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KS: Call for a backup officer conveyed to the defendant she was not free to leave

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

The call for a backup officer conveyed to the defendant she was not free to leave. State v. Thomas, 2011 Kan. LEXIS 4 (January 21, 2011): We conclude that Officer Brown’s call for back-up, when combined with his other conduct, would convey to a reasonable person that he or she was not free to refuse to answer Brown’s questions or otherwise terminate the second stage of the encounter. See State v. McGinnis, 290 Kan. at 552. More specifically, both before and after making the call, Brown repeatedly asked Thomas questions about her drug use and possession. After the call, Thomas emptied her pockets for him, apparently in an attempt to prove her denials. He then asked to feel inside her pockets, and she threw her hands in the air. After Brown again told Thomas to “be honest with me,” she confessed to possessing two crack pipes...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on January 26, 2011 (boomark / email).