In re ARRON C., a Person Coming Under the Juvenile Court Law. THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. ARRON C., Defendant and Appellant.
No. A076469
First Dist., Div. Five.
Dec. 11, 1997.
1365
Konrad S. Lee, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant.
Daniel E. Lungren, Attorney General, George Williamson, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Ronald A. Bass, Assistant Attorney General, Laurence K. Sullivan and Thomas A. Brady, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.
OPINION
PETERSON, P. J.—Arron C. appeals from a disposition placing him on probation. He contends the juvenile court erred when it denied his motion to suppress. In rejecting this argument, we will hold that evidence seized in violation of the Fourth Amendment of the federal Constitution by a police officer, acting in reasonable reliance on information obtained from a juvenile probation officer that a search condition exists, need not be suppressed if it is determined subsequently that the information was incorrect.
I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
In October 1995, a petition was filed in the Contra Costa County Juvenile Court alleging that Arron came within the provisions of
Before that hearing could occur, Arron got in trouble yet again. On April 9, 1996, Detective David Ishikawa of the Concord Police Department was investigating a series of car burglaries in the area where Arron lived, so he called the probation department and spoke with Samuel Jiminez, the probation supervisor, and told him he wanted to search Arron‘s residence. Jiminez could not find Arron‘s file, so he checked his computer records. They showed, incorrectly, that Arron was still on probation and that he was subject to a search condition. Jiminez faxed that information to Ishikawa. Ishikawa and other officers then searched Arron‘s home without a warrant. Inside they found several items that had been stolen during a car burglary.
Based on these facts, a supplemental petition was filed alleging that Arron had received stolen property. (
Subsequently, the court sustained the supplemental petition and placed Arron on probation. This appeal followed.
II. DISCUSSION
Arron contends, and the People implicitly concede, that the search in this case was illegal because it was based on a search condition that was no longer in effect. (Cf. People v. Ramirez (1983) 34 Cal.3d 541, 552 [194 Cal.Rptr. 454, 668 P.2d 761] (Ramirez) [“[A]n arrest based solely on a recalled warrant is made without probable cause.“].) The issue here is whether the constitutional violation requires a remedy.
While the “Fourth Amendment contains no provision expressly precluding the use of evidence obtained in violation of its commands” (United States v. Leon (1984) 468 U.S. 897, 906 [104 S.Ct. 3405, 3411-3412, 82 L.Ed.2d 677] (Leon)), an exclusionary rule has developed as a “judicially created remedy designed to safeguard Fourth Amendment rights generally through its deterrent effect” (United States v. Calandra (1974) 414 U.S. 338, 348 [94 S.Ct. 613, 620, 38 L.Ed.2d 561]). Since the rule‘s primary purpose is to “deter . . . unlawful police conduct” (id. at p. 347 [94 S.Ct. at p. 619]), it is applied most commonly where a police officer conducts a search which violates a person‘s Fourth Amendment rights in some significant way. However, the rule is also applied where a police officer conducts a search on the basis of faulty information from police sources. (See Ramirez, supra, 34 Cal.3d at p. 552.) As our Supreme Court has explained, even if an officer acts “in good faith reliance on . . . information communicated to him through ‘official channels,’ law enforcement officials are collectively responsible for keeping those channels free of outdated, incomplete, and inaccurate . . . information.” (Ibid.) Accordingly, the “test . . . is not merely the good faith of the individual officer in the field, but the good faith of law enforcement agencies of which he is a part.” (Ibid.; see also Miranda v. Superior Court (1993) 13 Cal.App.4th 1628, 1636 [16 Cal.Rptr.2d 858]; People v. Armstrong (1991) 232 Cal.App.3d 228, 241 [283 Cal.Rptr. 429].)
