Meekins v. State, 2011 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 592

Officer stopped Meekins for a traffic offense and sought permission to search the car; Meekins appeared nervous.
During a consensual search of the car, officer found a pill bottle with marijuana in Meekins's pocket after he exited the vehicle.
Meekins moved to suppress the evidence, arguing his consent to search was not voluntary.
Trial court denied the suppression motion; Meekins pled guilty to possession of marijuana and appealed.
Court of Appeals reversed, finding the State failed to prove consent by clear and convincing evidence.
Texas Court of Criminal Appeals reversed, holding the consent to search was supported by the record.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Was Meekins' car search voluntary consent?	Meekins argued consent was not voluntary	State argued consent was voluntary under totality of circumstances	Consent supported by record; voluntary
What standard governs voluntariness of consent in Texas?	State burden of proof applies	Texas requires clear and convincing evidence	Clear and convincing standard applies; totality of circumstances used
Should appellate review defer to the trial court's implied findings on voluntariness?	Court of Appeals erred by de novo review	appellate deference due to trial court findings	Defer to trial court; evidence supports voluntary consent

Schneckloth v. Bustamonte, 412 U.S. 218 (1973) (consent to search must be voluntary under totality of circumstances)
Florida v. Jimeno, 500 U.S. 248 (1991) (scope of consent reasonable under Fourth Amendment)
Illinois v. Rodriguez, 497 U.S. 177 (1990) (apparent authority to consent; reasonable belief standard)
State v. Ibarra, 953 S.W.2d 242 (Tex. Crim. App. 1997) (clear and convincing burden for voluntariness of consent in Texas)
Meekins v. State, 303 S.W.3d 25 (Tex. App.-Amarillo 2009) (court of appeals' treatment of consent evidence)