2008 WI 84
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Supreme Court of |
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Case No.: |
2006AP974-CR |
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Complete Title: |
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State of Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Ramon Lopez Arias, Defendant-Respondent. |
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ON CERTIFICATION FROM THE COURT OF APPEALS |
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Opinion Filed: |
July 9, 2008 |
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Submitted on Briefs: |
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Oral Argument: |
November 1, 2007
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Source of Appeal: |
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Court: |
Circuit |
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County: |
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Judge: |
Jon M. Counsell
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Justices: |
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Concurred: |
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Dissented: |
BRADLEY, J., dissents (opinion filed). ABRAHAMSON, C.J. and |
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Not Participating: |
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Attorneys: |
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For the plaintiff-appellant there was oral argument by David H. Perlman, assistant attorney general, with whom on the briefs was J.B. Van Hollen, attorney general.
For the defendant-respondent there was a brief and oral argument by Lora B. Cerone, assistant state public defender.
2008 WI 84
notice
This opinion is subject to further editing and modification. The final version will appear in the bound volume of the official reports.
APPEAL from an order of the Circuit Court for
¶1 PATIENCE DRAKE ROGGENSACK, J. This case comes before us by certification from the court of appeals. Ramon Arias (Arias) was charged with one count of carrying a concealed weapon, contrary to Wis. Stat. §§ 941.23 and 939.51(3)(a) (2005-06);[1] one count of possession of a switchblade knife, contrary to Wis. Stat. §§ 941.24 and 939.51(3)(a); and one count of possession with intent to deliver no more than five grams of cocaine within 1,000 feet of a school zone, contrary to Wis. Stat. §§ 961.41(1m)(cm)1r, 939.50(3)(f) and 961.49(2)(f).
¶2 After a preliminary hearing, the circuit court granted Arias's motion to suppress the weapon and the drugs obtained pursuant to the search conducted following a police dog's sniff of the exterior of the vehicle in which Arias was a passenger. The State appealed the order suppressing the evidence, and the court of appeals certified two issues to this court: (1) "whether, under the Wisconsin Constitution, a dog sniff of a stopped vehicle is a 'search'"; and (2) "whether the vehicle stop was unreasonably prolonged in duration by the officer's controlled substance investigation."[2] In its certification, the court of appeals explained:
Here, the period of time to consider is the time consumed by the officer asking drug questions and preparing to release the dog, and then by the dog sniff itself. As we set forth above, the videotape shows that this period was approximately one minute and eighteen seconds.
¶3 We answer both certified questions in the negative. First, we conclude that a dog sniff of the exterior of a vehicle located in a public place does not constitute a search under the Wisconsin Constitution. Second, we conclude that Colby-Abbotsford Police Department Officer Brian Rennie (Rennie), who performed a "controlled substance investigation," did not unreasonably prolong his seizure of Arias. In so concluding, we determine that the circuit court's finding that the dog sniff prolonged the detention by "approximately 38 minutes" is clearly erroneous. The great weight and clear preponderance of the evidence shows that the dog sniff prolonged the detention by no more than 78 seconds. Under the totality of the circumstances herein presented, the 78 seconds during which the dog sniff occurred is a not an unreasonable incremental intrusion upon Arias's liberty. Accordingly, the dog sniff did not unreasonably prolong in duration the controlled substance investigation, which comported with the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution and with Article I, Section 11 of the Wisconsin Constitution. Therefore, we reverse the order of the circuit court and remand for further proceedings.
I.
BACKGROUND
¶4 On August 20, 2005, Rennie, accompanied by his police dog,
D'Jango, sat in his police cruiser located in the parking lot of a flower shop,
running radar detection on Highway 13.
While there, he observed Arias exit a grocery store with three 12-packs
of beer and place them in a vehicle he knew belonged to Megan Schillinger
(Schillinger). From his acquaintance
with Schillinger, Rennie knew her to be 17 years of age. When Schillinger began driving the vehicle
containing both the beer and Arias, Rennie stopped them because he believed
that
¶5 Rennie pulled Schillinger over and called for back-up at approximately 10:45 p.m. He approached the car; explained to Schillinger why he had stopped her; and then he took her driver's license back to his squad car. Though Rennie testified at the preliminary hearing that at this point he radioed dispatch to relay Schillinger's driver's license information, the State does not challenge the circuit court's finding to the contrary: the circuit court found that Rennie did not radio in Schillinger's information until 11:27 p.m. Rennie then returned to Schillinger's vehicle, where he administered a preliminary breath test to her to determine whether she had consumed alcohol. The breath test registered "zero." Rennie then asked Schillinger if there were any drugs in the car. Schillinger replied "no." Rennie then asked Schillinger if she and Arias were "carrying around anything with [them]." She again replied "no." At this point, Rennie returned to his squad car and released D'Jango to perform a sniff around the exterior of Schillinger's vehicle. The State concedes that Rennie did not have a reasonable suspicion of drug activity prior to the dog sniff.
