United States v. Celestino Madrid

MEMORANDUM

Celestino Madrid appeals the district court’s denial of his motion to suppress evidence of methamphetamine found in his car following a stop by a California Highway Patrol (“CHP”) officer. Because it was not clear error for the district court to find probable cause for the stop, we affirm.

The district court did not err in applying the collective knowledge doctrine to impute the DEA task force’s knowledge to the CHP officer. Madrid does not dispute that the DEA investigators who observed him receive drugs from an undercover informant had probable cause to arrest. What Madrid contests is whether there was sufficient evidence of communication between the officers to impute the DEA investigators’ knowledge of the underlying facts to the arresting CHP officer.

While the collective knowledge doctrine assumes some “communication” between agents occurs, this Court made clear in United, States v. Ramirez, 473 F.3d 1026, 1033 (9th Cir.2007) that the doctrine applies so long as the officer with probable cause identifies the target and “directs or requests” another officer to conduct a stop. Id. at 1036 (“[W]here one officer directs another to take some action, there is…