State v. Cook, A-15-1039

At ~2:48 a.m. a 911 caller reported being followed by a black SUV whose occupants waved a handgun; dispatch broadcast the vehicle description and direction of travel.
Officers located a black Chevy Tahoe matching the broadcast within minutes, followed it, observed dark window tint and a turn without signaling, and conducted a felony-style traffic stop after recognizing the driver as Leangelo Cook (a known gang member).
Officers ordered four occupants out, handcuffed them, smelled burnt marijuana, removed the Tahoe’s glove box and found two firearms (one with a scratched/defaced serial number); one gun was registered to Cook’s former girlfriend who said it had been stolen previously.
Cook (a convicted felon) was charged with possession of a deadly weapon by a prohibited person, possession of a defaced firearm, and witness tampering based on jailhouse calls/letters asking two women to sign false affidavits.
Cook moved to suppress the stop/search, asserted a Batson challenge after the State used two peremptory strikes against African‑American veniremembers, and moved for a directed verdict after trial; the district court denied suppression, overruled the Batson challenge, and submitted the case to a jury, which convicted him on all counts.
The Nebraska Court of Appeals affirmed: it held the stop/search lawful, the prosecutor’s juror strike reasons race‑neutral, and the evidence sufficient on all charges.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (Cook)	Defendant's Argument (State)	Held
Lawfulness of stop/search (motion to suppress)	Stop lacked probable cause/reliable tie to 911 report; officers ignored dispatch saying they stopped wrong vehicle; no reasonable suspicion officers were armed	911 caller was a reliable citizen informant; officers observed traffic violations (tint, failure to signal), recognized Cook as a gang member, smelled marijuana; officer safety justified felony stop and vehicle search	Denied suppression. Stop supported by citizen tip plus observed traffic violations; officer safety and odor of marijuana justified search
Batson challenge to peremptory strikes	Strikes of jurors Nos. 11 and 23 were racially motivated; similar non‑Black jurors were not struck	Prosecutor gave race‑neutral reasons (unstable work/history, out‑of‑state residence, apparent disinterest, reluctance to judge) and court found them credible	Overruled Batson. Court found prosecutor’s explanations facially race‑neutral and not clearly erroneous
Sufficiency of evidence / directed verdict	Evidence insufficient to prove possession by prohibited person, possession of defaced firearm, or witness tampering	Prima facie statutory presumption that occupants possess firearms in vehicle; lab evidence of scratched serial number; phone records, letter, and witness testimony showed attempts to procure false affidavits	Motion for directed verdict properly denied. Evidence sufficient on all counts

Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (prohibits race‑based peremptory strikes)
Maryland v. Wilson, 519 U.S. 408 (officers may order passengers out during lawful traffic stop)
Michigan v. Long, 463 U.S. 1032 (vehicle search for officer safety where suspect may be armed)
U.S. v. Melendez‑Garcia, 28 F.3d 1046 (8th Cir.) (use of handcuffs/guns during stops requires reasonable belief suspects are armed)
State v. Watts, 209 Neb. 371 (odor of marijuana can provide probable cause to search vehicle)
State v. Jasper, 237 Neb. 754 (statutory prima facie presumption that firearm in vehicle is possessed by occupants)
State v. Nolan, 283 Neb. 50 (officers may order driver and passengers out and pat down if reasonable suspicion they are armed)
State v. Clifton, 296 Neb. 135 (standard of review for facial validity of race‑neutral explanations and review of trial court credibility findings)