again have before us the task of determining whether or not the state has clearly established consent to the search of a truck so as to obviate the necessity for a search warrant under § 570.15(l)(b), Fla. Stat.(1977).
As we have previously stated, consent must be free and voluntary and must not be merely a submission to the apparent authority of the officer. Powell v. State, 332 So. 2d 105 (Fla. 1st DCA 1976).
Up to the point of Villari’s question, “Don’t you need a search warrant to look at my personal belongings?” his actions constituted consent to the search. There is no question that he consented, upon reasonable re quest, to the flashlight inspection of the truck on the highway and at the station since he willingly opened the truck and there was no refusal or resistance to this limited search. See Eden v. State, 370 So. 2d 826 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979); Sharpe v. State, 366 So. 2d 500 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979); Bagocus v. State, 359 So. 2d 885 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978); State v. Drake, 343 So. 2d 1336 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977).
When appellant asked the foregoing question, however, he indicated lack of consent to any further search in that he questioned the officer’s authority to search further without a warrant. The officer’s response was evasive. He sought to interpret “personal belongings” to mean only the suitcases thereby indicating that he needed no warrant to search the balance of the cargo. Villari’s statement of “Un-huh” or “Okay” was-merely acquiescence or resignation to Pease’s statement. This does not meet the state’s burden to produce clear and convincing evidence showing voluntary consent by Villari. See Powell, supra, and Rose v. State, 369 So. 2d 447 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979).
To accept the state’s version would require that we interpret appellant’s remarks to mean that he did not consent to the search of his suitcases, which in no way incriminated him, but voluntarily consented to the search of the cargo consisting of the marijuana which did incriminate him.
We find this reasoning untenable and consider the following statement from Talavera v. State, 186 So. 2d 811 (Fla. 2d DCA 1966), to be appropriate here:
“We feel in consideration of the record in the case sub judice, to hold that a consent to search was freely and voluntarily given would not be ‘in accord with human experience.’ ”
In Rose, supra, this Court said:
“While it is true that appellant was cooperative in opening the camper top to his truck, it is equally true that he had indicated his lack of consent to a further search of the closed boxes.”
We have the same situation here. By his question, Villari indicated that he did not voluntarily consent to the search of his truck beyond the flashlight search which had already been made. At this point, in the absence of consent, further search necessitated the issuance of a search warrant pursuant to § 570.15(l)(b), Fla.Stat.(1977).
REVERSED.
LARRY G. SMITH, J., concurs.
BOOTH, J., dissents.
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Citator
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State v. Wells, 539 So. 2d 464 (Fla. 1989)…ural inspector did not authorize him to slit open bag with knife); Moorehead v. State, 378 So. 2d 123 (Fla. 2d DCA 1980) (consent for officer to look at pool cue did not authorize unscrewing of cue to see what was rattling inside); Villari v. State, 372 So. 2d 522 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979) (no consent when defendant allowed access to vehicle but asked “Don’t you need a warrant” when officers approached containers and luggage); Rose v. State, 369 So. 2d 447 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979) (no consent when defendant allowed offi…
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State v. Constantino Casal and Omar Garcia, 410 So. 2d 152 (Fla. 1982)….1 In this case consent was freely given to board the vessel and to look in the icebox. However, respondents did not consent to any further search, as was clearly indicated when they asked Officer Soli if she had a search warrant. Villari v. State, 372 So. 2d 522 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979). Respondents’ subsequently opening the forward hatch for Officer Soli did not constitute [*156] consent since they were told that a search warrant was not needed. See Taylor v. State, 355 So. 2d 180 (Fla. 3d DCA), cert denied, 36…
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State v. Wargin, 418 So. 2d 1261 (Fla. 4th DCA 1982)…ch by some verbal or physical act indicating the withdrawal of consent. Goldberg v. State, 407 So. 2d 352 (Fla. 4th DCA 1981); Major v. State, 389 So. 2d 1203 (Fla. 3d DCA 1980), pet. for review denied, 408 So. 2d 1095 (Fla. 1981); Villari v. State, 372 So. 2d 522 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979). The appel-lee could have limited his consent at any time before the police opened the Kleenex box and discovered the cocaine. By neither saying nor doing anything to withdraw his consent, appellee consented to the entire search…
Previewing 3 of 10 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Lelis v. State, 186 So. 2d 811 (Fla. 3d DCA 1966)
- Powell v. State, 332 So. 2d 105 (Fla. 1st DCA 1976)
- Rose v. State, 369 So. 2d 447 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979)
- Bagocus v. State, 359 So. 2d 885 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978)
- State v. Drake, 343 So. 2d 1336 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977)
- Eden v. State, 370 So. 2d 826 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979)
- Sharp v. State, 366 So. 2d 500 (Fla. 3d DCA 1979)