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State v. Veniegas8/8/1995
OPINION OF THE COURT BY BURNS, C.J.
Defendant Alejandro Veniegas (Veniegas) appeals the First Circuit Court's July 14, 1993 Judgment, upon a jury's verdict, convicting him of Promoting a Dangerous Drug in the Second Degree, Hawai'i Revised Statutes (HRS) § 712-1242(1)(b)(i) (Supp. 1992), and Unlawful Use of Drug Paraphernalia, HRS § 329-43.5(a) (Supp. 1992).
The issue before us is whether the circuit court reversibly erred, on May 26, 1992, when it entered its Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law and Order Denying Defendant's Motion to Suppress Evidence (May 26, 1992 Order).
We vacate the May 26, 1992 Order and the July 14, 1993 Judgment and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
FACTS
On January 28, 1991, at or about six o'clock p.m., Honolulu police officers Mark Cricchio (Officer Cricchio) and Harvey Hisatake were monitoring traffic from the Pablo Recreation Center parking lot. The officers observed Veniegas driving a white convertible Mustang automobile (Mustang) at a high speed around a corner. As the Mustang passed the officers, they observed that Veniegas was not wearing a seat belt. The officers pursued, and Veniegas stopped.
Officer Cricchio informed Veniegas that he was stopped because he was not wearing a seat belt. Officer Cricchio then asked Veniegas for his driver's license, no-fault insurance card, and the Mustang's registration. Veniegas explained that he did not have any of those items because he lost his wallet and the Mustang was rented by his friend. Veniegas offered his social security number and a traffic citation he had received the previous night. Officer Cricchio observed a long black case on the passenger seat of the Mustang.
Officer Cricchio returned to his police car and verified that Veniegas had a valid driver's license, the Mustang was owned by Budget Rent-A-Car, the Mustang had not been reported stolen, and the rental contract did not permit Veniegas to operate the Mustang. During this time, the officers observed Veniegas place some object underneath the front seat of the Mustang.
When Officer Cricchio returned to the Mustang, he ordered Veniegas out of it based on the following facts: (1) the rental contract did not permit Veniegas to operate the Mustang; (2) Veniegas had no driver's license in his immediate possession; (3) Veniegas did not exhibit a no-fault insurance identification card; and (4) Veniegas did not present the Mustang's registration. Officer Cricchio testified:
I came back to the vehicle -- upon the checks we had -- I had dispatch check with Budget, Budget Rent-A-Car. And he in fact was not on the contract to drive that car. So based on that he had no driver's license although he had a valid license. He had nothing on his person, no insurance in the car, no registration in the car. I ordered him out of that car. He couldn't drive that car.
As Veniegas exited, Officer Cricchio noticed, on the driver's seat, two clear plastic bags containing a crystal-like substance, later identified to be methamphetamine. Veniegas stated, "That's not mine." Officer Cricchio testified that the seized evidence was not in plain view until he ordered Veniegas out of the Mustang. Officer Cricchio also noticed and recovered from the floor of the Mustang a dark blue shaving kit, containing several empty plastic bags and two glass pipes, each of which contained a "crystal like substance." Veniegas was then arrested.
On November 19, 1991, Veniegas was indicted as follows: Count I, Promoting a Dangerous Drug in the Second Degree (Count I); Count II, Unlawful Use of Drug Paraphernal
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