United States of America v. Pedro Nunez-Rodriguez, a/k/a Raphael Diaz

UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
No. 99-4058
PEDRO NUNEZ-RODRIGUEZ, a/k/a
Raphael Diaz,
Defendant-Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Eastern District of Virginia, at Norfolk.
Henry C. Morgan, Jr., District Judge.
(CR-98-121)
Submitted: March 10, 2000
Decided: March 28, 2000
Before WILKINS, LUTTIG, and TRAXLER, Circuit Judges.
_________________________________________________________________
Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
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COUNSEL
James Kousouros, Kew Gardens, New York, for Appellant. Helen F.
Fahey, United States Attorney, Robert E. Bradenham, II, Assistant
United States Attorney, Paul D. Merullo, Third-Year Law Student,
Norfolk, Virginia, for Appellee.
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Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. See
Local Rule 36(c).
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OPINION
PER CURIAM:
Pedro Nunez-Rodriguez appeals the district court's order denying
his motion to suppress evidence and his jury conviction and resulting
252-month sentence for possession with intent to distribute cocaine in
violation of 21 U.S.C.A. §§ 841(a)(1), (b) (West 1994 & Supp. 1999)
and 18 U.S.C. § 2 (1994). We affirm.
Nunez-Rodriguez was operating a rental car when a Virginia state
trooper stopped him for exceeding the speed limit. A search of the
vehicle revealed approximately six kilograms of cocaine. Following
his arrest, Nunez-Rodriguez gave police a statement concerning his
drug trafficking activity. Prior to trial, Nunez-Rodriguez moved to
suppress the physical evidence collected from the vehicle and the
statement he gave police investigators following his arrest. The
motion was denied. At trial, he moved for a judgment of acquittal that
was denied.
Nunez-Rodriguez argues the district court erred in denying his
motion to suppress. He contends the evidence and statement were
products of a pretextual traffic stop, a vehicle search performed with-
out valid consent, and an involuntary, unknowing waiver of rights. He
further contends there was insufficient evidence to sustain the jury's
guilty verdict and that the court erred in denying his motion for judg-
ment of acquittal.
We have reviewed the record and the district court's order denying
the motion to suppress. Because police had an objective right to stop
Nunez-Rodriguez, there was no basis for the court to suppress evi-
dence on the ground that the stop was pretextual. See Ohio v. Robi-
nette, 519 U.S. 33, 38-40 (1996). As to the argument that the
vehicle's search was without consent, the court did not err in conclud-
ing that oral consent was given for the search. See United States v.
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Lattimore, 87 F.3d 647, 650 (4th Cir. 1996) (en banc). Furthermore,
even if Nunez-Rodriguez had not consented, he had no legitimate
expectation of privacy in the rental car. See United States v. Wellons,
32 F.3d 117 (4th Cir. 1994). The district court also did not err in
determining that Nunez-Rodriguez's waiver of rights and subsequent
statement to police was voluntary. See Schneckloth v. Bustamonte,
412 U.S. 218 (1973); United States v. Pelton, 835 F.2d 1067 (4th Cir.
1987). Finally, because the record contains substantial evidence to
support the jury's verdict, the court did not err in denying the motion
for judgment of acquittal. See Glasser v. United States, 315 U.S. 60,
80 (1942).
For these reasons, we affirm the district court's orders and Rodri-
guez' jury conviction. We dispense with oral argument because the
facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials
before the court and argument would not aid the decisional process.
AFFIRMED
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