After marijuana found in FedEx box, NC man claims illegal search. Judges disagre

[orthene]

https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article265381631.html

RALEIGH, NC In 2018, a Wake County drug agent stopped a package coming down the conveyor belt inside a Raleigh FedEx facility, noticing that it had been taped along all the seams. This raised a warning flag, court records said, as did the phone number listed for Joe Teague, the addressee: (888) 888-8888. So the agent pulled the box out the line for roughly 5 to 10 minutes until a drug-detecting dog, named Hydro, could give it a sniff. Hydro’s reaction triggered a search warrant, which led to 15 pounds of marijuana packed in vacuum-sealed bags, according to court records. Following Teague’s conviction on multiple drug-related charges, he argued to the NC Court of Appeals that the drug agents not only lacked probable cause to search the package but also were unjustified considering North Carolina has legalized industrial hemp. Because marijuana and hemp look and smell alike, he argued, agents on the scene had no way of telling the two apart without performing a chemical test.

But on Tuesday, the appeals court unanimously rejected Teague’s arguments, leaving the conviction intact. “In sum,” wrote Judge Valerie Zachary, “at every stage of the investigation — from the initial removal of the target package and the drug dog sniff at the FedEx facility through each search and seizure conducted pursuant to valid and lawfully obtained warrants — law enforcement officers complied with the requirements of the Fourth Amendment.”

SELF-STORAGE FACILITY

Joseph E. Teague III served just over a year in prison, getting paroled in 2021, state records show.

After the officer searched the package, he drove to the mailing address and discovered several people in the driveway, one of which later proved to be Teague, according to court documents. The investigator noticed a self-storage facility nearby, which also aroused suspicions. When he called FedEx, court records show, he learned that “Marcus” had called asking about its delivery. “Marcus” matched the sender’s name, though the agent learned the package had been mailed from a different spot than the sender’s California address. Using a database, he also found that the phone number on Teague’s package did not exist. When the investigator called “Marcus,” court records said, “Marcus acted with surprise, cussed and abruptly ended the call.”

The next day, several Wake County officers took Hydro to the storage units, where the dog “alerted” to one out-of-sight unit. While one investigator left to get a search warrant for the unit, the others saw Teague approaching it with a bag in his hand, according to court records. While they patted Teague down, one officer saw what he thought was “marijuana wax” inside the bag. With the warrant, records state, officers then searched the storage unit using Teague’s key, finding more vacuum-sealed bags of what looked like marijuana along with a brown substance they thought was “shatter,” or cooked-down THC. With another warrant to search Teague’s house, agents found “empty vacuum-sealed bags in a dresser drawer; a butane gas canister used to manufacture marijuana wax; a digital scale hidden behind a television; a bong; an e-cigarette with cartridges containing a brown liquid; and glass jars similar to those found in the search of Defendant’s storage unit.”

APPEALS COURT RULING
 
In his appeal, represented by Warren Hynson, Teague argues officers did not have reasonable suspicion to pull the package or temporarily detain it for the drug sniff. The trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress the evidence, Teague argued. But the three-judge appeals court panel noted his Fourth Amendment rights were not violated by the “mere removal” of the package from the FedEx conveyor, nor was a 5 to 10-minute search by an on-site dog an unreasonable seizure. The court cited a previous decision showing that although people have legitimate interest that their package not be opened and searched, they cannot reasonably expect that postal employees won’t open and view their contents. North Carolina permanently legalized hemp, which is used to make CBD products, earlier this summer after a temporary trial period. By law, it must contain less than .3 percent THC, the psychoactive chemical that produces a marijuana high. In his appeal, Teague argued drug agents did not determine how much THC was in the contents of its package and could not have made the legal distinction. The trial court, again, should have granted an order to dismiss. But the judges disagreed. “The passage of the Industrial Hemp Act, in and of itself, did not modify the State’s burden of proof at the various stages of our criminal proceedings,” Zachary wrote. Judges Allegra Collins and Chris Dillon concurred.

 

[jones]

Gee, I was told that marijuana is a medicine now, so what's the big deal?

On the other had, getting only a year in jail for all those charges sounds like a good deal--I'm guessing this was his first prior

[BurnMan]

I feel so much safer with this drug kingpin off the streets!

[orthene]

Seems like if you send a package and tape it around the edges, it's going to get flagged and searched. "Marcus" needs to be stealthier when it comes to sending sensitive items.

[jones]

Seems like if you send a package and tape it around the edges, it's going to get flagged and searched. "Marcus" needs to be stealthier when it comes to sending sensitive items.

Everytime I send anykind of package, I usually tape around the whole thing. Even if it's an envelope

[3V1L9371U5]

Hoooooold on just a min-ittt!



These are all good points of conversation.  However, I feel like we may have missed the most telling detail here.

The dog's name is HYDRO?  Really?

[BurnMan]

HYDRO!