State v. Israel Ramirez
13-14-00680-CR
Tex. App.Aug 31, 2015Background
- Officers responded to a disturbance; Ramirez’s sister Lori whispered to an officer that Ramirez “got heroin on him.”
- Officers approached Ramirez as he walked toward his home; he appeared nervous, walked away from officers, and repeatedly reached into his right front pocket.
- Officer Garcia handcuffed Ramirez for officer-safety reasons after Ramirez told them he had a pocketknife; Ramirez consented to removal of the knife and contents of his pocket.
- Officer Garcia retrieved a knife and a keychain with a silver, capsule-shaped container; Garcia opened the capsule and found black tar heroin inside.
- Ramirez moved to suppress the evidence; the trial court found the officers’ testimony on the capsule’s suspected narcotics content not credible, concluded no probable cause existed to search the capsule, and granted the motion to suppress.
- The State appealed arguing the sister’s tip, plus corroborating observations (flight, nervousness, reaching into pocket), provided probable cause to search the capsule.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether officers had probable cause to search the capsule on Ramirez’s keychain | The State: sister’s tip plus corroborating behavior (walking away, avoidance, nervousness, reaching into pocket) gave probable cause to search | Ramirez: tip was uncorroborated and officers lacked reliable information; capsule search exceeded lawful scope | Court: No. Under totality, tip + observed behavior did not establish probable cause to search the capsule |
Key Cases Cited
- Dixon v. State, 206 S.W.3d 613 (Tex. Crim. App. 2006) (probable-cause reasonableness reviewed de novo)
- Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. 213 (U.S. 1983) (totality-of-the-circumstances test for informant tips)
- Brown v. State, 481 S.W.2d 106 (Tex. Crim. App. 1972) (burden on State to prove probable cause for warrantless search)
- Rojas v. State, 797 S.W.2d 41 (Tex. Crim. App. 1990) (weigh quality of information against quantity for probable cause)
- Guzman v. State, 955 S.W.2d 85 (Tex. Crim. App. 1997) (anonymous tip describing location of contraband may be corroborated by suspect’s urgent, suspicious conduct)