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TX: Overhead lights and a direction to ?come over here? is a seizure

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Walking late at night in an area known for burglaries, and defendant’s grabbing at his waist as the officer drove by was not reasonable suspicion. Overhead lights and a direction to “come over here” is a seizure. Crain v. State, 2010 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 794 (June 30, 2010) (6-3): Neither time of day nor level of criminal activity in an area are suspicious in and of themselves; the two are merely factors to be considered in making a determination of reasonable suspicion. Neither fact proves that the suspect is engaged in any sort of criminal offense. In order for these facts to affect the assessment of the suspect's actions, the surroundings must raise a suspicion that the particular person is engaged in illegal behavior...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on July 07, 2010 (boomark / email).