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OH8: No "plain feel" in a lump in the pocket

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Defendant mailed a letter out of jail which was intercepted by his girlfriend's mother, and she turned it over to the police. Before even getting to the private search issue, this is a matter of lack of standing: He had no REP in a letter in the hands of a third person. State v. Martinez, 2009 Ariz. App. LEXIS 57 (March 2, 2009). Ohio statute on taking DNA from offenders is constitutional based on special needs. Wilson v. Wilkinson, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 31895 (S.D. Ohio March 6, 2009).* Defendant was riding a bicycle in a drug area, and he was stopped talking to somebody in a car. He rode toward the police car, realized it was a police car, and pedaled away from it. the officers then stopped him. Without getting to reasonable suspicion, the "plain feel" of the frisk was violated because it was apparent it was not a weapon...continue to full post

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