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MO: Small pill container was not noticed by "plain feel"

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Patdown of the defendant revealed a small container that was not a weapon. The officer told the defendant to empty his pockets, and it was a small container with drugs inside. The direction to empty his pockets was unreasonable, and it was not revealed by plain feel. State v. Gambow, 2010 Mo. App. LEXIS 298 (Mo. App. March 10, 2010). Defendant’s motion to suppress should have been granted. His explanations about his ownership of the car he was driving were reasonable and there were no facts which justified continuing the stop 20 minutes after the time necessary to write him a ticket. Instead of just any back up, a drug dog arrived, and a dog sniff was conducted. It was unreasonable. Wells v. State, 2010 Ind. App. LEXIS 344 (March 10, 2010)...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on March 14, 2010 (boomark / email).