In a recent opinion in Commonwealth v. Hudson, 2010 PA Super 96, the Pennsylvania Superior Court held that what began as a mere encounter escalated into an investigative detention when a police officer in Reading, Pennsylvania, took a defendant’s identification back to his patrol car to run the defendant for outstanding warrants. The Court held […]
Inventory Search of a Lawfully-Immobilized Vehicle Holds
In a recent opinion, the Pennsylvania Superior Court held that the inventory search of an immobilized automobile, immobilized under the Live Stop program was a lawful search, even though the automobile was not yet permitted to be towed. If you enjoyed this post, check out this article about criminal defense. Were You Charged with a […]
Reaching Into Pocket Not Enough to Justify a Frisk
In Commonwealth v. Robert Cooper, the Superior Court of Pennsylvania, with a three-member panel comprised of Judges Donohue, Allen and Fitzgerald, held that a police officer may not conduct a pat-down search of a person who reaches toward his pocket upon the officer’s approach when that person obeys the officer’s directive to stop before reaching […]
Hand Movements Not Enough to Justify Warrantless Search
The Pennsylvania Superior Court handed down a new case this month about warrantless searches of automobiles in In re O.J., 2008 Pa. Super. 234 (Oct. 1, 2008) (No, this case is not about O.J. Simpson, but it sure would be more fun if it were. It’s a juvenile case, so the minor’s name is protected […]
Court Finds Exceptions to Search Warrants
Under Pennsylvania jurisprudence, the searches and seizures clause of Article 1, Section 8 of the Pennsylvania Constitution requires a search warrant for the search and seizure of an automobile unless the police have probable cause and exigent circumstances. In Commonwealth v. Copeland, 2008 Pa. Super. 180 (2008), decided this month, the Superior Court of Pennsylvania […]