¶6 The surveillance video taken from Rennie's squad car captures the activity of D'Jango, who alerts by sitting, which is called a "pass holder." D'Jango appears on the video accompanied by Rennie. D'Jango proceeds to the passenger side of the car, where he sits and barks. D'Jango then gets up and jogs to the driver's side of the car, where he also sits and barks. The time that elapsed from Rennie's question about drugs to the completion of D'Jango's sniff was one minute and 18 seconds. D'Jango's sniff concluded four minutes and ten seconds after Rennie stopped Schillinger's vehicle.
¶7 As a result of what he perceived as D'Jango's positive alert on the vehicle, Rennie instructed Arias to exit the vehicle and performed a "pat-down" search of him. After searching Arias, Rennie instructed Schillinger to exit the vehicle, and he performed a "pat-down" search of her. He then proceeded to search Schillinger's car.
¶8 Inside the car, Rennie found a plastic bag containing a powdery substance that Arias identified as "coke" stuck between the front seats. Rennie also found a switchblade knife that "popped out" when he placed his weight on the front seat. Both items belonged to Arias.
¶9 Officer Jason Bauer, who arrived on the scene in response to Rennie's call for back-up, handcuffed Arias and searched him again, for the officers' safety. Rennie placed Arias in his squad car, removed the beer from Schillinger's car and told her that she was free to leave. The detainment concluded at approximately 11:27 p.m.
¶10 Rennie did not issue Schillinger a citation for transporting intoxicants as a minor until the next day. Rennie stated that he had drug evidence in his squad car that he wanted to deliver to the police station and that the encounter had led him to conclude that he "had a bigger concern with [Arias]" than in immediately issuing a ticket to Schillinger.
II. DISCUSSION
A. Standard of Review
¶11 "Whether police conduct constitutes a 'search' within the
meaning of the [Wisconsin Constitution] is a question of law" subject to
our independent review. State v.
Miller, 2002 WI App 150, ¶5,
256
¶12 Upon review of an order granting a motion to suppress evidence, we
uphold the circuit court's findings of historic fact unless they are clearly
erroneous. State v. Fonte, 2005
WI 77, ¶11, 281
B. Search
¶13 Arias asks us to conclude that the dog sniff of the exterior of Schillinger's vehicle was a search within the meaning of Article I, Section 11 of the Wisconsin Constitution and that the officer lacked reasonable suspicion to conduct such a search. Article I, Section 11 is the state analogue to the Fourth Amendment and protects persons against unreasonable searches and seizures.[4]
¶14 The United States Supreme Court has determined that a dog sniff of
the exterior of a vehicle is not a search within the meaning of the Fourth
Amendment. Illinois v. Caballes,
543
¶15 Although the Supreme Court ruled that the 90-minute interlude
between the detention of the luggage and the dog sniff was an unreasonably long
seizure warranting suppression of the cocaine, the Court also concluded that
the dog sniff did not constitute a search.
¶16 Place's conclusion that a dog sniff is not a search within
the meaning of the Fourth Amendment was reinforced by Caballes. In Caballes, the defendant was stopped
for speeding and, while the detaining officer issued a ticket for that offense,
another officer who arrived at the scene separately permitted his dog to
canvass the exterior of the defendant's car.
Caballes, 543
¶17
¶18 In Miller, the use of a dog sniff of the exterior of a
vehicle followed the execution of a search warrant for a residence where police
officers had found marijuana.
¶19 Generally, we have interpreted provisions of the Wisconsin
Constitution consistent with the United States Supreme Court's interpretation
of their counterparts in the federal constitution. State v.
¶20 Historically,
we have interpreted Article I, Section 11 of the Wisconsin Constitution
in accord with the Supreme Court's interpretation of the Fourth Amendment. See, e.g., State v. Malone,
2004 WI 108, ¶15, 274
Wis. 2d 540, 683 N.W.2d 1; State v. Guzman, 166 Wis. 2d 577, 586-87, 480 N.W.2d
446 (1992); State v. Williams, 47 Wis. 2d 242, 249, 177 N.W.2d 611
(1970). Our coordination of Article I,
§ 11 with the Supreme Court's Fourth Amendment jurisprudence began long
before we were required to follow the Supreme Court's Fourth Amendment
jurisprudence by its decision in Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643 (1961). For example, in Hoyer v. State, 180
¶21 There
are sound policy reasons for this consistency in our jurisprudence. By following the Supreme Court's Fourth
Amendment jurisprudence in interpreting Article I, Section 11, we impart
certainty about what the law requires for those who will apply our decisions
with respect to searches and seizures, and we provide distinct parameters to
those who must enforce the law while maintaining the constitutionally protected
rights of the people. Therefore, were we
to conclude that a dog sniff of the exterior of a vehicle in a public place
constitutes a search under Article I, Section 11, we would be undertaking a
significant departure from the Supreme Court's Fourth Amendment jurisprudence
in interpreting the right to be free of unreasonable searches under the
Wisconsin Constitution.
