State v. Reed, 2022 Ohio 3986

Antonio Reed was observed by an undercover CPD officer (Weigand) meeting with Damien Dennis, a known high‑level drug dealer, at a gas station; officer observed a hand-to-hand exchange consistent with drug trafficking patterns.
Weigand followed Reed, radioed uniformed officers to stop him, and the officers stopped Reed as he exited his vehicle in an apartment parking lot.
Officers handcuffed Reed and performed two limited pat‑downs that found nothing; officers obtained consent to search Reed’s car while Weigand conducted a more thorough search of Reed’s person.
Weigand felt an "unnatural bulge," shook Reed’s pants, and recovered a bag of drugs; Reed was then placed in a patrol vehicle and later charged with trafficking in a fentanyl‑related compound.
Reed moved to suppress the drug evidence arguing the search exceeded a Terry pat‑down and lacked probable cause for arrest; the trial court denied the motion, Reed pled no contest, and was sentenced under the Reagan Tokes Law to an indefinite 5 to 7.5 years.
On appeal Reed argued (1) the warrantless search violated the Fourth Amendment and (2) the Reagan Tokes Law is facially unconstitutional; the court affirmed the denial of suppression and upheld the sentencing scheme.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Validity of search / probable cause for arrest	Police had probable cause from surveillance of a known dealer meeting to believe a drug transaction occurred; search was incident to lawful arrest	No probable cause existed before the search; at most a Terry stop warranted only a protective pat‑down	Court held probable cause existed based on totality (surveillance + observed exchange); search valid as incident to arrest
Waiver of Fourth Amendment claim	(State) Defendant waived challenge by not expressly arguing lack of probable cause below	(Reed) Motion to suppress challenged scope of Terry stop, implicitly contesting probable cause	Court found issue was litigated at the hearing and not waived
Constitutionality of Reagan Tokes Law	State: law facially constitutional; permits specified review procedures consistent with precedent	Reed: law violates separation of powers, due process, and equal protection	Court, relying on Guyton precedent, held the Reagan Tokes Law is not facially unconstitutional; overruled Reed's challenge

Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (established stop‑and‑frisk standard)
United States v. Robinson, 414 U.S. 218 (search incident to lawful custodial arrest permits full search of person)
Rawlings v. Kentucky, 448 U.S. 98 (search incident to arrest may precede formal arrest if probable cause existed contemporaneously)
Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. 213 (probable cause evaluated under totality of the circumstances)
State v. Burnside, 100 Ohio St.3d 152 (standard of review for suppression appeals)
State v. Elmore, 111 Ohio St.3d 515 (definition of probable cause for arrests in Ohio)
State v. Eppinger, 74 Ohio App.3d 503 (distinguished; insufficient suspicion from a vague exchange)
State v. Bodyke, 126 Ohio St.3d 266 (stare decisis considerations in constitutional interpretation)