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IN: No RS for continued stop; use of dog unreasonable

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Defendant was not told he was free to leave when the officer called for a drug dog. There was no reasonable suspicion for continuing the stop, so the use of the drug dog here was unreasonable. Bush v. State, 2010 Ind. App. LEXIS 716 (April 27, 2010): Bush argues the purpose of the traffic stop was complete before the canine unit arrived and thus the canine sniff of his automobile unreasonably prolonged his detention. Unlike either of the above sets of cases, we are faced with a record that, as the parties agree, is silent regarding the time frame of events. Thus, the burden of proof is potentially outcome determinative. The State conceded at oral argument, and we agree, "[t]he burden is on the State to show the time for the traffic stop was not increased due to the canine sweep...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on May 02, 2010 (boomark / email).