¶22 We
are unwilling to undertake such a departure here. First, we note that there is no
constitutionally protected interest in possessing contraband under the United
States Constitution, United States v. Jacobsen, 466 U.S. 109, 123
(1984), nor is there a constitutionally protected interest in possessing
contraband under the Wisconsin Constitution.
Moreover, the occupant of a vehicle has no reasonable expectation of
privacy in the air space surrounding a vehicle that he is occupying in a public
place. State v. Garcia, 195
¶23 Second,
a dog sniff is much less intrusive than activities that have been held to be
searches. Place, 462
¶24 Arias
asserts constitutional protection for a place, the area surrounding the outside
of Schillinger's vehicle. However, the
proscription against unreasonable searches contained within Article I, Section
11 of the Wisconsin Constitution is meant to protect people, not things or
places, aside from their relationships to people affected by government
action. See Katz v.
C. Seizure
¶25 The next question we must address is whether conducting the dog
sniff unreasonably prolonged Arias's seizure.
As we explained above, the federal and state constitutions protect
persons against unreasonable searches and seizures. U.S. Const. amend. IV.;
1. Duration of the dog sniff
¶26 Before discussing the general legal principles that may be applied, or the parties' positions in regard to whether the detention satisfies the constitutional standard of reasonableness, we must first resolve one predicate issue: By how much time did the dog sniff extend the traffic stop? Arias contends that the circuit court's conclusion that D'Jango's sniff prolonged the stop by "approximately 38 minutes" is not clearly erroneous; and therefore, the dog sniff unreasonably prolonged his seizure. In contrast, the State argues that the circuit court's finding with regard to the extension of the stop is clearly erroneous. The State maintains that it was not the dog sniff that extended the stop, but rather the "probable cause of drug activity," which the dog sniff generated, that extended the stop. Accordingly, the State contends that the actual time spent on the dog sniff is 78 seconds, because that is the time that elapsed between Rennie's question to Schillinger about whether the car contained drugs and the conclusion of D'Jango's sniff. The State supports its contention that the 78 seconds is the proper focus by emphasizing that the court of appeals, in certifying the case, identified 78 seconds as the time for us to consider.
¶27 The circuit court's finding that the dog sniff prolonged Schillinger and Arias's detention by "approximately 38 minutes" is clearly erroneous. Thirty-eight minutes was the approximate amount of time that elapsed from the conclusion of D'Jango's sniff to Arias's arrest. We conclude that it is against the great weight and clear preponderance of the evidence to find, as it appears the circuit court did, that the 38-minute interval is attributable to the time it took to complete the dog sniff. The 38 minutes that Schillinger and Arias were detained following the dog sniff was occupied by Rennie's search of the vehicle, his pat-down searches of Arias and Schillinger and the activities flowing from the vehicle search. It was those activities, not the dog sniff, that extended the detention by "approximately 38 minutes."
¶28 For
example, when Rennie saw that D'Jango had alerted to Schillinger's vehicle, he
concluded that he had probable cause to search the vehicle and its occupants.[7] Rennie first instructed Arias to exit the
vehicle, and then he conducted a "pat-down" search of Arias. He applied the same process with
Schillinger. He then searched the
vehicle, finding cocaine and a switchblade knife inside. The discovery of contraband precipitated
Arias's arrest. It is these activities,
not the dog sniff, that occupied the latter 38 minutes of the detainment.[8] Accordingly, it was clearly erroneous for the
circuit court to find that the dog sniff prolonged the detention by 38
minutes. Therefore, we consider the
78-second extension of Arias's detention in deciding whether Rennie's
"controlled substance investigation" was reasonable under all the
circumstances. Terry, 392
2. General principles
¶29 As explained above, this constitutional challenge arises in the
course of a traffic stop. Because a
traffic stop deprives a detained individual of dominion over his or her person
and vehicle, a traffic stop is a seizure.
See Delaware v. Prouse, 440
¶30 First, courts determine whether the seizure was justified at its
inception. Terry, 392
¶31 Different constitutional interests are affected by a search,[10]
as compared with the interests affected by a seizure.[11] See, e.g., Griffith, 236
¶32 By contrast, when a seizure that was lawful at its inception and
does not encompass an arrest is reviewed, the scope of the continued
investigative detention is examined to determine whether it lasted "no
longer than is necessary to effectuate the purpose of the stop," Florida v. Royer, 460 U.S. 491, 500
(1983), and whether the investigative means used in the continued seizure are
"the least intrusive means reasonably available to verify or dispel the
officer's suspicion," id.[13] In that vein, we consider whether the officer
diligently pursued his investigation to confirm or dispel his suspicions.
¶33
¶34 In evaluating the challenge
Consideration of the constitutionality of such seizures involves a weighing of the gravity of the public concerns served by the seizure, the degree to which the seizure advances the public interest, and the severity of the interference with individual liberty.
