United States v. Allen Manuel

MEMORANDUM

Defendant-Appellant Allen Roderick Manuel appeals his conviction for being a felon in possession of ammunition under 18 U.S.C. § 924 (a)(2). He contends the district court erred in denying his motion to suppress because the officers lacked probable cause to arrest him. In addition, Manuel argues the district court erred at trial by excluding certain out-of-court statements as hearsay. Finally, he seeks to vacate the portion of his sentence imposing a special condition on his supervised release.

The officers had probable cause to arrest Manuel. Officers found an open and cold bottle of alcohol under the front passenger seat of the truck where he was sitting, and he had easy access to the bottle. This provided a “fair probability” that Manuel was in possession of an open container of alcohol in violation of a local ordinance. See Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. 213, 230-33, 238 , 103 S.Ct. 2317 , 76 L.Ed.2d 527 (1983). The district court therefore did not err in denying the motion to suppress.

At trial, the district court rejected as hearsay the out-of-court statement of the backseat passenger, claiming ownership of the gun found in the truck. Manuel argues the statement…