Nathan Webb v. Lynne Brawn

Filing

UNPUBLISHED PER CURIAM OPINION filed. Motion disposition in opinion--denying Motion to appoint counsel [999572401-2] Originating case number: 5:12-ct-03042-BO. Copies to all parties and the district court/agency. [999659200]. Mailed to: Nathan Webb. [15-6332]

Appeal: 15-6332

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UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 15-6332

NATHAN WEBB, a/k/a Nathaniel R. Webb,
Plaintiff - Appellant,
v.
LYNNE BRAWN; JAMES F. SMITH; MARK VAN HOUTEN,
Defendants - Appellees.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern
District of North Carolina, at Raleigh.
Terrence W. Boyle,
District Judge. (5:12-ct-03042-BO)

Submitted:

August 27, 2015

Decided:

September 14, 2015

Before MOTZ, KING, and THACKER, Circuit Judges.

Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

Nathan Webb, Appellant Pro Se.
John Thomas Crook, BAILEY &
DIXON, Raleigh, North Carolina, for Appellees.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.

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PER CURIAM:
Nathan Webb appeals the district court’s judgment granting
summary judgment to the Defendants on the basis of qualified
immunity

and

dismissing

Webb’s

civil

rights

pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (2012).
Defendants

violated

his

Fourth

complaint

filed

Webb claimed that the

Amendment

protection

against

unreasonable search and seizure during a warrantless search of
his home.

We affirm.

We review the grant of summary judgment de novo.

Pender v.

Bank of Am. Corp., 788 F.3d 354, 361 (4th Cir. 2015).

All facts

and

reasonable

inferences

are

viewed

favorable to the non-moving party.”

“in

the

light

most

Dulaney v. Packaging Corp.

of Am., 673 F.3d 323, 330 (4th Cir. 2012).

Summary judgment is

only appropriate when “there is no genuine dispute as to any
material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter
of law.”

Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a).

“[T]he nonmoving party must

rely on more than conclusory allegations, mere speculation, the
building of one inference upon another, or the mere existence of
a scintilla of evidence.”

Dash v. Mayweather, 731 F.3d 303, 311

(4th Cir. 2013).
Qualified
performing
conduct

immunity

discretionary

does

not

protects
functions

violate

clearly

“government
.

officials

.

as

.

insofar

established

their

statutory

or

constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would have
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known.”

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Harlow v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 800, 818 (1982).

To be

entitled to qualified immunity, a defendant must show either
that his conduct did not violate the plaintiff’s constitutional
rights, or that even if there was a constitutional violation,
the right in question was not clearly established at the time
that the defendant acted.

Henry v. Purnell, 652 F.3d 524, 531

(4th Cir. 2011) (en banc); Ridpath v. Bd. of Governors Marshall
Univ., 447 F.3d 292, 306 (4th Cir. 2006).

“The burden of proof

and persuasion with respect to a defense of qualified immunity
rests

on

the

official

asserting

that

defense.”

Meyers

v.

Baltimore Cty., 713 F.3d 723, 731 (4th Cir. 2013).
The Fourth Amendment prohibits warrantless home searches in
most instances.
(1973).

Schneckloth v. Bustamonte, 412 U.S. 218, 219

Voluntary consent to a search is an exception to the

warrant requirement.

Id.

A warrantless search of a home may be

proper if law enforcement receives voluntary consent from “an
occupant

who

shares,

or

is

reasonably

believed

to

share,

authority over the area in common with a co-occupant who later
objects.”

Georgia

v.

Randolph,

547

U.S.

103,

106

(2006)

(holding that a present co-occupant’s refusal to consent to a
search

prevails

search).

over

a

present

co-occupant’s

consent

to

the

Moreover, if consent to the search is given by a

person who is present and possesses common authority over the

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premises, it is valid against the absent, objecting occupant.
Fernandez v. California, 134 S. Ct. 1126, 1134-35 (2014).
Common authority rests on:
mutual use of the property by persons generally having
joint access or control for most purposes, so that it
is reasonable to recognize that any of the coinhabitants has the right to permit the inspection in
his own right and that the others have assumed the
risk that one of their number might permit the common
area to be searched.
U.S. v. Matlock, 415 U.S. 164, 171 n.7.
As

the

Fourth

Amendment

guards

against

unreasonable

searches, there is no violation if an officer could reasonably
have

believed

consent.

that

the

consenting

party

had

authority

to

Illinois v. Rodriguez, 497 U.S. 177, 188-89 (1990).

“As long as the facts available to the officer at the moment
warrant a person of reasonable caution in the belief that the
consenting party had authority, apparent authority to consent
exists.”

United States v. Buckner, 473 F.3d 551, 555 (4th Cir.

2007) (internal quotation marks and alterations omitted).
Upon

our

review

of

the

record,

we

conclude

that

Webb’s

girlfriend, Heather Upchurch, had actual and apparent authority
to consent to the search of the house.

She and their infant

daughter lived in the house with Webb for six months.
had as much interest in the house as did Webb.
all of her belongings there.

Upchurch

Upchurch kept

The fact that she believed Webb

abused their daughter, as later proven at a criminal trial, and
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she could no longer stay at the house with Webb, did not result
in the surrender of her authority over the house days after an
abusive incident.

See United States v. Backus, 349 F.3d 1298,

1304 (11th Cir. 2003) (holding wife had authority to consent to
search

after

husband’s

criminal

acts

against

wife

and

child

forced them to leave); see also United States v. Brannan, 898
F.2d

107,

108

(9th

Cir.

1990)

(holding

co-owner

of

house

retained actual authority to consent to search even though she
moved out due to husband’s abuse and husband had changed locks).
Thus,

Upchurch’s

consent

to

search

the

home

prevailed

over

Webb’s objections to the search, in light of the fact that she
was present at the house and Webb elected to be absent despite
requests

from

law

enforcement

that

he

come

to

the

house.

Fernandez, 134 S. Ct. at 1135-36.
Even if Upchurch lacked actual authority to consent to the
search, she had apparent authority.

Under the totality of the

circumstances, we conclude, it was reasonable for the Defendants
to believe that Upchurch retained authority to consent to the
search.

Therefore, the district court did not err in ruling

that

Defendants

the

were

entitled

to

qualified

immunity

and

Accordingly, we affirm the district court’s judgment.

We

granting summary judgment on that basis.

deny Webb’s motion for appointment of counsel.

We dispense with

oral

contentions

argument

because

the

facts
5

and

legal

are

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adequately

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presented

in

the

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materials

before

this

court

and

argument would not aid the decisional process.
AFFIRMED

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