Rodney Killebrew II v. State of Indiana, 976 N.E.2d 775

Killebrew was convicted of possession of marijuana after a traffic stop and subsequent search, but the conviction is reversed.
Officer VanCamp stopped Killebrew for an alleged traffic violation at an intersection; observed excessive air fresheners and suspected masking odors; canine alerted; marijuana found in the Cadillac.
Killebrew challenged the stop as illegal and moved to suppress the marijuana evidence; the trial court denied the motion.
The appellate court analyzes Fourth Amendment admissibility of evidence obtained from the stop, addressing preservation, and applicable standards.
The court ultimately concludes the stop was unlawful because it was not justified by a traffic violation, reasonable suspicion, or community caretaking, so the marijuana evidence was improperly admitted and the conviction must be reversed.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether admission of marijuana evidence following the stop violated the Fourth Amendment	State argues stop was justified by reasonable suspicion	Killebrew argues stop was unlawful and evidence must be suppressed	Yes; stop was unlawful and evidence inadmissible

Rhodes v. State, 950 N.E.2d 1261 (Ind. Ct. App. 2011) (reasonable suspicion standard for traffic stops)
Ransom v. State, 741 N.E.2d 419 (Ind. Ct. App. 2000) (good faith error on traffic violations not a basis for stop)
Colorado v. Bertine, 479 U.S. 367 (1987) (community caretaking is narrow and does not justify criminal searches)