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D. Minn.: Bus interdiction was not a seizure, with two "spotters" on the bus, too

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

An Officer was working an interstate bus, and his and the other officers' actions on the bus did not amount to a seizure, even though there were two "spotters" near the front door. United States v. Richards, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 37528 (D. Minn. April 17, 2009): Defendant argued that because an officer was standing in the aisle, there were three other officers between him and the front of the bus, and because he had refused to permit a search of his luggage, he was effectively seized. Def. Mem., pp. 6-7. This reasoning has no merit. There is no testimony that any officer was stationed in the aisle during the interdiction in this case; rather, the testimony was that the officers moved in and out of the aisle as they questioned people, and deliberately did not stand in the aisle...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on May 07, 2009 (boomark / email).