| Probable cause affidavit: |
SUBMITTED BY: TACKETT, MIKEL 0383 (AR08101116) DID UNLAWFULLY HAVE IN HIS ACTUAL OR CONSTRUCTIVE POSSESSION WITH THE INTENT TO USE, OR DID UNLAWFULLY USE, AN OBJECT INTENDED OR DESIGNED FOR USE IN STORING, CONCEALING OR INJECTING, INGESTING, INHALING OR OTHERWISE INTRODUCING INTO THE HUMAN BODY, A CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE, TO WIT: MARIJUANA, SAID OBJECT BEING A GRINDING TOOL, IN VIOLATION OF FLORIDA STATE STATUTES 893.145 AND 893.147. ON 010708 WHILE PATROLLING THE AREA OF SOUTH SUNCOAST BOULEVARD RUNNING RADAR, AS WELL AS VEHICLE LICENSE PLATES, I OBSERVED A WHITE MERCURY GRAND MARQUIS BEARING FLORIDA TAG NUMBER I516WF IN THE AREA OF SOUTH SUNCOAST BOULEVARD, NORTH OF WEST GREEN ACRES STREET, TRAVELING NORTHBOUND. UPON FOLLOWING THE VEHICLE INFORMATION WAS RECEIVED THROUGH FCIC/NCIC AND DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAY SAFETY AND MOTOR VEHICLES (DHSMV) THAT THE VEHICLE WAS REGISTERED TO THE DEFENDANT MR TRAVIS NOVAK, WHOSE DRIVER'S LICENSE WAS SHOWING TO HAVE BEEN SUSPENDED TWICE ON 122607, AS WELL AS AN ADDITIONAL SUSPENSION REFERENCE INSURANCE. AT THAT TIME I OBSERVED THE WHITE MALE DRIVER, AS WELL AS A WHITE FEMALE FRONT SEAT PASSENGER AND A WHITE MALE BACKSEAT PASSENGER. AT THAT TIME I RAN THE REGISTERED OWNER'S NAME THROUGH THE DAVID PROGRAM AND OBTAINED A PHOTOGRAPH OF THE REGISTERED OWNER. IT SHOULD BE NOTED THE VEHICLE WAS OBSERVED TO STOP IN A TURN LANE AT A RED LIGHT AT THE INTERSECTION OF WEST HALL'S RIVER ROAD AND U S HIGHWAY 19, AT WHICH TIME I WAS CLEARLY ABLE TO OBSERVE THAT THE DRIVER OF THE ABOVE VEHICLE WAS TRAVIS NOVAK. UPON THE LIGHT TURNING GREEN THE VEHICLE WAS OBSERVED TO MAKE A LEFT TURN ONTO HALLS RIVER ROAD FROM U S HIGHWAY 19, AT WHICH TIME I FOLLOWED THE VEHICLE AND INITIATED A TRAFFIC STOP ON WEST HALL'S RIVER ROAD NEXT TO BUSINESS LOCATED AT 3942 SOUTH SUNCOAST BOULEVARD, WHERE THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO TURN INTO THE BACK SIDE OF THE PARKING LOT BEHIND PUBLIX SUPERMARKET. I MADE CONTACT WITH THE DRIVER AND REQUESTED HIS DRIVER'S LICENSE, REGISTRATION AND PROOF OF INSURANCE. THE DRIVER ADVISED HE DID NOT HAVE THE REQUESTED PAPERWORK AND DID NOT HAVE HIS LICENSE ON HIM. AT THAT TIME THE DRIVER WAS ASKED TO EXIT THE VEHICLE AND WAS INFORMED WHY THE TRAFFIC STOP HAD BEEN INITIATED, DUE TO HIS LICENSE SHOWING MULTIPLE SUSPENSIONS