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S.D.Tex.: Removing defendant from the highway to sheriff's office violated Mendenall

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Removing defendant from the highway to the sheriff's office after his stop was without reasonable suspicion and was a de facto arrest. United States v. Vega, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 49614 (S.D. Tex. June 11, 2009): The Court is highly sensitive to seizing an individual on a public road or in a public place and taking the suspect to the confines of a police station without consent and without probable cause. In Mendenhall, the Supreme Court hinted that a similar removal of a suspect from a public location to a private location could offend the Fourth Amendment protections. United States v. Mendenhall, 100 S.Ct. 1870, 1878 (1980) (stating that it is arguable that the suspect's rights were violated when she was moved from the airport concourse to the DEA office)...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on June 17, 2009 (boomark / email).