United States v. Juan Arthur Zaragoza

OPINION

We must decide whether a border detention of an individual becomes an arrest unsupported by probable cause when a customs inspector briefly handcuffs him.

I

On February 11, 2001, Juan Arthur Zar-agoza drove a 1983 Chevrolet pickup truck with a camper into lane 18 at the San Ysidro Port of Entry between Mexico and the United States. Customs Inspector Edric Omgsioco was working on lane 18 at the primary inspection area, and he inquired about Zaragoza’s citizenship and purpose for visiting Mexico. Zaragoza replied that he was an American citizen returning to his home in Anaheim, California after visiting the women in Tijuana. He stated that he was not bringing anything into the United States from Mexico and, when asked about the vehicle’s registration, replied that he had owned the pickup for four months, but had not registered as its owner.

Inspector Omgsioco noticed that Zarago-za seemed nervous — his hands were shaking, he was avoiding eye contact, he was looking around, and he was fidgety inside his vehicle. Inspector Omgsioco began an inspection of the vehicle and noticed a non-factory compartment in the ceiling area of the camper shell, which he tapped. It…

concurring.

In United States v. Bravo, 295 F.3d 1002 (9th Cir.2002), a case addressing issues similar to those presented here, the court today holds that customs inspectors at the border may handcuff a detainee without any justification whatsoever. I dissented in Bravo because, in my view, there was no justification for the handcuffing. I join the majority here, however, because there was a particularized concern for handcuffing Zaragoza as the customs inspector escorted him from the primary to secondary inspection station.

A customs inspector testified that one of the reasons he handcuffed Zaragoza was that, based on the fact that he was looking down the freeway, Zaragoza could have been a potential “port-runner.” Zaragoza was looking toward the freeway, avoiding eye contact, and nervous. He was only about 20 feet away from two freeways. Based on Zaragoza’s behavior and the ease of escape, it was reasonable for the officers to handcuff Zaragoza for 20-25 seconds to mitigate the risk of flight.

As in Bravo , there was no evidence to suggest that there were particularized safety concerns that would have made it reasonable to handcuff Zaragoza, and therefore this cannot be an…

295 F.3d 1025 UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Juan Arthur ZARAGOZA, Defendant-Appellant. No. 01-50320. United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit. Argued and Submitted October 2, 2001. Submission Withdrawn December 3, 2001. Re-submitted May 13, 2002. Filed July 8, 2002. Benjamin L. Coleman, Federal Defenders of San Diego, Inc., San Diego, California, argued the cause for the defendant-appellant. Patrick K. O'Toole, United States Attorney, San Diego, California, argued the cause for the plaintiff-appellee; Bruce R. Castetter, Assistant United States Attorney, and Roopal R. Shah, Assistant United States Attorney, San Diego, California, were on the brief. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of California Judith N. Keep, District Judge, Presiding. Before: O'SCANNLAIN, PAEZ, Circuit Judges, and KING, * District Judge. OPINION O'SCANNLAIN, Circuit Judge. OPINION 1 We must decide whether a border detention of an individual becomes an arrest unsupported by probable cause when a customs inspector briefly handcuffs him. 2 * On February 11, 2001, Juan Arthur Zaragoza drove a 1983 Chevrolet pickup truck with a camper into lane 18 at the…