Outside of these two areas, however, courts have been reluctant to apply the exclusionary rule. For example in Leon, the issue was whether the rule should be applied to exclude evidence that is seized by a police officer conducting a search in objectively reasonable reliance on a warrant issued by a neutral and detached magistrate but that is later determined to be invalid. (468 U.S. at p. 900 [104 S.Ct. at p. 3409].) The court concluded exclusion was unwarranted under those circumstances, reasoning as follows: “First, the exclusionary rule is designed to deter police misconduct rather than to punish the errors of judges and magistrates. Second, there exists no evidence suggesting that judges and magistrates are inclined to ignore or subvert the Fourth Amendment or that lawlessness among these actors requires application of the extreme sanction of exclusion. [¶] Third, and most important, we discern no basis, and are offered none, for believing that exclusion of evidence seized pursuant to a warrant will have a significant deterrent effect on the issuing judge or magistrate.” (Id. at p. 916 [104 S.Ct. at p. 3417], fns. omitted.) The Leon principles are now well established in California law. (See, e.g., People v. Camarella (1991) 54 Cal.3d 592, 602-607 [286 Cal.Rptr. 780, 818 P.2d 63]; People v. Leonard (1996) 50 Cal.App.4th 878, 884-886 [57 Cal.Rptr.2d 845].)
Similarly, in Illinois v. Krull (1987) 480 U.S. 340, 342 [107 S.Ct. 1160, 1163, 94 L.Ed.2d 364] (Krull), the issue was whether the exclusionary rule should be applied to a search based upon statutory authority that was later declared unconstitutional. Following the rationale of Leon, the court noted that legislative action was beyond the control or influence of the police department, and that suppressing evidence because statutory authority was subsequently declared invalid would have no beneficial effect upon police
More recently, in Arizona v. Evans (1995) 514 U.S. 1, 3-4 [115 S.Ct. 1185, 1187-1188, 131 L.Ed.2d 34] (Evans), the issue was whether “evidence seized in violation of the Fourth Amendment by an officer who acted in reliance on a police record indicating the existence of an outstanding arrest warrant—a record that is later determined to be erroneous—must be suppressed by virtue of the exclusionary rule regardless of the source of the error.” Applying the framework developed in Leon, the court ruled that if a court employee was responsible for the erroneous information, exclusion of the evidence would not be warranted. “First . . . the exclusionary rule was historically designed as a means of deterring police misconduct, not mistakes by court employees. [Citations.] Second, respondent offers no evidence that court employees are inclined to ignore or subvert the Fourth Amendment or that lawlessness among these actors requires application of the extreme sanction of exclusion. [Citations.] . . . [¶] Finally, and most important, there is no basis for believing that application of the exclusionary rule in these circumstances will have a significant effect on court employees responsible for informing the police that a warrant has been quashed. Because court clerks are not adjuncts to the law enforcement team engaged in the often competitive enterprise of ferreting out crime [citation] they have no stake in the outcome of particular criminal prosecutions. [Citations.] The threat of exclusion of evidence could not be expected to deter such individuals from failing to inform police officials that a warrant had been quashed.” (Evans, supra, at pp. 14-15 [115 S.Ct. at p. 1193].) The ruling in Evans is also now established in California law. (See People v. Downing (1995) 33 Cal.App.4th 1641, 1654-1657 [40 Cal.Rptr.2d 176] (Downing) [Exclusion of evidence was not warranted where the arrest was made on the basis of erroneous information supplied by the judicial system.].)
Here, the search was conducted on the basis of faulty information supplied by Jiminez, the supervisor of the probation office, to Ishikawa, the searching police officer. For reasons that have been left unexplained, the computer system in the probation department showed appellant was subject to a search condition even though that condition was no longer in effect. Applying the principles of Leon, Krull, and Evans, we conclude the “extreme sanction of exclusion” was not warranted. (Evans, supra, 514 U.S. at p. 15 [115 S.Ct. at p. 1193].)
First, as was noted in Leon and Evans, the exclusionary rule was designed as a means to deter illegal conduct by police officers; and here, the incorrect
Second, Arron has not provided, and we are not aware of, any evidence that suggests juvenile probation officers are “inclined to ignore or subvert the Fourth Amendment or that lawlessness among these actors requires application of the extreme sanction of exclusion.” (Evans, supra, 514 U.S. at pp. 14-15 [115 S.Ct. at p. 1193].)