3. The parties' positions
¶35 The parties do not dispute that the traffic stop falls under Knowles
and Terry. We note that a
"routine traffic stop . . . is a relatively brief
encounter and 'is more analogous to a so-called "Terry-stop"
than to a formal arrest.'"[17] Knowles, 525
¶36 However, Arias contends that Rennie impermissibly extended the
seizure by allowing D'Jango to sniff the vehicle because the "dog sniff
occur[red] outside the scope of the initial traffic stop." Arias's brief, at 25. Therefore, he asserts that the time taken by
the dog sniff transformed a reasonable and lawful seizure into an unreasonable
and unlawful seizure. Stated otherwise,
he contends that the dog sniff expanded the reason for the initial stop, when
the expansion was not supported by reasonable suspicion of drug activity. He relies on State v. Betow, 226
¶37 The State asserts that State v. Gaulrapp, 207
4. Reasonableness of the dog sniff
¶38 Succinctly stated, the question we must decide is whether the 78
second intrusion upon Arias's liberty that was caused by the dog sniff was
reasonable. "Reasonableness . . .
depends 'on a balance between the public interest and the individual's right to
personal security free from arbitrary interference by law officers.'" Pennsylvania v. Mimms, 434
¶39 Under the totality of the circumstances before us, we examine the
public interest, the degree to which the continued seizure advances the public
interest and the severity of the interference of Arias's liberty interest. Griffith, 236
¶40 In addition, Rennie diligently pursued his investigation in a
manner that could quickly confirm or dispel his suspicions relative to the stop
of Schillinger's vehicle. Sharpe,
470
¶41 Our conclusion is consistent with the discussion in Gaulrapp. In Gaulrapp, the court of appeals was
faced with the contention that asking a question about drugs and firearms,
without a reasonable suspicion that Gaulrapp possessed either, caused a lawful
seizure to become constitutionally infirm.
Gaulrapp, 207
¶42 Arias
contends that Caballes stands for the proposition that a dog sniff
conducted without reasonable suspicion of drug possession is per se violative
of the federal Constitution unless the dog sniff is conducted simultaneously
with activities germane to what precipitated the traffic stop in the first
instance. We disagree. We do not read Caballes so
narrowly. Indeed, Caballes
observes that a traffic stop may become unlawful if it is "prolonged
beyond the time reasonably required to complete" the activities attendant
to the stop. Caballes, 543
¶43 Furthermore, Arias's reliance on Betow and Gammons is misplaced. In Betow, the court of appeals
concluded that Betow's continued detention after he was stopped for speeding
was not warranted by the facts available to the detaining officer. Betow is distinguishable from the case
before us because the incremental intrusion on Betow's liberty interest was
unreasonable under the totality of the circumstances presented. This is so because Betow's traffic stop for
speeding had been concluded when the officer asked if he could search Betow's
vehicle. Betow, 226
¶44 By
contrast, the traffic stop of Schillinger was on-going when the dog sniff of
the outside of the vehicle occurred; the dog was not placed inside of
Schillinger's vehicle; Arias had not asked to leave and been required to
remain. Accordingly, the incremental
intrusion upon Betow's liberty was significantly greater than that which
occurred here.
¶45 We
note that Betow contains broad dicta that might be read so as to cause
confusion with the appropriate inquiry for evaluating the constitutionality of
a continuing seizure. For example, Betow
asserts:
[T]he scope of the officer's inquiry, or the line of questioning, may be broadened beyond the purpose for which the person was stopped only if additional suspicious factors come to the officer's attention——keeping in mind that these factors, like the factors justifying the stop in the first place, must be "particularized" and "objective."
¶46 Gammons
is also distinguishable from the totality of the circumstances presented
here. In reversing the circuit court's refusal to
suppress the evidence, the court of appeals in Gammons employed, in
part, the dicta from Betow. Gammons,
241
¶47 In
sum, we observe that neither the Fourth Amendment nor Article I, Section 11 of
the Wisconsin Constitution prohibit all seizures. Only unreasonable seizures are violative of
constitutional rights. In examining the
reasonableness of Arias's seizure, we balance the public's interest in
preventing the distribution of illegal drugs, the furtherance of that interest
by the continued seizure of Schillinger's vehicle and the effect on Arias's
liberty interest under the Fourth Amendment and Article I, Section 11 of the
Wisconsin Constitution. See Mimms,
434
III.
CONCLUSION
¶48 In conclusion, we answer both questions certified to us by the court of appeals in the negative. First, we conclude, in accordance with federal Fourth Amendment jurisprudence, that a dog sniff of the exterior of a vehicle located in a public place does not constitute a search under the Wisconsin Constitution. Second, we conclude that Rennie's "controlled substance investigation" did not unreasonably prolong his seizure of Arias. In so concluding, we determine that the circuit court's finding that the dog sniff prolonged the detention by "approximately 38 minutes" is clearly erroneous. The great weight and clear preponderance of the evidence shows that the dog sniff prolonged the detention by 78 seconds. Under the totality of the circumstances herein presented, the seventy-eight seconds is not an unreasonable incremental intrusion upon Arias's liberty. Accordingly, the dog sniff did not unreasonably prolong in duration the controlled substance investigation, which comported with the Fourth Amendment and with Article I, Section 11 of the Wisconsin Constitution.[21]
By the Court.—The order of the circuit court is reversed, and the cause is remanded to the circuit court for further proceedings. Following remand, if a party moves the circuit court to determine whether the dog sniff was sufficient to establish probable cause to conduct a search of Schillinger's vehicle, our decision does not preclude the circuit court from holding a hearing on such a motion, if the circuit court chooses to do so.
