United States v. Murillo-Salgado, No. 16-1959 (8th Cir. 2017)
Annotate this CaseDefendant conditionally plead guilty to possessing cocaine with intent to distribute and then appealed the denial of his motion to suppress the drug evidence. The court concluded that the officer in this case was faced with circumstances that, as a whole, were sufficient to establish reasonable suspicion necessary to justify extending the traffic stop. The court also concluded that the traffic stop in this case exceeded neither the constitutional boundaries set forth in the court's then-extant decisions nor those set forth in Rodriguez v. United States. In this case, the traffic stop was not impermissibly expanded or prolonged, the passenger's consent to search the truck was valid, the continued detention to search the truck pursuant to that consent was permissible, and the ensuing search of the truck was lawful. The court further concluded that, under the automobile exception to the warrant requirement, the officer was permitted to search every part of the vehicle and its contents that could conceal drug-related contraband, including the air compressor. Therefore, the court affirmed the denial of the motion to suppress. Finally, the court concluded that the district court exceeded its authority under 18 U.S.C. 3583(d) when it ordered that defendant be removed as a special condition of supervision. The court modified the judgment to reflect the change in the special condition. As modified, the court affirmed the judgment.
Court Description: Wollman, Author, with Riley and Kelly, Circuit Judges] Criminal case - Criminal law and sentencing. Law enforcement officer did not unreasonably extend the traffic stop when defendant and his passenger gave the officer inconsistent and contradictory information regarding their travel and identities and the officer undertook normal investigative steps to resolve the issues and obtain additional information; because the traffic stop was not impermissibly extended or prolonged, defendant's consent to search the truck was valid and defendant's continued detention to search the truck was permissible, as was the ensuing search; search of an air compressor was permissible under the automobile exception where the totality of the circumstances - the odor and presence of fresh paint, as well as jagged welds - and the officer's experience and training gave him probable cause to believe the tank contained contraband; the district court exceeded its authority when it imposed immediate and automatic removal from the U.S. as a special condition of defendant's supervision; this condition is modified to require defendant's surrender to immigration authorities when he completes his sentence. Judge Kelly, dissenting. [ April 11, 2017
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