United States v. Andaya-Duarte , 25 F. App'x 200 ( 2002 )


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  •                          UNPUBLISHED
    UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
    FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
    UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,              
    Plaintiff-Appellee,
    v.
    EZEQUIEL ANDAYA-DUARTE; JAVIER                   No. 01-4320
    SANCHEZ-DUARTE, a/k/a Javier
    Duarte-Sanchez,
    Defendants-Appellants.
    
    Appeal from the United States District Court
    for the Middle District of North Carolina, at Durham.
    Frank W. Bullock, Jr., District Judge.
    (CR-00-342)
    Submitted: December 21, 2001
    Decided: January 24, 2002
    Before WILKINS, NIEMEYER, and MOTZ, Circuit Judges.
    Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
    COUNSEL
    Benjamin D. Porter, MORROW, ALEXANDER, TASH, KURTZ &
    PORTER, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, for Appellants. Benjamin
    H. White, Jr., United States Attorney, Steven H. Levin, Assistant
    United States Attorney, Bradley Staley, Third Year Law Student,
    Greensboro, North Carolina, for Appellee.
    2                 UNITED STATES v. ANDAYA-DUARTE
    Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. See
    Local Rule 36(c).
    OPINION
    PER CURIAM:
    Ezequiel Andaya-Duarte and Javier Sanchez-Duarte were charged
    with conspiracy to distribute cocaine hydrochloride and possession
    with intent to distribute cocaine hydrochloride. Andaya-Duarte was
    additionally charged with illegally re-entering the United States after
    deportation. After the district court denied their motion to suppress,
    Defendants pled guilty to the charges, reserving their right to appeal
    the district court’s denial of his motion to suppress. Andaya-Duarte
    and Sanchez-Duarte were sentenced to a total of 148 months and 134
    months imprisonment, respectively.
    On appeal, Defendants claim that their encounter with the police
    officers in the parking lot constituted a seizure for purposes of the
    Fourth Amendment that was unsupported by reasonable suspicion.
    They thus claim that the evidence found during the search of their
    property should have been suppressed as tainted fruit of the illegal
    seizure. This court reviews the factual findings underlying a motion
    to suppress for clear error, while reviewing the legal determinations
    de novo. United States v. Rusher, 
    966 F.2d 868
    , 873 (4th Cir. 1992).
    When a suppression motion has been denied, review of the evidence
    is made in the light most favorable to the government. United States
    v. Seidman, 
    156 F.3d 542
    , 547 (4th Cir. 1998).
    We have reviewed the briefs, the material submitted in the joint
    appendix, and the transcript of the district court’s hearing on the
    motion to suppress. We find that the district court properly concluded
    that even assuming Defendants’ encounter with the police constituted
    a seizure for purposes of the Fourth Amendment, the stop was sup-
    ported by reasonable suspicion. See J.A. at 178-95. Hence, we find no
    error in the district court’s denial of the motion to suppress.
    Accordingly, we affirm Andaya-Duarte’s and Sanchez-Duarte’s
    convictions and sentences. We dispense with oral argument because
    UNITED STATES v. ANDAYA-DUARTE                     3
    the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materi-
    als before the court and argument would not aid the decisional pro-
    cess.
    AFFIRMED
    

Document Info

Docket Number: 01-4320

Citation Numbers: 25 F. App'x 200

Judges: Motz, Niemeyer, Per Curiam, Wilkins

Filed Date: 1/24/2002

Precedential Status: Non-Precedential

Modified Date: 8/6/2023