¶49 ANN WALSH BRADLEY, J. (dissenting). Our circuit court judges serve on the front line of the court system. Day in and day out they are called upon to make tough decisions. The circuit court judge here made one of those tough decisions.
¶50 It is not always politically well-received when you have the goods——the drugs——on the defendant and yet suppress that evidence based on the state and federal constitutions. Judges make those tough calls because of their commitment to the rule of law and adherence to their oath of office. We expect no less of them.
¶51 Those same judges have a right to expect of us that when their case is appealed and we review it, that we neither misconstrue their findings of fact nor their rationale. Unfortunately, the majority here does both.
¶52 In addition, the majority advances a novel and problematic constitutional analysis. It fails to follow the test announced by the United States Supreme Court in Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (1968), and instead substitutes a new test. Accordingly, I respectfully dissent.
I
¶53 There are two time periods relevant in the case. The first is the 78 seconds between the time Officer Rennie completed the breath analysis test with Schillinger and the time D'Jango completed the sniff of the vehicle. The second time period is the 38-minute stretch (which includes the 78 seconds) between the completion of the breath analysis and the time Officer Rennie called in Schillinger's driver's license information to dispatch.
¶54 The majority
concludes that the 78-second extension of the traffic stop during which the dog
sniff occurred "is not an unreasonable incremental intrusion upon Arias's
liberty." Majority op., ¶48. In reaching this conclusion, the majority
determines that "the circuit court's finding that the dog sniff prolonged
the detention by 'approximately 38 minutes' is clearly erroneous."
¶55 I agree with the majority that the appropriate focus is the 78 seconds. However, I cannot join the majority's conclusion that the circuit court erred in determining that the dog sniff prolonged the detention by 38 minutes. Rather, the circuit court found that the stop was prolonged by 38 minutes but that the length of the canine sniff was only a small part of the 38 minutes. After the completion of the dog sniff, the constitutional analysis must rely upon an assessment of probable cause.
A
¶56 A threshold problem
with the majority's analysis is that it misconstrues the circuit court's
factual findings and its rationale. In its decision on Arias's motion, the
circuit court focused on the fact that Officer Rennie did not request
Schillinger's driver's license information until well after the dog sniff was
conducted. This led the court to determine that the dog sniff had delayed the
traffic stop. The court expressly found that the dog sniff accounted for
"roughly one minute" (not all 38 minutes) of the extension of
the seizure.
¶57 As a separate
finding of fact, the circuit court determined that the stop was prolonged in
total for approximately 38 minutes, that is, for the dog sniff and the
subsequent questioning, search, and arrest. The court next concluded that there
were no objective and articulable facts giving rise to a reasonable suspicion
of illegal activity justifying the entire extension:
Were there other objective and articulable facts that would give the officer a reasonable suspicion that either Ms. Schillinger or the defendant had been engaged in illegal activity allowing an extension of the stop? The court concludes no.
¶58 In other words, the circuit court did not make a finding that the dog sniff alone extended the traffic stop by 38 minutes. Rather, it made a determination that the traffic stop was extended by 38 minutes without reasonable suspicion, and that part of the extension included the dog sniff.
¶59 Thus, the majority has attributed a factual finding to the circuit court that the circuit court did not make. This misconstruction of the circuit court's decision leads to a void in the majority opinion. It has determined that a 78-second extension for a dog sniff is not unreasonable. However, it has not analyzed whether the rest of the 38-minute extension is reasonable.
¶60 The closest the majority comes to an explanation is its statement
that the remainder of the 38-minute extension is attributable to activities
other than the dog sniff.
¶61 In other words, the majority has misconstrued the circuit court's
rationale. The circuit court's reasoning was based on whether a 38-minute
extension of a traffic stop without reasonable suspicion was justified. It was
not premised on the entire 38 minutes being occupied by the dog sniff.
¶62 I cannot endorse
the majority's conclusion that the circuit court clearly erred. The circuit
court did not find that the dog sniff alone prolonged the stop by 38 minutes.
Moreover, the circuit court's reasoning had to account for the entire 38
minutes by which Rennie extended the stop. The majority's account fails to
account for the entire period.
