United States v. Romero
749 F.3d 900, 2014 U.S. App. LEXIS 6955, 2014 WL 1424529 (2014)
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Rule of Law:
Under the Fourth Amendment, a stepparent who owns a home has apparent authority to consent to a search of an adult stepchild's bedroom, and officers may reasonably rely on that consent unless they are aware of facts that would rebut the presumption of control.
Facts:
- On April 10, 2009, Naay-aitch Friday and his friend, Fabian Madrid, met Carl Romero and two other men in a green Chevrolet Cavalier.
- During an encounter at a drive-in, the men in the Cavalier offered Madrid the use of a 'long rifle type' gun that was in their car.
- Later that evening, Friday, Madrid, Romero, and the other men went to a local casino, with Friday riding in the Cavalier.
- Casino security observed the Cavalier driving erratically, spoke with the occupants, and recorded the vehicle's license plate number.
- Madrid was later dropped off, leaving Friday alone in the Cavalier with Romero and the other two men; at the time, Friday possessed about $400 and a full bottle of vodka.
- The next day, Friday’s body was found in an arroyo, having been killed at close range with a shotgun.
- The Cavalier was registered to Romero’s aunt at an address where Romero lived in a house owned by his stepfather, Orlando Martinez.
- When federal agents arrived at the residence, Martinez identified himself as Romero's stepfather and gave the agents permission to walk through the house.
Procedural Posture:
- Carl Romero was indicted in the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico on counts including assault and first-degree murder.
- Romero filed motions in the district court to suppress evidence found in the Chevrolet Cavalier and his bedroom, as well as his subsequent confession.
- The district court denied the motions to suppress.
- Following a trial, a jury found Romero guilty on all counts, convicting him of second-degree murder instead of first-degree.
- Romero, as the appellant, appealed the district court's denial of his suppression motions to the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.
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Issue:
Does a homeowner have apparent authority under the Fourth Amendment to consent to a search of an adult stepchild's bedroom, based on the presumption of control arising from the parent-child relationship, when officers are unaware of facts that would rebut that authority?
Opinions:
Majority - Hartz
Yes, a homeowner has apparent authority under these circumstances. The court holds that the search was reasonable because the officers' reliance on the stepfather's consent was objectively reasonable at the time. The court extends the presumption that a parent has 'control for most purposes' over a home, including their child's room, to the stepparent-stepchild relationship. When officers are confronted with a homeowner who identifies as the defendant's stepparent, a presumption of authority to consent to a search of the entire premises arises. This presumption is sufficient to establish apparent authority, and officers have no duty to make further inquiries unless they are presented with ambiguous facts or facts that specifically rebut that presumption, such as knowledge that the stepson pays rent or keeps his door locked against the stepparent. Because the agents were unaware of the lock on Romero's door or that Martinez did not typically enter the room, their belief in Martinez's authority was reasonable.
Analysis:
This decision expands the scope of third-party consent searches within the Tenth Circuit by formally extending the parental consent presumption established in United States v. Rith to stepparents. It clarifies that the objective reasonableness of an officer's belief in a party's authority does not require them to investigate for potential rebuttal evidence once a strong presumption of control, based on a familial relationship and home ownership, has been established. This lowers the burden for law enforcement when seeking consent and may limit an adult child's expectation of privacy when living in a parent's or stepparent's home.
