In Re JF, 2011 D.C. App. LEXIS 225

On May 20, 2008, J.F., 16, was approached by two plainclothes MPD officers in an unmarked car in the Clay Terrace area known for narcotics and violent crime.
The officers, displaying weapons and badges, approached J.F., who was with a friend, and asked if he heard gunshots in the area.
J.F. complied with being asked to remove his hands from his pockets; officers then asked general questions about his identity and purpose in the neighborhood.
Officer Starliper observed J.F. looking down at his pockets and breathing heavily, and suspected contraband; J.F. consented to a search after being asked.
A plastic bag with rock-like substances was recovered from J.F.’s pockets, and J.F. was arrested.
The defense offered conflicting testimony through Mr. Hughes, who claimed J.F. was swiped prior to consent; the trial court credited Starliper and denied suppression, ruling it a mere encounter.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Was J.F. seized for Fourth Amendment purposes?	J.F. argues the encounter was a seizure since a reasonable person would not feel free to leave.	State contends it was a consensual, pre-seizure encounter; no seizure occurred.	Yes; the conduct constituted a seizure.
If seized unlawfully, is the subsequent consent to search valid?	Consent obtained after an illegal seizure is tainted and invalid.	Consent was voluntary and independent, breaking the causal chain.	Consent tainted; search cannot be justified by consent.

In re J.M., 619 A.2d 497 (D.C.1992) (seizure analysis and totality of circumstances; break in taint required for consent)
Florida v. Royer, 460 U.S. 491 (U.S. 1983) (consent validity tainted by illegality; break in causal chain required)
Florida v. Bostick, 501 U.S. 429 (U.S. 1991) (consent and encounter analysis; seizure only with show of authority)
United States v. Mendenhall, 446 U.S. 544 (U.S. 1980) (criteria for whether a seizure has occurred)
Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (U.S. 1968) (permissible police encounters and seizures; display of authority factors)
Barnes, 496 A.2d 1040 (D.C.1985) (pre-seizure encounter concepts; removal of hands from pockets analyzed under Royer)
Wong Sun v. United States, 371 U.S. 471 (U.S. 1963) (taint analysis and breaks in causal connections)
McGann v. Northeast Illinois R.R. Corp., 8 F.3d 1174 (7th Cir.1993) (consent given after illegality cannot purge taint)
Duhart v. United States, 589 A.2d 895 (D.C.1991) (consent tainted by illegality; Wong Sun reliance)
Hawkins v. United States, 663 A.2d 1221 (D.C.1995) (encounters transformed into seizures based on totality of circumstances)