B
¶63 Nonetheless, I
agree that the appropriate focus for this court is the 78 seconds of the dog
sniff. On one hand, if
the dog sniff established probable cause, then the extension of the traffic
stop without reasonable suspicion was only 78 seconds. On the other hand, if
the dog sniff did not establish probable cause, the circuit court is correct
that there was an impermissible 38-minute extension of the traffic stop without
"objective and articulable facts that would give the officer a reasonable
suspicion that either Ms. Schillinger or the defendant had been engaged in
illegal activity allowing an extension of the stop." However, if the dog
sniff failed to establish probable cause, then the search of the vehicle was
impermissible on that basis (in addition to an unreasonable 38-minute
extension of the traffic stop).
¶64 In Wisconsin, a dog alert can provide probable cause for a search
only where "the dog is trained in narcotics detection and has demonstrated
a sufficient level of reliability in detecting drugs in the past and the
officer with the dog is familiar with how it reacted when it smelled
contraband." State v. Miller, 2002 WI App 150, ¶12, 256
¶65 The circuit court's decision in this case was based on its determination that the extension of the traffic stop was not based on reasonable suspicion. It never made a determination that the dog sniff established probable cause to conduct the search of Arias and the vehicle. Because the court determined there was no reasonable suspicion to extend the seizure, it did not need to determine whether there was probable cause. As noted by the court of appeals in its certification to this court, the circuit court has not made the findings of fact necessary to establish probable cause: "There was no factual finding by the circuit court as to whether the dog actually did indicate the presence of controlled substances."
¶66 Arias argues to this court that the dog sniff here did not establish probable cause. He argues that that D'Jango is not sufficiently reliable for his alerts to establish probable cause.[22] In addition, Arias argues that the circuit court never made a finding of fact that D'Jango actually alerted on Schillinger's car.[23] Upon remand the circuit court will have an opportunity to address the issue of probable cause.[24] See mandate of the court following majority op., ¶48.
II
¶67 The second reason that I cannot join the majority is that its constitutional analysis is problematic. It fails to apply the second part of the two-prong test set forth in Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (1968). Accordingly, its approach conflicts with precedent of the United States Supreme Court as well as precedent from this state.
¶68 The majority sets forth the correct test for determining whether an
extension of a traffic stop is constitutional. First, a court must determine
whether the seizure was justified at its inception, and second, it must
determine whether the extension of the seizure "was reasonably related in
scope to the circumstances which justified the interference in the first
place." Majority op., ¶30
(quoting Terry, 392
¶69 Inexplicably, however, rather than applying the second part of the test set forth——whether the extension of the seizure "was reasonably related in scope to the circumstances which justified the interference in the first place"——the majority changes the test. It states that "the question we must decide is whether the 78-second intrusion upon Arias's liberty that was caused by the dog sniff was reasonable." Majority op., ¶38. What happened to the rest of the test? The majority simply jettisons the second requirement that an extension of a seizure relate to the circumstances that justify the initial seizure.
¶70 The circumstances that justified the initial seizure in this case
were Officer Rennie's reasonable suspicion that a minor was transporting beer.
However, the majority makes no attempt to explain how the extension of the
seizure in order to conduct a dog sniff for drugs reasonably relates to those
circumstances. Instead, it simply concludes that because the public has a
significant interest in curbing narcotics distribution, a brief extension of
the seizure is reasonable.
¶71 The failure to apply the test set forth is crucial to the majority's conclusion. The extension of the seizure in this case is wholly unrelated to the circumstances that justified the initial seizure. Extending the traffic stop to deploy a drug-sniffing dog is not related in the slightest to transportation of beer by a minor. Thus, the extension of the seizure is not "reasonably related in scope to the circumstances which justified the interference in the first place," and is therefore unconstitutional.
¶72 Supreme Court precedent on this matter is clear. In Florida v.
Royer, the Court was adamant that "[a]n investigative detention must
be temporary and last no longer than is necessary to effectuate the purpose of
the stop." 460
¶73 The approach taken by the majority is also contrary to United
States v. Caballes, 543 U.S. 405 (2005). In that case, while one officer
was writing a warning ticket during a traffic stop, another officer walked a
drug-sniffing dog around the defendant's vehicle.
¶74 The majority opinion also conflicts with
¶75 Following Betow requires a determination that the extension of the seizure in this case was unconstitutional. The State has presented no argument that Officer Rennie became aware of additional suspicious factors that would give rise to an articulable suspicion that Schillinger or Arias had committed or were committing an offense other than the one that justified the initial seizure. Nonetheless, the stop was extended.
¶76 The majority attempts to distinguish Betow on the ground that the traffic stop in that case had concluded and Betow refused the officer's request to search the car. Majority op., ¶43. The majority does not explain how it is able to divine that the traffic stop in Betow had been concluded when the officer extended the seizure. Betow was still detained and there is no indication in Betow that the officer had returned his license and registration. Contrary to the majority's assertion, the problem in Betow is that the traffic stop for speeding had not been concluded.
¶77 Moreover, the fact that Betow refused a request fails to explain the majority's view that the extension of the search in that case was impermissible and the search in the present case was permissible. Schillinger and Arias were not given the opportunity to refuse the search. Officer Rennie retained Schillinger's license and registration and simply conducted the search.