Third, we do not believe that applying the exclusionary rule in this context would have a significant effect on juvenile probation officers responsible for informing the police about the status of juvenile probationers. Probation officers are not “adjuncts to the law enforcement team.” (Evans, supra, 514 U.S. at p. 15 [115 S.Ct. at p. 1193].) Instead, as persons who are appointed by and who serve at the pleasure of the juvenile court, they are more like the court employees identified in Evans, who have “no stake in the outcome of particular criminal prosecutions.” (Ibid.) Furthermore, to the extent the threat of exclusion might, on some level, encourage probation officers to be more diligent about providing accurate information, a far more effective remedy already exists. If a probation officer fails to perform his job correctly, he can be disciplined or dismissed. (See
The result we reach here is consistent with at least one California case that has considered a similar issue. In People v. Tellez (1982) 128 Cal.App.3d 876 [180 Cal.Rptr. 579], the police conducted a search based on information from a parole officer who said the defendant was subject to a search
Our result is inconsistent with another case, People v. Howard (1984) 162 Cal.App.3d 8, 20-21 [208 Cal.Rptr. 353] (Howard), where the court ruled that a search conducted on the basis of incorrect information received from a probation officer had to be suppressed even if the searching officers had acted in good faith because the probation officer was within the collective knowledge of law enforcement. The ruling in Howard has been criticized by another court which stated its interpretation of the good faith exception was overly rigid. (Downing, supra, 33 Cal.App.4th 1641, 1652, fn. 17.) We agree with this criticism, and note further that Howard was decided long before the decisions in Krull and Evans, which limited and clarified the scope of the exclusionary rule. We respectfully decline to follow the holding of Howard on this issue.
Our dissenting colleague concludes the exclusionary rule must be applied in this case because various statutes that define the duties and responsibilities of probation officers show they are ” ‘adjunct[s] to the law enforcement team.’ ” (Dis. opn., post, at p. 1373.) In our view, none of the statutes the dissent cites undermines the essential fact that in a general law county such as Contra Costa, the juvenile probation department is effectively an arm of the juvenile court (see
The dissent also interprets our opinion as “suggest[ing] that the relationship between the probation office and the juvenile court insulates a probation officer from ever being deemed an adjunct to law enforcement.” (Dis. opn., post, at p. 1376.) That is not our holding, and we do not believe such a rule would be appropriate. Certainly, if a probation officer becomes enmeshed in law enforcement activities, such as if he actively participates in a search, it would be appropriate to conclude he is an ” ‘adjunct to the law enforcement team’ ” (id. at p. 1373) and, thus, apply the exclusionary rule. (Cf. Lo-Ji Sales, Inc. v. New York (1979) 442 U.S. 319, 326-328 [99 S.Ct. 2319, 2324-2325, 60 L.Ed.2d 920] [The court holds a search conducted pursuant to a warrant was invalid because the issuing magistrate was the leader of the search team and he actively participated in the search.].) However, contrary to the suggestion in the dissent, there is absolutely no evidence that Probation Officer Jiminez initiated, encouraged, or actively participated in the
Finally, the dissent cites Griffin v. Wisconsin (1987) 483 U.S. 868, 876 [107 S.Ct. 3164, 3169-3170, 97 L.Ed.2d 709] to support its conclusion that a probation officer is more like a police officer than a court employee. (Dis. opn., post, at p. 1376.) However, the portion of the case that the dissent cites fails to support its conclusion. The Griffin court stated, “Although a probation officer is not an impartial magistrate, neither is he the police officer who normally conducts searches against the ordinary citizen.” (483 U.S. at p. 876 [107 S.Ct. at p. 3170], italics added.) The passage from Griffin is, at best, equivocal on the issue under consideration here.
We conclude the trial court properly denied Arron‘s motion to suppress.5
III. DISPOSITION
The disposition is affirmed.
Haning, J., concurred.
JONES J., Concurring and Dissenting.—I concur in part and dissent in part. I agree with my colleagues that the People have implicitly conceded that the search in this case was conducted in violation of Arron C.‘s Fourth Amendment rights. I disagree with my colleagues as to the effect of this constitutional violation. The probation officer in this case acted sufficiently like an “adjunct to the law enforcement team” such that the juvenile court should have applied the exclusionary rule and hence granted Arron‘s request to suppress the evidence. I would reverse the juvenile court‘s jurisdictional finding.
I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
Although the majority has recited some of the facts, certain critical facts are not included in that recitation. Accordingly, I provide the following summary of the evidence on this issue.
