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PA: Without showing what, stuff hanging from a rearview mirror does not justify a stop

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Defendant was stopped for some unexplained thing that was hanging from his rearview mirror which, in the testimony of the officer allegedly “materially” obstructed the driver’s view. The statute doesn’t prohibit anything hanging from the mirror, just things that materially obstruct view. Without testimony as to what it is, the stop was unjustified. Commonwealth v. Holmes, 2011 Pa. LEXIS 384 (February 22, 2011): Finally, we note there are myriad objects which drivers commonly hang from their rearview mirrors. Air fresheners; parking placards; mortarboard tassels; crosses; rosary beads; medallions of St. Christopher, the patron saint of travel; and rabbits’ feet are but a few. It is not illegal for a driver to hang such items from his or her rearview mirror, so long as the items do not materially obstruct the driver’s view...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on February 27, 2011 (boomark / email).