Brooks v. Com.
712 S.E.2d 464
| Va. | 2011Background
- Dec. 10, 2007, Petersburg officers respond to anonymous shots-fired call at 400 block of Byrne St.
- Another officer had Brooks' permission to search for weapons but found no weapon.
- Outside search of area and nearby cars yielded no weapon; a .22 cartridge was found on the stoop.
- Brooks consented to a house search for a weapon; in a bedroom a tote bag contained a gift bag with cash and cocaine.
- Officer asked if the money and drugs belonged to Brooks; Brooks answered yes and was arrested; 358 currency bills were later found.
- Brooks moved to suppress the cocaine and his statements; circuit court admitted the certificate of analysis; Court of Appeals denied appeal; the Supreme Court granted review.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the gift bag search exceeded consent | Brooks argues the bag was outside the weapon-search scope. | Commonwealth contends the bag was within the weapon-search scope due to weight/shape. | Search within consent; permissible under Fourth Amendment. |
| Whether the cocaine/statement were fruits of the illegal search | Evidence/statement derived from unlawful search should be suppressed. | Seach was lawful; no suppression required. | No fruit-of-the-poisonous-tree issue needed; search upheld. |
| Whether Brooks was in custody requiring Miranda warnings | Statements given without Miranda were invalid. | questioning was non-custodial; no Miranda issue. | Not custody; Miranda not required; statements admitted. |
| Whether admission of the certificate of analysis was error | Admission violated Confrontation Clause under Cypress/Melendez-Diaz framework. | Certificate admissibility was proper with preserved objection. | Admission error; remand for new trial on that issue. |
Key Cases Cited
- Wong Sun v. United States, 371 U.S. 471 (Supreme Court, 1962) (evidence obtained by exploitation of illegality excluded)
- Florida v. Jimeno, 500 U.S. 248 (U.S. Supreme Court, 1991) (scope of consent defined by objective reasonableness)
- Jones v. Commonwealth, 277 Va. 171 (Va. 2009) (de novo review of Fourth Amendment legal questions; defer factual)
- Beheler v. Beheler, 463 U.S. 1121 (U.S. Supreme Court, 1983) (custody determination for interrogation)
- Yarborough v. Alvarado, 541 U.S. 652 (U.S. Supreme Court, 2004) (totality of circumstances in custody analysis)
- Payton v. New York, 445 U.S. 573 (U.S. Supreme Court, 1980) (warrantless home searches presumptively unreasonable)
- Cypress v. Commonwealth, 280 Va. 305 (Va. 2010) (Confrontation Clause analysis of certificates of analysis)
- Melendez‑Diaz v. Massachusetts, 557 U.S. _ (U.S. Supreme Court, 2009) (confrontation concerns with certificates of analysis)