Arron did not successfully complete this period of “informal probation.” On February 9, 1996, the juvenile court terminated informal probation, arraigned Arron and set the matter for contest on the allegations of the October 30 petition. On April 9, 1996, Detective David Ishikawa of the Concord Police Department was investigating a vehicle burglary. As part of that investigation, Ishikawa searched Arron‘s home. Ishikawa and the officers who assisted him in the search found items that had been stolen during the vehicle burglary.
On May 22, 1996, the probation department filed a two-count supplemental petition alleging that Arron had received stolen property in violation of
Arron moved to suppress the evidence found during the search of his residence on April 9, 1996. Detective Ishikawa testified at the suppression hearing that he conducted what he believed to be a probation search. Ishikawa explained that he spoke with the supervisor of probation officers, Probation Officer Samuel Jiminez, and gave Jiminez “a couple of names.” Jiminez responded that Arron‘s “name was on the probation list” and faxed information about Arron‘s probation to Ishikawa, “including information about the search and seizure clause.”
Jiminez also testified at the suppression hearing. Jiminez, like Ishikawa, explained that Ishikawa had inquired whether Arron “was on probation and if part of that probation included a search and seizure clause.” Jiminez, who was not Arron‘s probation officer, attempted to locate Arron‘s “file” or “folder” and when he was not successful, he consulted the computer “available to [him] in [his] office.” The computer indicated that Arron was on an informal grant of probation and that a search and seizure clause was a part of that probation. Jiminez faxed this information to Ishikawa. The record is silent as to the source of the data on Jiminez‘s computer. (See fn. 3, post.)
The referee denied Arron‘s motion and later sustained the first count of the supplemental petition and dismissed the second count.
II. DISCUSSION
A. Introduction
The majority acknowledges that for purposes of this appeal, we may presume that the search of Arron‘s home violated the Fourth Amendment. Accordingly, the question in this case is whether the exclusionary rule operates to suppress the evidence found in Arron‘s home. (In re Tyrell J. (1994) 8 Cal.4th 68, 75-76 [32 Cal.Rptr.2d 33, 876 P.2d 519] [exclusionary rule applies to
The United States Supreme Court has articulated a three-part analysis for determining whether the remedy of exclusion should apply in a particular case. (See Arizona v. Evans (1995) 514 U.S. 1 [115 S.Ct. 1185, 131 L.Ed.2d 34] (Evans); United States v. Leon (1984) 468 U.S. 897, 906 [104 S.Ct. 3405, 3411-3412, 82 L.Ed.2d 677] (Leon).) An important factor in that analysis is whether the individual providing the false information was an “adjunct[] to the law enforcement team.” (See Evans, supra, 514 U.S. at p. 15 [115 S.Ct. at p. 1193]; Leon, supra, 468 U.S. at pp. 916-917 [104 S.Ct. at pp. 3417-3418].) The decision of my colleagues implicitly acknowledges the significance of this factor. However, my colleagues conclude that the probation officer in this case was not an “adjunct[] to the law enforcement team.” (Maj. opn., ante, at p. 1371.) To reach that conclusion, the majority looked at one fact only: the relationship between the probation office and the juvenile court. Having found a close relationship between the probation office and the juvenile court, the majority decision considers its job done and concludes that the probation officer was not acting as an “adjunct[] to the law enforcement team.” (Ibid.)
The majority opinion‘s analysis fails for two reasons. First, it overplays the relationship between the juvenile court and the probation officer. Even
Second, and most importantly, the majority opinion‘s sole focus on the relationship between the probation office and the court suggests that the relationship between the probation office and the juvenile court insulates a probation officer from ever being deemed an adjunct to law enforcement. In essence, the majority creates a categorical or blanket exception for probation officers. The majority then weakly disclaims that it has created a categorical exception and in fact, acknowledges that such an exception would not be appropriate.
