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Defendant Seized When He Obeyed Command to Exit Truck, Not When Trooper Blocked Vehicle

By Shari Allison

US v. Salazar, -- F.3d --, 2010 WL 2473162 (10th Cir. 6/21/10) (KS) - reversal of grant of suppression motion. At issue is when Mr. Salazar submitted to the officer's show of authority. If it was when the trooper activated his emergency lights and blocked Mr. Salazar's pickup from leaving the parking lot, as the district court found, the trooper lacked reasonable suspicion. The 10th finds, however, that Mr. Salazar was not seized until he submitted to the officer's authority by obeying his command to get out of his truck, at which time the trooper had reasonable suspicion to detain him. When the seizure occurred is a legal question subject to de novo review. Whether a citizen has submitted to authority is determined by examining the view of a reasonable officer under the circumstances.continue to full post

Full post as published by Tenth Circuit Blog on June 22, 2010 (boomark / email).