Court: |
US Supreme Court |
|
Facts: |
Indianapolis is running vehicle checkpoints for drug interdictions.
They catch Edmond. |
|
Posture: |
Drugs admitted at trial, appeals court reverses. Appeal. |
|
Issue: |
Are highway checkpoints whose primary purpose is narcotics interdiction
constitutional? |
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Holding: |
No. |
|
Rule: |
If the primary purpose of a roadblock is to uncover evidence of
ordinary criminal wrongdoing, it is unconstitutional. |
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Reasoning: |
Just running a sniffy-dog around the outside of the car doesn't
transform a search into a seizure. The point is that the
threat here (drugs), while grave, regular law enforcement
requires reasonable individualized suspicion for siezing
people. |
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Dicta: |
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