Pubdate: Tue, 27 Mar 2001
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (WI)
Copyright: 2001 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Contact:  P.O. Box 661, Milwaukee, WI 53201
Fax: 414-224-8280
Website: http://www.jsonline.com/
Forum: http://www.jsonline.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimate.cgi
Author: Tom Kertscher, Journal Sentinel staff

APPEALS COURT RULING OVERTURNS GLENDALE MARIJUANA CONVICTION

Glendale police committed a "purposeful and flagrant" violation of a man's 
constitutional rights by searching his motel room under false pretenses, a 
state appeals court has ruled.

The ruling by the 1st District Court of Appeals in Milwaukee, which 
reversed the felony marijuana conviction of David L. Munroe last week, used 
colorful rhetoric to condemn the tactics.

"Sadly, the officers here used their ruse about wanting to check Munroe's 
identification to mimic those myrmidons (followers) of King George who 
bedeviled the colonists with their General Warrants and Writs of 
Assistance, which gave the king's agents license to search everywhere and 
everyone," Judge Ralph Adam Fine wrote.

The ruling continued by saying that the officers "were not investigating 
information that (Munroe) was involved in any illegal activity; they were 
doing a general sweep. Their violation of Munroe's constitutional rights 
was purposeful and flagrant."

Glendale Police Chief Thomas Czarnszka said he had not received a copy of 
the decision and had no comment on it.

The ruling reversed former Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Russell Stamper, 
who refused to disallow the use of marijuana as evidence because of how it 
had been obtained.

As is detailed in the appeals court opinion, two Glendale police officers 
were on a "hotel interdiction" operation in which they checked the city's 
hotels for any illegal activity, but primarily drugs. They decided to knock 
on Munroe's door at 7 a.m. May 25, 1999, because records showed he paid 
cash for the room without showing a photo identification.

One of the officers told Munroe they were there because he was required to 
show a photo ID - even though, the appeals court pointed out, Glendale's 
ordinance required only identification, not a photo ID. After Munroe showed 
the officer his Social Security card, saying he didn't have a photo ID, the 
officer asked if he could search the room for anything illegal.

Munroe said he would "rather not," but later consented to the search after 
the officer continued questioning him and said the motel was a haven for 
drug activity. The officers found marijuana in Munroe's backpack.

The appeals court pointed out that - although the officers admitted in 
court proceedings that they questioned Munroe not fo identification but for 
illegal activity - Munroe let them in and cooperated with them because they 
said they were only interested in his identification.

Once the officers had confirmed that Munroe had not violated the city's 
hotel ordinance, they had no authority to conduct a search and by 
continuing to question Munroe and asking to conduct the search, his consent 
was no longer voluntary, the court said.

Munroe, 21, who lived in Two Rivers at the time, pleaded guilty to felony 
marijuana possession and was sentenced to two years of probation.
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