United States v. Lanier, No. 09-1788 (6th Cir. 2011)
Annotate this CaseDespite the presence of a "do not disturb" sign, a maid entered the defendant's hotel room after check-out time but before defendant's key was deactivated. While cleaning the room, which contained clothing, she saw what she believed to be drugs. Police found a scale and cocaine and arrested the defendant when he returned to the hotel. The defendant accepted a conditional plea and, after the district court rejected a motion to suppress, was sentenced to 40 months. The Sixth Circuit affirmed. The defendant's subjective expectation of privacy in the room was not objectively reasonable; he had not asked for an extension of his stay. The defendant's use of a keycard to enter a near-empty hotel and the maid's statement indicating that the defendant had arrived supplied probable cause for arrest.
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