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defendantdiscoverymotion

defendantmotion

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United States v. Cone, 868 F.3d 1150

Facts

Defendant John Eldridge Cone was stopped by Officer Peter Maher for driving a pickup truck with a broken license-plate light. During the stop, Maher asked Cone about his criminal history and travel plans. After Cone admitted to having a criminal record, Maher noticed a pistol in plain view inside the truck. This led to the discovery of drugs, including marijuana and methamphetamine, in a backpack within the vehicle. Cone was subsequently charged with possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute and moved to suppress the evidence obtained during the stop.

On November 29, 2015, Tulsa Police Officer Peter Maher was driving on patrol. About 10:30 p.m. he noticed a white pickup truck crossing through an intersection on 41st Street without a functioning license-plate light, in violation of Oklahoma law.

Issue

Did the officer's questions about the defendant's criminal history and travel plans improperly extend the duration of the traffic stop, thereby violating the Fourth Amendment?

Rule

The proper scope of a traffic stop includes certain negligibly burdensome inquiries for officer safety. A traffic stop must be justified at its inception, and the officer's actions must be reasonably related to the mission of the stop. Questions unrelated to the mission are improper if they measurably extend the duration of the stop. To suppress evidence, a defendant must establish a causal link between the alleged Fourth Amendment violation and the discovery of contested evidence.

The proper scope of a traffic stop includes 'certain negligibly burdensome precautions' taken for officer safety. A traffic stop must be justified at its inception and, in general, the officer's actions during the stop must be reasonably related in scope to 'the mission of the stop itself.'

Analysis

The court found that the officer's questions about the defendant's criminal history did not improperly extend the traffic stop, as they were related to officer safety and did not exceed what a computer check would reveal. The inquiry into the defendant's travel plans, while potentially unrelated, did not affect the legality of the subsequent discovery of drugs, as the officer had already observed the pistol in plain view before any evidence was found related to the travel question.

The criminal-history questions were lawful and that Maher's other inquiry had no effect on the later police actions that revealed Defendant's drug offense.

Conclusion

The court affirmed the district court's denial of the motion to suppress, concluding that the officer's inquiries were lawful and did not violate the Fourth Amendment.

We AFFIRM the district court's judgment.

Who won?

The United States prevailed in this case as the court upheld the denial of the defendant's motion to suppress evidence. The court reasoned that the officer's questions were within the permissible scope of a traffic stop aimed at ensuring officer safety. The evidence obtained, including the drugs found in the vehicle, was deemed admissible as the defendant failed to establish a causal link between any alleged Fourth Amendment violation and the discovery of the evidence.

The United States prevailed in this case as the court upheld the denial of the defendant's motion to suppress evidence.

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