State v. Rogers, 297 Neb. 265

Background

On Aug. 5, 2015, Lincoln police located a parked vehicle near a residence tied to a wanted federal suspect; the vehicle had three occupants, including Rogers in the back seat.
The lead officer approached a second vehicle (parked in front) to check for the wanted person; she observed the front-seat passenger reach under his seat and recognized the driver as a known narcotics contact.
Three additional officers arrived; the front passenger was later arrested on a warrant. Officers then asked all occupants (including Rogers) to exit the vehicle.
The lead officer saw a purse on the rear floor with a small plastic bag protruding; she requested consent to search (denied) and summoned a drug-detection dog.
The dog alerted on the driver’s side; officers searched the vehicle, recovered a purse and a pipe later identified as Rogers’, and drug residue that tested positive for amphetamines. Rogers was charged with possession.
Rogers moved to suppress; the district court denied the motion, she was convicted by a jury and sentenced to 20 months to 5 years. The Nebraska Supreme Court affirmed.

Issues

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the initial encounter/ordering passengers out of the car was a "seizure" under the Fourth Amendment	Rogers: the encounter became a seizure when officers detained occupants after concluding the wanted person was not present, and there was no reasonable suspicion to justify detention	State: encounter began as consensual, escalated lawfully to a tier-two detention supported by articulable facts giving reasonable suspicion	The court held the exit order produced a tier-two seizure, but it was supported by reasonable suspicion and thus lawful
Whether officers had reasonable suspicion to detain and sniff for drugs	Rogers: detention rested on a mere hunch based on the driver’s associations	State: officer observed furtive movement under the seat, recognized the driver as a narcotics contact, received intel on front passenger, and saw a baggie in a purse—facts that collectively gave rise to reasonable suspicion	The court held the totality of circumstances supplied reasonable suspicion to detain and conduct a canine sniff
Whether subsequent dog sniff and search produced admissible evidence	Rogers: evidence was fruit of an illegal seizure and should be suppressed	State: canine sniff was conducted within a reasonable time and dog alert gave probable cause for search	The court held the sniff and ensuing search were lawful; evidence admissible
Whether the sentence (20 months–5 years) was excessive	Rogers: court failed to meaningfully consider mitigating factors and did not justify a near-maximum term	State: sentence was within statutory limits and the court considered appropriate factors	The court held the sentence was within limits and not an abuse of discretion

Key Cases Cited

State v. Milos, 294 Neb. 375 (Neb. 2016) (standard for suppress-review tiers and seizure analysis)
State v. Tyler, 291 Neb. 920 (Neb. 2015) (Fourth Amendment seizure timing and reasonable suspicion framework)
State v. Loding, 296 Neb. 670 (Neb. 2017) (suppression and review principles)
State v. Van Ackeren, 242 Neb. 479 (Neb. 1993) (three-tier encounter framework)
State v. Hedgcock, 277 Neb. 805 (Neb. 2009) (request to exit vehicle may be a seizure depending on circumstances)
Delaware v. Prouse, 440 U.S. 648 (U.S. 1979) (Fourth Amendment stop and seizure standards)
State v. Voichahoske, 271 Neb. 64 (Neb. 2006) (furtive movement under seat may contribute to reasonable suspicion)
State v. Au, 285 Neb. 797 (Neb. 2013) (reasonable suspicion definition)
State v. Wells, 290 Neb. 186 (Neb. 2015) (totality-of-circumstances test for reasonable suspicion)
State v. Draper, 295 Neb. 88 (Neb. 2016) (sentencing discretion principles)
State v. Custer, 292 Neb. 88 (Neb. 2015) (sentencing considerations)