Loveless v. the State, 337 Ga. App. 894

On Jan. 19, 2015 an officer in a hotel parking lot observed Gary Loveless walk to a maroon Toyota Scion; he ran license-plate and license checks and learned Loveless’s license was suspended and he was wanted for a parole violation.
The officer followed the Scion and stopped it for a cracked taillight (three-inch crack and hole in the lens), citing OCGA equipment statutes.
Loveless gave a false name and DOB to the officer; a GCIC check showed no matching licensed person, and Loveless was then asked to exit, handcuffed, and identified by his real name.
After arrest, officers searched Loveless and found $2,200 and a glass pipe with meth residue; Loveless fled briefly but was recaptured; a search of the vehicle and a dog alert produced ~287.98 grams of material, 220.11 grams methamphetamine.
Loveless moved to suppress evidence, arguing the stop and subsequent seizures were unlawful and based on protected DMV/DPPA information; the trial court denied the motion and he was convicted following a stipulated bench trial.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the traffic stop was lawful when initiated after the officer checked state computer records	Loveless: stop was based on information obtained from state computer records and thus unlawful; any seizure thereafter should be suppressed	State: officer observed a traffic equipment violation (cracked taillight) providing objective basis for the stop; computer checks did not invalidate the stop	Held: stop lawful — officer observed the taillight defect, which justified the stop
Whether officer had cause to arrest and search after defendant gave false ID	Loveless: arrest/search unlawful and tainted by initial records check and alleged privacy violations	State: giving false name violated OCGA §16-10-25, providing probable cause to arrest; search incident to arrest and search of vehicle passenger compartment were lawful	Held: arrest and searches lawful; false ID provided probable cause and searches incident to arrest admissible
Whether evidence seizure violated DMV privacy statute and the federal DPPA	Loveless: evidence derived from protected personal information from state records should be suppressed under OCGA §40-5-2 and the DPPA	State: because the stop and subsequent arrest/search were lawful on other grounds, any DPPA/OCGA claim need not be reached	Held: court declined to reach statutory/DPPA claims given affirmance on Fourth Amendment and state-law stop/arrest grounds

Spence v. State, 295 Ga. App. 583 (trial-court findings on suppression reviewed for support; credibility not disturbed absent clear error)
Valentine v. State, 323 Ga. App. 761 (traffic stop requires specific, articulable facts; minor violations justify stop)
Maxwell v. State, 249 Ga. App. 747 (probable cause for a traffic stop exists when officer reasonably believes a traffic violation occurred)
Whren v. United States, 517 U.S. 806 (subjective officer motivations irrelevant to Fourth Amendment reasonableness of traffic stops)
Parker v. State, 307 Ga. App. 61 (minor equipment violations justify a stop)
Quick v. State, 279 Ga. App. 835 (same)
Smith v. State, 294 Ga. App. 761 (providing false identification during a stop can supply probable cause for arrest)
State v. Roberson, 165 Ga. App. 727 (officer may arrest when given false identifying information)
Polk v. State, 200 Ga. App. 17 (search of arrestee for weapons/contraband incident to arrest allowed)
Garcia v. State, 293 Ga. App. 422 (officers may search vehicle passenger compartment incident to a lawful arrest)