Arizona DUI & Criminal Defense Attorney Blog
In a recently decided case in an Arizona court, the court denied a defendant’s motion to suppress physical evidence because of the defendant’s lack of legitimate expectation of privacy under the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution. This case highlights the complicated nature of searches and seizures under the law and the importance of having an experienced criminal law attorney to assist in your defense.
The Facts of the Case
According to the opinion, an eight-month pregnant woman was driving in her car with her daughter when the driver of another vehicle ran her off the road as she attempted to merge into a new lane. The husband of the pregnant woman was driving directly behind his wife and witnessed the driver of the other vehicle cause his wife to almost hit a parked vehicle. As a result, the husband followed behind the other vehicle and yelled to the driver about running his wife off the road. The defendant, who was a passenger in the other car, fired a gun at the husband’s vehicle three times which caused a flat tire.
The husband and wife reported the incident to the police and reported the other car’s location after the pair followed the defendant. The defendant was dropped off at a community college while carrying two bags and dropped one of the bags in one of the lockers in a locker room. After checking the school’s surveillance video, a police officer searched the locker room. In a locker with mesh-like sides, the officer eventually found a similar-looking bag. The officer found the gun used in the shooting. The defendant filed a motion to suppress evidence found in the locker, arguing that his Fourth Amendment rights were violated due to the warrantless search of the locker. The lower court denied the motion. Despite arguing that his actions were a form of self-defense and defense of others in the car, the defendant was found guilty.
The Court’s Opinion
On appeal, the defendant argued that the lower court made an error by relying on the school’s special needs exception to the Fourth Amendment’s warrant requirement. This court explained that the Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable searches and seizures, but that there are a few exceptions when searches conducted without a warrant are allowed. One of those exceptions is the school special needs exception which allows school officials to conduct reasonable searches when they believe the search will reveal evidence that a student has violated the law or a school rule. The court did not address the defendant’s argument against the school’s special needs exception because the court found that the defendant did not have a legitimate expectation of privacy in the locker.
The court further explains that the Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable searches and seizures only apply when the defendant has a legitimate expectation of privacy in the item searched and that this legitimate expectation of privacy requires the person to show both a subjective and objective expectation of privacy. Here, the locker had mesh-like sides, which made its contents easily visible to others, and the locker and the locker room could be used by visiting athletes and non-athletes. Additionally, the campus police had authority from the college administrators to empty the lockers regularly. Because the locker contents were knowingly exposed to others by the defendant and because the defendant did not have exclusive control over the locker, there was no reasonable expectation of privacy in the locker. Thus, the defendant did not have protections under the Fourth Amendment for the contents in the locker, and his motion to suppress was properly denied by the lower court.
Have You Been Charged with a Crime in Arizona?
If you or someone you know has been charged with a crime in Arizona, contact the Law Office of James E. Novak to get help from an experienced criminal defense attorney. Attorney Novak is a dedicated Tempe criminal defense lawyer with extensive experience in handling a variety of serious crimes, and has a firm understanding of Fourth Amendment rights and motions to suppress. To learn more and to schedule a free consultation, call 480-413-4199 today.