¶78 In State v. Gammons, a police officer performed a traffic
stop for a missing rear license plate. 2001 WI App 36, ¶2, 241
¶79 The court of appeals determined that the initial stop in Gammons
was permissible.
¶80 Gammons dictates the outcome in this case. As in Gammons, the search here was extended beyond the time necessary to complete the initial stop, and the extension was not at all related to the circumstances justifying the initial interference.
¶81 The majority states that Gammons is distinguishable from the present case on the ground that the driver acquiesced to a search because "the officer threatened the driver with further detainment so that he could use the drug sniffing dog." Majority op., ¶46. Apparently, the majority thinks that the incremental intrusion upon liberty resulting from the threat of further detainment is greater than the incremental intrusion on liberty of actual further detainment to deploy a drug sniffing dog. That view is untenable.
¶82 Although the majority articulates the correct test for determining whether the extension of a traffic stop is constitutional, it fails to apply the test. Its approach conflicts with precedent of both the United States Supreme Court and this state. Applying the correct test, the extension of the seizure here is unconstitutional because the extension was not reasonably related in scope to the circumstances which justified the initial traffic stop.
III
¶83 In sum, I agree with the majority that the appropriate focus here is the 78 seconds of the dog sniff. However, I disagree with its conclusion that the circuit court clearly erred in "finding that the dog sniff prolonged the detention by 'approximately 38 minutes.'" Majority op., ¶48. That conclusion misconstrues the circuit court's findings of fact and rationale. In addition, the majority advances a novel and problematic constitutional analysis. It fails to follow the test announced by the U.S. Supreme Court in Terry, 392 U.S. 1 (1968), and instead substitutes a new test. Accordingly, I respectfully dissent.
¶84 I am authorized to state that Chief Justice SHIRLEY S. ABRAHAMSON and Justice LOUIS B. BUTLER, JR. join this dissent.
[1] All further references to the Wisconsin Statutes are to the 2005-06 version, unless otherwise noted.
[2] The parties' briefs raise a third issue: Whether the police dog was sufficiently reliable that his perceived alert to the vehicle provided probable cause that the vehicle contained drugs. However, both Arias and the State agree in the briefs they submitted to us that this issue was not raised before the circuit court, although the dissent attempts to shift the reader's focus to this very issue in order to support its disagreement with the holding of the majority opinion. While we are vested with the authority to consider issues not raised before the circuit court, County of Columbia v. Bylewski, 94 Wis. 2d 153, 171-72, 288 N.W.2d 129 (1980), we decline to do so here. The issue of whether the police dog was sufficiently reliable to establish probable cause has factual underpinnings that make it inappropriate for this court to resolve during this appeal. See, e.g., Wurtz v. Fleischman, 97 Wis. 2d 100, 107 n.3, 293 N.W.2d 155 (1980) (observing that the power to make factual determinations is reserved to the circuit courts and should be exercised by this court only under "appropriate procedures in the exercise of its constitutional grant of original jurisdiction"). At the circuit court, Rennie's testimony that D'Jango alerted to drugs within Schillinger's vehicle came in as uncontroverted evidence. Arias did not challenge the reliability of the dog's alert. The dissent chooses to omit this part of the case's history.
Instead, the dissent devotes a large part of its opinion to a long lament that the majority opinion does not address whether the drug-sniffing dog actually "alerted" to the presence of drugs in Megan Schillinger's vehicle and if it did, whether the dog's alerts were reliable. Dissent, ¶¶63-66. We do not address those issues because Arias never presented them to the circuit court and also because this matter is before us on certification of two issues: (1) "whether, under the Wisconsin Constitution, a dog sniff of a stopped vehicle is a 'search'"; and (2) "whether the vehicle stop was unreasonably prolonged in duration by the officer's controlled substance investigation."
[3] Wisconsin Stat. § 346.93 prohibits a minor from driving a vehicle that contains intoxicants.
[4] Article I, Section 11 of the Wisconsin Constitution provides:
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures shall not be violated; and no warrant shall issue but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized.
[5] In State v. Eason, 2001
WI 98, 245
[6] Arias also contends that a dog sniff is a search under the Wisconsin Constitution because dogs are "animate creatures prone to weakness and error." He then argues that their fallibility causes dog sniffs to be searches, and therefore, they cannot be employed without reasonable suspicion. We reject this argument for at least two reasons: First, the reliability of a dog sniff does not bear on whether it is a search, but on whether it should be employed by law enforcement in crime detection under any circumstance. Second, if a dog sniff were held to be a search and the officer could employ it if he had reasonable suspicion of drug activity, that reasonable suspicion would not cause the dog sniff to become more reliable.
[7] We do not determine here whether Rennie's assessment that D'Jango's alert provided probable cause was accurate.
