Slip Opinion
Tenn. Crim. App.Mar 11, 2014Background
- On May 11, 2012, Deputy K-9 handler Michael Agee smelled marijuana on Shane McClanahan inside a convenience store, then observed McClanahan leave and get into his vehicle. Agee did not detain him inside the store.
- Agee followed McClanahan and stopped his vehicle about a half to one mile away (across the county line), citing the odor of marijuana as the basis for the stop. A K-9 free-air sniff of the parked vehicle alerted and Agee then searched the car, finding a large quantity of marijuana. McClanahan’s license status (suspended) was learned only after the search.
- Evidence from that vehicle search supported a warrant for Ricky Jones’s residence; Jones was separately indicted for marijuana manufacture and related offenses. Both McClanahan and Jones moved to suppress; the trial court granted suppression and dismissed the indictments.
- The State appealed only the trial court’s suppression ruling as to McClanahan, arguing the initial reasonable suspicion continued after McClanahan drove away and justified the later stop and search.
- The Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed: it found Agee had reasonable suspicion at the moment he smelled marijuana in the store but that Agee unreasonably delayed detaining McClanahan until the vehicle stop, rendering the later seizure and consequent search unconstitutional.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the officer had reasonable suspicion to stop McClanahan’s vehicle after McClanahan left the store | Odor of marijuana at the store gave reasonable suspicion that criminal activity (possession/use) was afoot and that suspicion persisted when McClanahan drove off | Officer’s reasonable suspicion existed only at the moment he smelled marijuana in the store; delaying the stop until the vehicle was down the road exceeded the permissible scope/time | The court held Agee had reasonable suspicion when he smelled marijuana in the store but unreasonably delayed; the subsequent stop was an unlawful seizure |
| Whether evidence from the vehicle search was admissible | Vehicle stop and search were lawful because initial suspicion continued and K-9 alert provided justification | The delayed stop made the seizure/search unconstitutional; evidence must be suppressed | Suppression affirmed: evidence from vehicle excluded as fruit of unlawful seizure |
| Whether suppression of McClanahan’s evidence invalidated the warrant-based evidence against Jones | State implicitly: if McClanahan’s stop/search were lawful, the evidence used for Jones’s warrant was reliable | Defendants: Jones’s warrant relied substantially on evidence tainted by McClanahan’s unlawful stop/search | Court did not address Jones’s suppression on appeal (State waived challenge); trial court rulings as to Jones remain affirmed by procedural default |
| Credibility and reasonableness of officer’s conduct in failing to detain inside/just outside store | State: short passage of time doesn’t dissipate reasonable suspicion; minor delay is acceptable | Court/Defendant: officer’s testimony that he smelled marijuana but failed to act immediately was not credible; he should have detained McClanahan at earliest opportunity | Court credited trial judge’s credibility findings and held officer acted unreasonably in waiting until vehicle was a mile down the road |
Key Cases Cited
- Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (investigatory stops require reasonable, articulable suspicion)
- United States v. Cortez, 449 U.S. 411 (reasonable-suspicion analysis considers common-sense inferences of trained officers)
- United States v. Hensley, 469 U.S. 221 (brief stop and detention at earliest opportunity after suspicion arose is consistent with Fourth Amendment)
- Illinois v. Caballes, 543 U.S. 405 (scope/duration limits on seizures under Terry)
- Whren v. United States, 517 U.S. 806 (pretextual stops constitutional if objective justification exists)
- State v. Ross, 49 S.W.3d 833 (trial court factual findings in suppression hearings reviewed for preponderance)
- State v. Odom, 928 S.W.2d 18 (trial court credibility and weight of evidence standard)
- State v. Yeargan, 958 S.W.2d 626 (warrantless searches/seizures presumed unreasonable; State bears burden to justify exception)