United States v. Fred Leroy Gardner

Appellant Fred Gardner was convicted of distributing and conspiring to distribute methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841 (a)(1) and 846. On a previous appeal from the district court’s denial of his suppression motion, this court remanded for a post-conviction hearing. The district court found that the search of Gardner’s residence conducted by the police officers following his arrest did not violate the fourth amendment. We affirm.

A brief description of Gardner’s residence is essential to our resolution of this appeal. The residence, located on College Avenue in San Francisco, has three levels. The first level is a garage. The second, or primary, level contains most of the living areas. The third level, the upstairs, contains bedrooms and a bathroom. Entrance to the primary level is by a few stairs leading up from College Avenue. At the rear of the primary level is a back door from the kitchen which leads to some stairs from which one can reach the backyard and the garage. On the street level a door opens from the garage to the sidewalk, so a person can enter the garage from College Avenue, proceed to the backyard, and enter the rear of the residence through the…