The United States Supreme Court‘s decision in Lo-Ji Sales, Inc. v. New York (1979) 442 U.S. 319 [99 S.Ct. 2319, 60 L.Ed.2d 920] (Lo-Ji Sales) teaches that despite an individual‘s judicial role, the court must conduct a fact-specific analysis to determine whether the individual acted as an adjunct to law enforcement in a particular situation. The United States Supreme Court first articulated the notion of an adjunct to law enforcement in Lo-Ji Sales. In that case, the town justice issued a warrant authorizing the search of a store and the seizure of two films. (Id. at p. 321 [99 S.Ct. at pp. 2321-2322].) The warrant did not describe with particularity any other items to be seized. (Id. at p. 325 [99 S.Ct. at pp. 2323-2324].) The warrant application requested that the town justice accompany the investigator to the store for the execution of the search warrant so that the town justice could “determine independently if any other items at the store were possessed in violation of law and subject to seizure.” (Id. at p. 321 [99 S.Ct. at pp. 2322].) The town justice agreed and while at the store directed the seizure of items in addition to the two films specified in the search warrant. (Id. at pp. 322-323 [99 S.Ct. at pp. 2322-2323].) The question before the United States Supreme Court was the validity of the warrant and the search and seizure of the property. (Id. at p. 324 [99 S.Ct. at p. 2323].) The United States Supreme Court concluded that the warrant and search and seizure violated the Fourth Amendment. The court acknowledged that a warrant authorized by a neutral and detached judicial officer is ” ‘a more reliable safeguard against improper searches than the hurried judgment of a law enforcement officer “engaged in
Lo-Ji Sales, supra, 442 U.S. 319 demonstrates that the conduct of a town justice can transform that town justice into an adjunct law enforcement officer. The relationship between the probation office and the juvenile court therefore cannot bar characterization of the probation officer as an adjunct law enforcement officer.2
B. Adjunct to Law Enforcement
I disagree with my colleagues’ conclusion because they neglect to perform the factual inquiry they concede is appropriate. In lieu of this requisite factual analysis, the majority opinion concludes that the probation officer was not acting as an adjunct to law enforcement because his conduct did not rise to the level of the conduct of the town justice in Lo-Ji Sales. The majority opinion errs in reading Lo-Ji Sales as defining the bounds beyond which an individual will be found to have acted as an adjunct to the law enforcement team; Lo-Ji Sales merely provides one example of activity by a judicial officer where the officer was no longer acting as a neutral party but instead as an “adjunct law enforcement officer.” (See Lo-Ji Sales, supra, 442 U.S. at p. 327 [99 S.Ct. at p. 2325].)
When I conduct the requisite factual analysis, I conclude that the probation officer in this case was acting as an adjunct to law enforcement. Unlike the town justice in Lo-Ji Sales, who became an adjunct to law enforcement because he interjected himself into police affairs, a probation officer enjoys, by statute, limited powers of a peace officer. (See
This dual role of juvenile probation officers is necessary because of the dual nature of the duties of a juvenile probation officer. A juvenile probation officer is a source of information for the court (see, e.g.,
In this case, Jiminez, the probation officer, provided information to the police at a time when Jiminez knew the police were going to use that information to conduct a search. Jiminez‘s act of providing information to the police differs significantly from the actions of the court clerk described
Given the relationship between the probation office and the police, the duties of a probation officer, and the specific purpose for which Jiminez provided the information to the police, I disagree with my colleagues’ conclusion that Jiminez was not acting as an adjunct to law enforcement. The conduct of the probation officer here was not that of a neutral, detached magistrate or that of a court clerk, but instead the conduct of an adjunct to law enforcement.
C. The Three Leon Factors
With this understanding of the role of probation officers, the three factors identified in Leon can be easily applied to determine the proper result. (See Evans, supra, 514 U.S. at pp. 14-16 [115 S.Ct. at pp. 1192-1194]; Leon, supra, 468 U.S. at pp. 915-916 [104 S.Ct. at pp. 3416-3417].) First, as was noted in Leon, the exclusionary rule was designed as a means of deterring police misconduct. (Leon, supra, 468 U.S. at p. 915 [104 S.Ct. at pp. 3416-3417].) Here, we have no evidence of misconduct by the police. Instead, the evidence at most suggests negligence either on the part of the probation supervisor and/or on the part of the juvenile probation department.4 However, a probation officer, while not strictly a police officer, plays a hybrid role of both peace officer and adjunct to the court. Thus, the facts here do not fall squarely within this first factor, but neither do they fall outside the concern addressed by this factor.
