On Point blog, page 37 of 60
Parked driver was seized when officer approached and directed him to roll down his window
Grant County v. Daniel A. Vogt, 2012AP1812, District 4, 3/14/13; court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication), petition for review granted 10/15/13; case activity
Where police officer pulled up behind parked car without activating his emergency lights, approached the car, rapped on the window, and directed the driver to roll the window down, the driver was seized under State v.
Traffic stop — reasonable suspicion found based on weaving in lane, other factors
State v. Todd A. Laws, 2012AP1930-CR, District 2, 3/13/13; court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication); case activity
Stop of Laws’s vehicle was lawful because it was based on reasonable suspicion he was driving while intoxicated, contrasting State v. Post, 2007 WI 60, 301 Wis. 2d 1, 733 N.W.2d 634:
¶9 Each case stands on its own unique facts; however, the conduct in this case arguably provided more reason for suspicion than that in Post.
Traffic stop – failure to stop for flashing red light
State v. Heather Tollefson, 2012AP1641-CR, District 4, 2/14/13; court of appeals decision (1-judge; ineligible for publication); case activity
A police officer had probable cause to stop Tollefson for failing to fully stop for a flashing red traffic light. The officer saw a red vehicle approach an intersection with flashing red lights in each direction. (¶3). A gray vehicle followed behind the red vehicle. (¶3). The red vehicle stopped before going through the intersection;
Traffic stop — probable cause to believe traffic law had been violated
City of Oshkosh v. Eric Carley, 2012AP2043, District 2, 2/13/13; court of appeals decision (1-judge; ineligible for publication); case activity
Police officer had probable cause to stop Carley after he saw Carley drive in the left lane to go around a turning vehicle, but did so within several car lengths of oncoming traffic before moving back into the right lane. (¶2). The officer’s observations gave him probable cause to stop Carley because he had reason to believe Carley had violated Wis.
Terry stop — reasonable suspicion; DNA surcharge — exercise of discretion; sentence credit — time between revocation and return to prison
State v. Manuel R. Williams, 2012AP357-CR, District 1, 1/29/13; court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity
Terry stop – reasonable suspicion
Police had reasonable suspicion to stop defendant where, based on suppression hearing testimony, circuit court found that: the officers were sent to a shooting in “a high risk area”; when police arrived, they noticed Williams because he had a big jacket on and was holding his hands in an “odd” way,
Traffic stop — no visible front license plate
State v. Kevin O’Connor, 2012AP1638-CR, District 2, 1/23/12; court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication); case activity
Police lawfully stopped defendant because the vehicle he was driving did not have a visible front license plate. While there are exceptions to the statute requiring vehicles to display a front plate (Wis. Stat. § 341.15), the “great majority” of vehicles on the road are required to have a front plate.
Traffic stop – anonymous tip corroborated by officer’s observations
State v. Tamara Jo Potter, 2012AP1605-CR, District 3, 1/23/13; court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication); case activity
Police lawfully stopped the defendant based on information from an anonymous tip that was corroborated by the officer’s observations. Minnesota police told Douglas County dispatch that it had received a tip of a “swerving” car heading into Superior. An officer in Superior located a car meeting the description and followed it.
Submission to squad car’s red-and-blue emergency lights is a “seizure”
State v. Brian A. Gottschalk, 2012AP2351, District III (not recommended for publication). Case activity.
Wow! Two decisions overruling the denial suppression motions in one day. In this case, the State charged the defendant with OWI and operating with a PAC, both as second offenses. The defendant moved for suppression of evidence on the grounds that the officer seized him without reasonable suspicion.
Execution of search warrant — detention of person not in “immediate vicinity”
Bailey v. United States, USSC No. 11-770, 2/19/13
United States Supreme Court decision, reversing and remanding United States v. Bailey, 652 F.3d 197 (2d Cir. 2011)
The Court holds it was not reasonable for police to seize an individual incident to the search of the individual’s residence when the individual was not in the “immediate vicinity” of the place being searched. The holding is an elaboration of the rule from Michigan v.
Search and seizure — temporary stop — reasonable suspicion
State v. Melvin Pugh, 2013 WI App 12; case activity
Two officers on patrol saw Pugh near two cars parked next to a vacant, boarded-up building posted with a “no parking” sign. This caused the officers to question Pugh—legitimately—about his possible illegal parking, but during that questioning the police also started asking about a nearby drug house and ended up physically seizing Pugh by grabbing his wrists when he slowly backed away.