[8] The dissent devotes considerable energy to protesting our conclusion that the dog sniff did not prolong the detention by 38 minutes. However, the parties agree that the dog sniff itself occupied only 78 seconds. Once Rennie determined that D'Jango alerted to Schillinger's car, he engaged in the activities recounted above that related to his investigation of whether drugs were located in the car. The circuit court confirmed that the issue to be addressed was whether the time taken by the dog sniff, itself, was lawful. In framing the issue that the court believed Arias was asking it to address, the court said, "you're concerned, potential points of contention and argument is that that initial stop was extended beyond what would normally be required for that stop to allow a dog sniff slash search to take place. And that is your concern." To which Arias's lawyer responded, "That is correct, Your Honor."
[9] As
the Supreme Court has explained, the "touchstone of our analysis" is
the "reasonableness in all the circumstances of the particular
governmental invasion."
[10] Searches affect privacy
interests, such as bodily integrity and those places that a person has reserved
for his or her individual use. See
Katz v.
[11] Seizures affect
personal liberty interests such as the freedom of movement and the possession
of one's property. See
[12] Terry
explains: "This Court has held in
the past that a search which is reasonable at its inception may violate the
Fourth Amendment by virtue of its intolerable intensity and scope." Terry, 392
[13] In Florida v. Royer,
460 U.S. 491 (1983), two officers stopped Royer in a concourse of the
The Supreme Court concluded that from the moment Royer
was taken to a private room while the officers retained his identification and
ticket the means of his seizure became unreasonably intrusive.
[14] There are occasions
when the first two parts of this test are collapsed into one. See
[15] We note that this
inquiry is somewhat different than that employed in State v. Malone,
2004 WI 108, 274 Wis. 2d 540, 683 N.W.2d 1. In Malone, we were addressing the
limiting certified question of whether an officer may request passengers to
exit a vehicle and answer questions that were related to the reason for the
traffic stop.
[16] We noted that
[17] We have previously
cited the Knowles v. Iowa, 525 U.S. 113 (1998), view of traffic stops
and assumed that it applied. See,
e.g., Malone, 274
[18] See United States v.
Mendenhall, 446
Few problems affecting the health and welfare of our population . . . cause greater concern than the escalating use of controlled substances . . . [a]nd many drugs . . . may be easily concealed. As a result, the obstacles to detection of illegal conduct maybe unmatched in any other area of law enforcement.
[19] Many articles have been written on the havoc that illegal drugs visit on children and adults. See, e.g., Josephine Gittler, The American Drug War, Maternal Substance Abuse and Child Protection, 7 J. Gender, Race & Just. 237 (2003).
[20] See, e.g., United States v. Mesa, 62 F.3d 159 (6th Cir. 1995); United States v. Fernandez, 18 F.3d 874 (10th Cir. 1994); Henderson v. State, 551 S.E.2d 400 (Ga. Ct. App. 2001); State v. Gutierrez, 51 P.3d 461 (Idaho Ct. App. 2002); State v. Hight, 781 A.2d 11 (N.H. 2001); State v. Hansen, 63 P.3d 650 (Utah 2002).
[21] As the reader moves to a review of the dissent, it is important to keep in mind that the dissent is an attempt to shift the reader's focus from the two certified questions we accepted this case to decide, and onto a discussion of issues that were never raised before the circuit court. That is, Arias provided no testimony before the circuit court that D'Jango had not alerted or that he had a history of unreliability in regard to the alerts he made. Rennie's testimony that D'Jango alerted to the presence of drugs, which he believed provided probable cause to search Schillinger's vehicle, was not objected to or controverted. Accordingly, Arias never argued that the dog sniff was not sufficient to support probable cause to search Schillinger's vehicle where the drugs and weapon were found. This history of the case is not apparent in the dissent.
[22] See State v.
Miller, 2002 WI App 150, ¶12,
256
[23] Officer Rennie testified that when D'Jango alerts he "sits passively." See Majority op., ¶6. However, when deployed here, D'Jango sat, barked, jogged from one side of the car to the other, and sat and barked again. It is questionable whether sitting and barking is tantamount to sitting "passively." Even the court of appeals in its certification to this court stated that it was "not apparent from the videotape" that D'Jango sat passively. Having reviewed the squad video, I agree that it is not apparent that D'Jango ever sat passively.
[24] The majority states that it does not address whether the dog alerted or whether there was probable cause because the issues were not presented to the circuit court and because they were not certified questions.
When this court grants direct review upon certification, it acquires jurisdiction "of an appeal," which includes all issues, not merely the issues certified, unless the court by order limits the issues on certification. Wis. Stat. §§ 808.05(2); (Rule) 809.61; State v. Schweda, 2007 WI 100, ¶49, 303 Wis. 2d 353, 736 N.W.2d 49 (Abrahamson, C.J., concurring); State v. Mitchell, 167 Wis. 2d 672, 677, 482 N.W.2d 364 (1992); State v. Stoehr, 134 Wis. 2d 66, 70, 396 N.W.2d 177 (1986). Here, the order did not limit the issues.