AND THAT WAS WHY HE DID NOT HAVE HIS DRIVER'S LICENSE ON HIM. AT THAT TIME DEFENDANT NOVAK DID NOT ANSWER THIS DEPUTY'S QUESTIONS. I INFORMED THE DEFENDANT HIS LICENSE WAS SUSPENDED FOR FAILURE TO PAY TRAFFIC FINES AND ASKED HIM WHAT OCCURS WHEN A PERSON DOES NOT PAY A TRAFFIC FINE, TO WHICH HE ADVISED "THEY SUSPEND IT". DEFENDANT NOVAK WAS ASKED IF ANYONE ELSE IN THE VEHICLE HAD A VALID DRIVER'S LICENSE, TO WHICH HE ADVISED, "SHE DOES". AT THAT TIME I MADE CONTACT WITH THE FRONT SEAT PASSENGER, DEFENDANT KATEE HARGIS AND BACK SEAT PASSENGER/WITNESS. AT THAT TIME I WAS PROVIDED WITH THE FEMALE DEFENDANT'S DRIVER'S LICENSE AND THE BACK SEAT PASSENGER'S ID CARD. IMMEDIATELY UPON THEM OPENING THE PASSENGER SIDE DOORS TO THE VEHICLE I COULD SMELL A VERY STRONG ODOR OF MARIJUANA/CANNABIS EMITTING FROM THE VEHICLE, WHICH WAS IDENTIFIED BY THIS DEPUTY'S TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE. ADDITIONALLY IT SHOULD BE NOTED THE WIND IN THE AREA WAS OBSERVED TO BE BLOWING ROM THE WEST TO THE EAST AND I WAS ABLE TO SMELL THE ODOR STANDING ON THE EAST SIDE OF THE VEHICLE. AT THAT TIME BOTH SUBJECTS WERE ASKED WHY I WAS ABLE TO DETECT THE ODOR OF MARIJUANA/CANNABIS, TO WHICH THEY STATED THEY DID NOT KNOW. AT THAT TIME DEPUTY MCLAUGHLIN AND CORPORAL CORBIN ARRIVED ON SCENE. BOTH SUBJECTS WERE ASKED TO EXIT THE VEHICLE AND ALL THREE WERE INFORMED THAT DUE TO FLORIDA STATE "PLAIN SMELL DOCTRINE", THE VEHICLE WOULD BE SEARCHED. I ASKED IF THERE WERE ANY ILLEGAL CONTRABAND, NARCOTICS OR DRUGS WHICH WOULD BE LOCATED, TO WHICH DEFENDANT NOVAK STATED, "NOT TO MY KNOWLEDGE." AT THAT TIME CORPORAL CORBIN WALKED UP TO THE VEHICLE AND ALSO ADVISED HE DETECTED THE ODOR OF MARIJUANA EMANATING FROM THE VEHICLE. A SEARCH OF THE VEHICLE WAS THEN CONDUCTED AND A CLEAR PLASTIC BAGGIE CONTAINING APPROXIMATELY 7.3 GRAMS OF MARIJUANA WAS LOCATED UNDER THE FRONT DRIVER'S SEAT. FURTHER SEARCH REVEALED NUMEROUS STEMS, LEAVES AND SEEDS SCATTERED ON THE FRONT FLOOR BOARDS. THE DEFENDANTS WERE ADVISED OF THE DISCOVERY OF THE MARIJUANA, AT WHICH TIME ALL THREE SUBJECTS CONTINUED TO DENY KNOWLEDGE OF THE MARIJUANA. THEY WERE INFORMED ALL THREE WOULD BE SUBJECT TO ARREST, TO WHICH THEY CONTINUED TO DENY ANY KNOWLEDGE. WHILE SEARCHING THE VEHICLE A METALLIC CYLINDRICAL ITEM RESEMBLING A STACK OF EIGHT POKER CHIPS WAS OBSERVED IN DEFENDANT HARGIS'S PURSE. AT THAT TIME THE ITEM WAS IDENTIFIED