U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, 1976

United States v. Lazaro C. Rodriguez

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Decided August 16, 1976 · No. 76-1674 · Thornberry, Clark, Tjoflat

537 F.2d 120 (Federal Reporter, Second Series)

Counsel

L. Aron Pena, Edinburg, Tex., for defendant-appellant., Edward B. McDonough, Jr., U. S. Atty., Mary L. Sinderson, George A. Kelt, Jr., Robert A. Berg, Corpus Christi, Tex., James R. Gough, Asst. U. S. Attys., Houston, Tex., for plaintiff-appellee.

Cases that cite this one

2 later published cases cite this decision.

United States v. Albert Strong (5th Cir. 1977)
United States v. Daniel Alderete, Jr. (5th Cir. 1977)

This list shows which later cases cite this one. It does not say how they treated it, and no review of that has been done. Not a substitute for Shepard’s or KeyCite — verify before relying.

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

In a trial before the Court without a jury, appellant was convicted of possession of marijuana with intent to distribute in violation of 21 U.S.C. 841(a)(1). The sole question on appeal is the legality of the search of appellant’s truck by a Border Patrol officer (which revealed 810 lbs of marijuana in a large metal box) at a Border Patrol checkpoint near Sarita, Texas. The District Court found that the checkpoint was the functional equivalent of the border and, further, that the officer had probable cause to search. There is ample evidence in the record to support these findings; and, further, the circumstances were sufficiently exigent to justify a search without a warrant. The conviction is AFFIRMED.

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