In U.S. v. Spoerke, No. 08-12910 (May 22, 2009), the Court held that a homemade explosive device made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipe that could propel shrapnel was a "destructive device"under 26 U.S.C. §§ 5801 et seq. The Court noted that Spoerke admitted that his devices could hurt people. The government expert testimony established that the pipe bombs were designed as weapons, and were capable of propelling shards. Moreover, the jury was free to reject Spoerke’s assertion that he designed the devices for "social enjoyment" by exploding them under water.
The Court rejected Spoerke’s argument that the National Firearms Act was unconstitutional as applied to him, because pipe bombs are unlawful, and their regulation therefore cannot be justified under Congress’ taxation powers. Spoerke conceivably could have registered and paid taxes on his pipe bombs.
The Court also affirmed the denial of the motion to suppress physical evidence obtained after the vehicle Spoerke was riding in was stopped for littering. Once police spotted gloves, goggles, a face mask and a flashlight in plain view, and noted other suspicious circumstances, the police had an articulable suspicion that the occupants of the vehicle were engaged in a burglary, and reasonably prolonged the traffic stop to investigate further. In addition, the statements Spoerke gave during the traffic stop fell within the "public safety" exception to Miranda, which allows officers to question a suspect without first giving Miranda warnings when necessary to protect themselves or the general public.
The Court rejected the challenge to the admission of videos showing the jury explosions of devices similar to Spoerke’s. "The video demonstration was relevant to prove the nature of the devices." The Court rejected the challenge to the government’s reference to items seized in the vehicle as related to other crimes, pointing out that this was relevant to the claim that the pipe bombs "were designed as weapons."
Turning to the sentence, the Court rejected the argument that Spoerke should have received an acceptance of responsibility sentence reduction even though he went to trial, because he challenged only the constitutionality of the Firearms Act. The Court noted that Spoerke also contested whether his pipe bombs were destructive devices, and attempted to exclude evidence of his guilt. The Court upheld the 44 months sentence as substantively reasonable.