BY THIS DEPUTY AS AN ITEM WHICH CAN BE USED AS A GRINDER FOR GRINDING MARIJUANA FOR THE PURPOSE OF PREPARING IT TO BE SMOKED. AT THAT TIME THE ITEM WAS REMOVED FROM THE PURSE AND UPON OPENING IT, MARIJUANA RESIDUE WAS OBSERVED. THE PURSE WAS THEN SEARCHED. NO FURTHER CONTRABAND OR ILLEGAL SUBSTANCES WERE LOCATED IN THE PURSE. AT THAT TIME I MADE CONTACT AGAIN WITH DEFENDANT TRAVIS NOVAK, WHO WAS READ HIS MIRANDA RIGHTS VIA MY PREPRINTED AGENCY CARD AND HE ADVISED HE DID NOT WISH TO SPEAK WITH ME IN REFERENCE TO MARIJUANA BEING LOCATED UNDER HIS SEAT. CONTACT WAS THEN MADE WITH DEFENDANT MS KATEE HARGIS, WHO WAS READ HER MIRANDA RIGHTS VIA THIS DEPUTY'S AGENCY PREPRINTED CARD. SHE ADVISED SHE DID NOT WISH TO SPEAK WITH THIS DEPUTY IN REFERENCE TO THE DRUG PARAPHERNALIA WHICH HAD BEEN LOCATED IN HER PURSE. AT THAT TIME I MADE CONTACT WITH THE BACK SEAT PASSENGER/WITNESS WHO WAS READ HIS MIRANDA RIGHTS VIA THIS DEPUTY'S PREPRINTED CARD AND HE ADVISED HE WOULD SPEAK WITH ME. HE ADVISED THAT HE DID NOT HAVE KNOWLEDGE OF THE MARIJUANA OR THE PARAPHERNALIA IN THE VEHICLE AND THAT NEITHER ITEM WAS HIS. HE FURTHER ADVISED THAT ALTHOUGH HE COULD SMELL THE MARIJUANA IN THE VEHICLE, HE HAD ENTERED THE VEHICLE IN ORDER TO OBTAIN A RIDE FROM DEFENDANT NOVAK SO HE COULD BE DRIVEN HOME. HE FURTHER ADVISED HE HAD JUST RECENTLY BEEN RELEASED FROM PRISON AND WAS TRYING TO DO WHATEVER HE COULD TO BE AS COOPERATIVE AS POSSIBLE DUE TO THE MARIJUANA BEING LOCATED DIRECTLY BENEATH DEFENDANT NOVAK, HE WAS ARRESTED FOR CONSTRUCTIVE POSSESSION OF MARIJUANA AND ADVISED OF HIS CHARGE. HE ALSO RECEIVED CITATION 4234-ETP REFERENCE DRIVING WHILE LICENSE SUSPENDED UNKNOWINGLY DEFENDANT HARGIS WAS ADVISED SHE WAS BEING ARRESTED FOR POSSESSION OF DRUG PARAPHERNALIA REGARDING THE PARAPHERNALIA FOUND IN HER PURSE. IT SHOULD BE NOTED PRIOR TO DEFENDANT NOVAK ENTERING DEPUTY MCLAUGHLIN'S VEHICLE IN REFERENCE TO TRANSPORT TO CITRUS COUNTY DETENTION FACILITY, HE ASKED THIS DEPUTY WHAT HE COULD DO AT THAT POINT SO HE COULD GO HOME, AND I ADVISED H IM I WAS UNABLE TO FURTHER SPEAK WITH HIM IN REFERENCE TO HIS INVOKING HIS MIRANDA RIGHTS. BOTH DEFENDANTS WERE HANDCUFFED, DOUBLE LOCKED BEHIND THEIR BACKS, AND TRANSPORTED TO THE CITRUS COUNTY DETENTION FACILITY FOR PROCESSING. THE WITNESS WAS RELEASED ON SCENE. DAVE'S AUTO BODY RESPONDED IN REFERENCE TO TOWING THE VEHICLE FROM THE INCIDENT LOCATION. *NOT-EXEMPT* |