The second factor is whether probation officers are “inclined to ignore or subvert the Fourth Amendment or that lawlessness among these actors
As for Jiminez‘s efforts to locate the probation officer responsible for Arron‘s case, Jiminez testified that he will respond to a police inquiry such as this one when the probation officer assigned to the juvenile‘s case is unavailable at that moment for any reason, even if the probation officer has simply stepped away from his desk. Jiminez could not recall why the probation officer assigned to Arron‘s case was not available when Jiminez received this call.
Jiminez further testified that he consulted a source of information (the computer) which he knew to be less complete than the individual files of the probationers. The record does not tell us the extent of the deficiencies in that computer system and so we cannot evaluate how serious an issue is raised by the probation officer‘s reliance on that system. We know this much, though: In this instance the computer failed to reflect a change in status that had occurred two months earlier. While the evidence with regard to this factor is limited, it does suggest that the probation officer exercised less than adequate diligence before informing the police that an individual‘s residence was subject to warrantless search. I therefore find that this factor weighs in favor of Arron, even if only slightly.
The final and most important factor is whether there is a basis for believing that application of the exclusionary rule in these circumstances will have a significant effect on probation officers responsible for informing the police about the status of a juvenile probationer. (Leon, supra, 468 U.S. at p. 916 [104 S.Ct. at p. 3417].) I conclude that it would. Probation officers, unlike a detached and neutral magistrate or a court clerk, are “adjuncts to the law enforcement team,” at least to the extent that they serve as a resource to law enforcement agencies. (Cf.
The majority concludes that the deterrent effect of exclusion is unnecessary because the threat of discipline or dismissal of a negligent or errant
The majority decision also relies on People v. Tellez (1982) 128 Cal.App.3d 876 [180 Cal.Rptr. 579], but that decision does not provide any meaningful aid to the analysis that this court must conduct. The Tellez decision declined to apply the exclusionary rule to evidence obtained in reliance upon information provided to the police by a parole officer, even though the information later proved to be incorrect. (Id. at p. 880.) The Tellez decision was decided before the United States Supreme Court‘s decision in Leon, and it reaches its conclusion without considering or deciding whether a parole officer is an adjunct to law enforcement. Accordingly, the Tellez decision is not instructive.
For similar reasons, I have not premised this dissent on the result reached in People v. Howard (1984) 162 Cal.App.3d 8 [208 Cal.Rptr. 353]. In Howard, the Court of Appeal concluded that a search conducted on the basis of incorrect information received from a probation officer had to be suppressed even if the searching officers acted in good faith. (Id. at pp. 20-21.) The Howard decision apparently concludes, albeit without any analysis, that probation officers are part of the collective law enforcement network. (Ibid.)
This decision has therefore focused on the three Leon factors. In doing so, I conclude that the first factor is at best neutral, the second factor weighs somewhat in favor of exclusion and the final factor weighs significantly in favor of exclusion. I would therefore conclude that the trial court erred in denying Arron‘s motion to suppress the evidence found at his home. This
Lastly, because I would find that the probation officer in this case was acting as an adjunct to law enforcement, I must address the People‘s attempt to frame this appeal as presenting the issue of whether it would be objectively reasonable for an officer to believe that a search clause remains in effect even after revocation of the informal probation which imposed that search clause. “The prosecution has the burden of establishing the officer‘s ‘objectively reasonable’ reliance . . . .” (People v. Hernandez (1994) 30 Cal.App.4th 919, 924, fn. 3 [35 Cal.Rptr.2d 916], citations omitted; see also Leon, supra, 468 U.S. at p. 924 [104 S.Ct. at p. 3421].) The People failed to meet that burden. The testimony consistently and solely indicated that the probation supervisor informed the police officer that Arron was on informal probation, not that informal probation had been revoked. Thus, there was no testimony regarding any officer‘s belief that a search clause remains in effect even after the informal probation which imposed that search clause was revoked. The People‘s assertion that a reasonable police officer would have believed the search clause remained in affect in such a situation, supported by little or no legal analysis, is simply inadequate to carry the People‘s burden.
For these reasons, I would reverse the trial court‘s order sustaining the May 22, 1996, supplemental petition.
A petition for a rehearing was denied January 2, 1998, and appellant‘s petition for review by the Supreme Court was denied March 25, 1998. Mosk, J., Kennard, J., and Werdegar, J., were of the opinion that the petition should be granted.