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Boyd v. State2/15/2000
DATE OF JUDGMENT: 07/17/1998
TRIAL JUDGE: HON. ANDREW C. BAKER
COURT FROM WHICH APPEALED:YALOBUSHA COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT
NATURE OF THE CASE: CRIMINAL - FELONY
TRIAL COURT 09/17/1998: POSSESSION OF A CONTROLLED DISPOSITION: SUBSTANCE, COCAINE: SENTENCED TO SERVE A TERM OF (3) YEARS IN THE MDOC AS A HABITUAL OFFENDER; DEFENDANT IS ORDERED TO PAY A FINE IN THE AMOUNT OF $3,000.00, TOGETHER WITH COSTS OF COURT.
DISPOSITION: REVERSED AND RENDERED
. The Yalobusha County Circuit Court convicted Jimmie Boyd, a/k/a Jimmy Jerome Boyd, of possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute. On appeal, Boyd alleges that the trial court erred in (1) denying his motion to suppress all evidence found during the search of his vehicle, as it was the product of an illegal stop, (2) denying a peremptory instruction and a circumstantial evidence instruction, and (3) denying his motion for a new trial or, alternatively, a judgment notwithstanding the verdict. Boyd's first assignment of error is well taken. Accordingly, we reverse and render.
FACTS
. On September 10, 1997, while on patrol, Water Valley Police Officer Rick McCuan observed a vehicle being driven by Jimmie Boyd. Through his work as the court officer for the Water Valley municipal court system, Officer McCuan was aware that Boyd's driver's license had been suspended in 1989. Suspecting that Boyd was operating a vehicle with a suspended license, Officer McCuan flashed his blue lights and stopped Boyd.
. While Officer McCuan advised dispatch of his location and the license plate number of Boyd's vehicle, Boyd exited his vehicle and approached McCuan who instructed Boyd to return to his vehicle. Officer McCuan then approached the vehicle and asked to see Boyd's driver's license, at which point, Boyd admitted that his license had indeed been suspended. Officer McCuan then arrested Boyd and placed him in the back of the patrol car.
. When Officer McCuan first approached Boyd's vehicle, he smelled what he suspected to be marijuana. Officer McCuan also noticed that Boyd had four or five air fresheners hanging from his rearview mirror. Deciding that he had probable cause to suspect that the vehicle contained marijuana, Officer McCuan requested that the K-9 unit be called in to search the vehicle. The "drug-sniffing" dog searched Boyd's vehicle but failed to detect the presence of any illegal drugs. During the inventory search of the vehicle, Officer McCuan and another officer discovered a small white box stuffed in the back of the driver's seat. The box contained twenty-four rocks of cocaine, a razor blade, and a plastic bag containing more cocaine.
. Boyd was charged with possession of a controlled substance with the intent to distribute. Following a trial held in the Yalobusha County Circuit Court, Boyd was convicted and sentenced as an habitual offender to a term of three years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. Boyd was also ordered to pay a $3,000 fine.
DISCUSSION
WHETHER THE TRIAL COURT ERRED IN DENYING THE MOTION TO SUPPRESS
. Boyd contends that he was denied rights and privileges guaranteed to him by the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution and by Section 23 of the Mississippi Constitution of 1890 because the police officer who stopped him lacked probable cause or even reasonable suspicion to do so. He claims because the stop was illegal, the subsequent search and seizure was invalid as well. Accordingly, Boyd argues that the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress all evidence found inside his vehicle.
. At
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