A Bisbee man who faced decades in prison after being charged with 22 felonies in 2018 was placed on probation this week after entering a no-contest plea to only two of the charges.
Matthew Sloane Smith walked out of the Cochise County Superior Court on Monday morning to begin a four-year term of supervised probation after being convicted of possession of methamphetamine and weapons misconduct for possessing a rifle with a homemade suppressor. A no-contest plea has the same effect as pleading guilty, without the defendant admitting guilt.
The probation term was a far cry from what Smith, 37, could have been ordered to serve if convicted at trial of all charge stemming from a March 2018 police response to a reported domestic disturbance. But after an evidence suppression hearing earlier this year the Cochise County Attorney’s Office offered a plea deal that included dismissal of 20 of the 22 charges.
“This is why we have plea agreements, so that an outcome that is right for that particular case can be reached,” defense attorney David Wilkison told Arizona Daily Independent after the sentencing hearing. “In this case I believe ‘Justice’ was achieved.”
The plea followed a June ruling by Judge Timothy Dickerson that a quick warrantless search of Smith’s residence and property was legal despite Smith’s refusal to given consent, and that evidence seized later with a search warrant was admissible at trial.
But the suppression hearing exposed some weaknesses in the prosecution’s case if the matter went to trial, Wilkison said.
“The suppression hearing was a preview of what trial would have been like,” Wilkison said. “The inability for the testifying officers to all have the same story I believe led to the plea that was eventually offered and entered into. The deputy county attorney on this case was very reasonable and saw the problems that this case would have had if it were to proceed to trial.”
Court records show three Bisbee officers were dispatched the evening of March 3, 2018 to a reported domestic disturbance at Smith’s residence. They were joined by a trooper with the Arizona Department of Public Safety.
Officers observed some juveniles in the yard upon arrival and were met by two adults, one of whom was Smith, who advised everything was okay. Over Smith’s objections, the officers conducted a routine safety check -also called a security sweep- to ensure no one inside the house needed assistance.
During the sweep, an officer noticed the odor of fresh marijuana “consistent with drug trafficking.” And while Bisbee Sgt. Carlos Moreno walked through the backyard he noticed “a small baggie of a green substance known to me as marijuana near a barbecue,” according to his report.
Officers then cleared everyone off the premises while a search warrant was obtained. In the meantime, Moreno handcuffed Smith and placed him in a patrol vehicle. A handgun was purportedly found near the area Smith was sitting; the gun was reported stolen out of Pima County.
The search warrant led to the seizure of small amounts of various drugs as well as drug paraphernalia. Authorities also seized three firearms, including the handgun, a shotgun, and a .50 caliber rifle with an illegal homemade suppressor.
Among the charges against Smith were child endangerment and child abuse (for leaving drugs and a handgun within reach of a minor), possession of meth for sale, trafficking in stolen property, possession of heroin, prohibited possession for a firearm by a felon, possession of an unlawful weapon, possession of marijuana, and multiple counts of possession of drug paraphernalia.
Smith was initially scheduled for a two-week trial in August 2018 but there were several delays with the mandatory disclosure of evidence to the defense. The last scheduled trial date of November 2019 was also delayed after the prosecutor advised the judge that some crime lab reports still were not available.
Then in January 2020, Wilkison filed a motion to suppress several items seized from Smith’s house and property. The judge upheld the search and seizures, but the suppression hearing drew attention to issues the defense planned to argue at trial to raise reasonable doubts of Smith’s guilt.
Smith entered his no-contest pleas to Dickerson on Oct. 26. If he violates the condition of probation Smith could be resentenced by Dickerson to five years in prison.