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LA1: Being confronted on street by uniform officers saying they were checking warrants was a seizure

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Defendant was seized when he was confronted by SWAT officers on a street sweep who asked him for ID and told him they were checking wants and warrants. State v. Bozeman, 2009 La. App. LEXIS 216 (La.App. 1 Cir. February 13, 2009): Based on the foregoing, we find the defendant was seized pursuant to an investigatory stop. The officers involved in the stop were not on routine patrol; rather, they were part of the Sheriff's Office SWAT team conducting "street sweeps" and, based on narcotics complaints, specifically targeting the high-drug area where the defendant was spotted. The defendant was approached by five officers. Four of the officers spread out around the defendant, while another officer positioned himself on the other side of the vehicle behind the defendant...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on February 20, 2009 (boomark / email).