State v. Rogers, 297 Neb. 265

Background

On Aug. 5, 2015, Lincoln police approached a parked vehicle connected to a person wanted on a federal indictment; a second vehicle (with driver, front passenger, and rear passenger Rogers) was nearby.
The lead officer approached the second vehicle, saw the front passenger reach under his seat, and identified the driver as a known narcotics contact. Additional officers arrived.
The officers ordered all three occupants out of the vehicle; the front passenger was arrested on a warrant.
While occupants were out of the car, the lead officer observed a purse in the rear floor with a small plastic bag consistent with narcotics packaging; consent to search was refused and a drug dog was summoned.
The dog alerted on the driver’s side; a subsequent search of the vehicle and purse produced a pipe and residue testing positive for amphetamines; Rogers was arrested and charged.
Rogers moved to suppress; the district court denied the motion, she was convicted by jury, sentenced to 20 months to 5 years, and appealed.

Issues

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether officers’ interaction became a seizure when passengers were ordered out of the car	Rogers: ordering occupants out after discovering the wanted person was not present converted the encounter into a seizure unsupported by suspicion	State: the encounter began tier‑one and escalated to tier‑two when occupants were ordered out; surrounding facts supplied reasonable suspicion	Court: Ordering occupants out, given number of officers and arrest of another passenger, constituted a seizure; but reasonable suspicion existed to justify detention
Whether officers had reasonable suspicion to detain passengers and deploy a drug dog	Rogers: detention rested on mere hunch about driver due to associations; insufficient articulable facts	State: officers observed furtive movement under seat, had intel about driver, and saw narcotics‑style bag in purse — together reasonable suspicion	Court: totality (furtive movement, driver’s narcotics contact, observed bag) produced reasonable suspicion; dog sniff and subsequent search lawful
Whether evidence from vehicle/purse should be suppressed as fruit of illegal seizure/search	Rogers: suppression required because initial seizure was unsupported	State: seizure and subsequent dog sniff/search were lawful; evidence admissible	Court: suppression denied; evidence admissible because seizure and later search were supported by reasonable suspicion and probable cause after dog alert
Whether sentence (20 mo.–5 yrs.) was excessive	Rogers: court failed to meaningfully consider mitigating factors or explain sentence	State: sentence within statutory limits and based on discretion	Court: sentence within statutory limits and no abuse of discretion; affirmed

Key Cases Cited

Delaware v. Prouse, 440 U.S. 648 (1979) (framework on seizures and Fourth Amendment limits on stopping motorists)
State v. Milos, 294 Neb. 375 (2016) (tiers of police-citizen encounters and appellate review standard for suppression rulings)
State v. Voichahoske, 271 Neb. 64 (2006) (furtive movement under seat can contribute to reasonable suspicion)
State v. Hedgcock, 277 Neb. 805 (2009) (analysis when an officer’s request to exit a vehicle becomes a seizure)
State v. Loding, 296 Neb. 670 (2017) (standards for reviewing sentences and suppression issues)