813 S.E.2d 916
Va. Ct. App.2018Background
- On Nov. 2, 2014, police attempted a traffic stop of Moore’s vehicle for an unlit rear license plate; Moore fled, jumped from the moving car, and the car struck two parked vehicles.
- Officers pursued Moore on foot; he was eventually captured after running and falling; at the crash scene Officer Groome arrived as the lone officer and observed a crowd forming.
- From outside the open driver-side door, Groome saw an uncovered, loaded firearm on the driver’s floorboard, entered the vehicle, unloaded the gun, and secured it in his police vehicle without a warrant or consent.
- A drug-sniffing dog later alerted to the vehicle’s exterior; a subsequent search yielded only a small suspected marijuana roach.
- Moore entered an Alford conditional guilty plea but reserved the right to appeal the denial of his motion to suppress the firearm; the trial court denied suppression, and the Court of Appeals affirmed.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (Moore) | Defendant's Argument (Commonwealth) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the warrantless seizure of the gun violated the Fourth Amendment | Seizure was unlawful because officers had no warrant, no demonstrated urgency, no evidence crowd was dangerous, and no showing Groome knew Moore was armed or a felon | Exigent circumstances justified taking the gun: loaded firearm in plain view at an unsecured crash scene, driver fled and was at large, crowd forming, lone officer on scene | Court held exigent circumstances justified the warrantless seizure; denial of suppression affirmed |
Key Cases Cited
- North Carolina v. Alford, 400 U.S. 25 (1970) (recognizes conditional guilty pleas preserving appellate rights)
- Michigan v. Long, 463 U.S. 1032 (1983) (vehicle passenger-compartment protective sweep for officer safety)
- Cady v. Dombrowski, 413 U.S. 433 (1973) (community-caretaker exception justified warrantless search of vehicle to secure a firearm)
- Taylor v. Commonwealth, 10 Va. App. 260 (1990) (upheld warrantless seizure of guns in plain view where officers were outnumbered and guns were readily accessible)
- Verez v. Commonwealth, 230 Va. 405 (1985) (list of exigent-circumstance factors to evaluate warrantless entries)
- Keeter v. Commonwealth, 222 Va. 134 (1981) (courts assess exigency based on officers’ on-scene perceptions)
- Arizona v. Gant, 556 U.S. 332 (2009) (recognizes vehicle-search exceptions for safety and evidentiary concerns)
- United States v. Newbourn, 600 F.2d 452 (4th Cir. 1979) (warrantless seizure of unsecured weapons reasonable to prevent public danger)