United States v. Miguel Ware, 465 F. App'x 487

Detectives followed an informant’s tip about a young Black male named “G” driving a black Ford Focus carrying crack cocaine and a gun.
An unmarked Ford Focus matching the tip was observed, and the driver was Ware with a female passenger; a traffic violation (no turn signal) occurred.
The officers stopped the vehicle and ordered occupants out; they frisked Ware and McKinley for weapons.
A gun and crack cocaine were found when a center console was opened, the latter concealed in a false Red Bull can.
Ware was read Miranda rights, questioned later at the detective bureau, and made inculpatory statements.
The district court found the informant’s tip was corroborated and credible, and Ware’s and McKinley’s credibility was weighing against Ware’s version of events.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the stop was supported by probable cause	Ware argues the tip was unreliable and the stop was pretextual	The district court found Ware committed a traffic violation (no turn signal) justifying the stop	Stop supported by probable cause; pretextual motive irrelevant under Whren
Whether the search of the car was lawful	Ware contends the search exceeded permissible limits after handcuffing	Investigatory search justified by Long and Gant; arrestee unsecured and in proximity to interior	Search of center console valid under Michigan v. Long and Gant; not a Fourth Amendment violation
Whether the frisk of Ware was permissible	Frisk was improperly warranted given purported lack of danger	Reasonable suspicion Ware was armed and dangerous due to tip and furtive movements	Frisk permissible under Johnson and Mimms given reasonable suspicion and stop context
Whether inculpatory statements were fruit of the poisonous tree	Statements should be excluded if derived from an unlawful search	Search was valid; statements admissible independent of any suppression defect	Statements not excluded; fruit-of-the-poisonous-tree doctrine did not apply

Florida v. J.L., 526 U.S. 266 (U.S. 2000) (unreliable informant tip not alone enough for stop)
Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (U.S. 1968) (stop-and-frisk framework for police safety)
Whren v. United States, 517 U.S. 806 (U.S. 1996) (probable cause for traffic stop validates stop regardless of motive)
Mimms v. United States, 434 U.S. 106 (U.S. 1977) (driver may be ordered from vehicle after lawful stop)
Maryland v. Johnson, 555 U.S. 323 (U.S. 2009) (frisk of occupants during stop supported by safety concerns)
Arizona v. Gant, 129 S. Ct. 1710 (S. Ct. 2009) (vehicle search after arrestee secured requires justification)
Michigan v. Long, 463 U.S. 1032 (U.S. 1983) (scope of vehicle search for weapons when safety is at issue)
United States v. Davis, 430 F.3d 345 (6th Cir. 2005) (relevant corroboration of informant tips in drug searches)
United States v. Dyson, 527 U.S. 465 (U.S. 1999) (informant tip corroborated to justify vehicle search)
United States v. Perez, 440 F.3d 363 (6th Cir. 2006) (lawful search allowance for drugs in vehicle contents)
United States v. Williams, 615 F.3d 657 (6th Cir. 2010) (fruit-of-the-poisonous-tree doctrine caution on derivative evidence)
United States v. Hill, 195 F.3d 258 (6th Cir. 1999) (recognition of Terry stop concepts in traffic stops)