## F I LED United States C ourt of Appeals Tenth Circuit 

### Jan u ary19,2007 Elisab eth A. Shumaker C l erk of C ourt PU BL I SH UNI TED S TATES CO URT O F AP PEALS

T E N T H C IR C U IT UNI T E D S T AT E S OF AM E RI CA ,

Pl ai nt i ff- A ppel l ee, v. N o. 05- 4255 AD RI AN T. STEWA RT,

D e fe n d a n t-A p p e llan t. AP P EA L F ROM THE UNI TE D S TA TE S DI S TR I CT COURT

F OR THE DI S TR I CT OF UT AH ( D . C . N O . 2: 04- C R - 00024 B SJ) S c o tt C . W ill iam s, S a lt L a k e C ity , U tah , fo r D e fe n d a n t-A p p e llan t. D i ana H agen, A s s i s t antU ni t ed St at es A t t orney( B r et tL . T ol m an, U ni t ed St at es A t t or ney , w i t h heron t he br i efs ) , Sal tL ake Ci ty , U t ah, forPl ai nt i ff- A ppel l ee. B efo re HENR Y , HOLL OW AY , and M c CO NNELL , C i rcui tJudg es. M c CO NNELL , C i r cui tJ udge. A t r aff i c s t op of A dr i an T. St ew ar t ’ s cari n H eberC i ty , U t ah, l ed t o the di s coveryunderhi s s eatof a l oaded . 9 m i l l i m et erpi s t ol w i th the s afe tyoff a nd a p a c k a g e o f

m e th a m p h e tam in e h id d e n in a ro llerb lad e . M r. S tew a rt m o v e d to s uppr es s t hi s evi dence , ar gui ng t hatt he off i cer ’ s ques t i on thatl ed t o the-2-

d isc o v e ryo f

th e g u n , an d th e su b se q u e n t se a rc h o f h is v e h icle , v io late d h is F o u rth A m e n d m e n t rig h ts. T h e d istric t co u rt d e n ied h is m o tio n , an d a ju ryc o n v icte d h im o f me t h a mp h e t a mi n e p o s s e s s i o n . T h e g o v e rn me n td i s mi s s e d th e g u n c h a r g e . He now appea l s fr om t he di s t r i ctcourt ’ s deni al of hi s s uppr es s i on m ot i on. I n l i ghtof the Supr eme C our t ’ s r ece ntdeci s i on i n Muehl er v. Mena , 544 U . S. 93 ( 2005) , w e hol d t hatt he off i cer ’ s ques t i on w as nota Four th A m endment vi ol at i on beca us e— as M r . St ew ar tconce des

— i tdi d notpr ol ong the l ength of the t r aff i c s t op. W e al s o hol d t hatt he vehi cl e s ear ch w as pr operunderthe aut om obi l e exc ept i on t o t he w arr antr equi r ement . W e ther efor e AF F I RM t he dis t ri ctcou rt ’s den i al of M r. S t ew art ’s m oti on t o sup press . FACTS O n S e p tem b e r 1 1 , 2 0 0 3 , S e rg e a n t Je ffe ryW in ter to n o f th e W a sa tch C o u n ty S h eriff ’s O ffice rec eive d a p h o n e c all fro m an info rm an t “i n d icat[ing ] th at th ere w as a vehi cl e parked ata l ocat i on i n H eberC i ty , [U t ah, ] and thateveryt i m e that vehi cl e w as i n t ow n t her e w as dope i n i t . ” R . V ol . I I I , at8. A tfi r s t , Ser geant W in ter to n re b u ffe d th e in fo rm a n t’s in v itatio n to c o m e se e th e v e h icle , citin g h is heavyw or kl oad. H e eve ntual l yr el ent ed, how ever , and mett he i nform anti n a M cD onal d’ s parki ng l ot . T he tw o tr avel ed t ogetheri n W i nt er t on’ s cart o the B ear M o u n tain C h a let, a H e b e r C itym o tel, w h e re th e in fo rm a n t p o in ted o u t a w h ite C h e v ro le t T a h o e b a c k e d in to a m o te l p a rk in g s ta ll. I t b o re a n Id a h o lic e n s e p la te . W i nt er t on s aw t hatt he Tahoe l acke d a fr ontl i cens e pl at e as both U t ah and I daho-3-

la w re q u ir e . Id a h o C o d e A n n . § 4 9 -4 2 8 (1 ); U ta h C o d e A n n . § 4 1 -1 a -4 0 4 (1 ). B eca us e no one w as i n orar ound t he Tahoe atthatt i m e, and bec aus e he ha d other w or k t o do, W i nt ert on r etur ned the i nform antt o hi s ow n caratM cD onal d’ s and c o n tin u e d w o rk in g o n h is p re v io u s ly sc h e d u le d ta s k s . M or e than tw o hour s l at er , Ser geantW i nt er t on r etur ned t o the B ear M o u n t a i n Ch a l e t ’ s p a r k i n g l o ta n d s a w th a tth e T a h o e wa s s t i l l th e r e . He r econnoi t er ed and obs erved a w om an open the Tahoe’ s pas s engers i de fr ontdoor and r epea t edl yw al k fr om t her e t o the Tahoe’ s r earhat ch. A tthe t i m e, he w as unabl e t o di s cern w hatt he w om an w as doi ng. H e al s o s aw thatthe dr i ver ’ s door w as open, buthe di d nots ee a ny one otherthan the w om an nea rthe Tahoe. T he w o m a n e v e n tu a lly sa t in th e f ro n t p a s s e n g e r s e a t a n d c lo s e d th e d o o r. A ppr oxi m at el yone mi nut e l at er , the dr i ver ’ s doors hut , and the Tahoe l eftthe p a rk in g lo t. Ser geantW i nt ert on fol l ow ed the Tahoe. H e tr i ed t o run a r ecor ds s ear ch butw as unabl e t o s ee the Tahoe’ s l i cens e pl at e numberbeca us e s om e s tr aps fr om a b icycle ra c k w e re o b sc u rin g it. W in ter to n th e n tu rn e d o n h is e m e rg e n c ylig h ts a n d s to p p e d th e T a h o e . T he dr i verw as A dr i an St ew ar t . W hen Ser geantW i nt er t on as ked hi m for hi s dr i ver ’ s l i cens e and r egi s t r at i on, M r . St ew ar t“bec ame verynervous ” and

“ d e la y e d ” g iv in g a re s p o n s e . Id. at13. St ew ar t“l ook[ed] ar ound i ns i de the-4-

vehi cl e . . . t hen s ai d he thought ” hi s l i cens e w as “i n the bac k. ” Id. H e then “made a furt i ve movem entt o t he bac k of the vehi cl e. ” Id. S e r g e a n tWi n t e r t o n t o l d M r . S t e wa r tt o s t o p r e a c h i n g fo rth e b a c k s e a t . He a sk e d if S tew a rt c o u ld o b tain h is d riv e r’s lice n se f ro m th e b a c k o f

th e T a h o e if St ew ar ts t epped outof the ca r . M r . St ew ar ts ai d thathe coul d. B efor e openi ng t he doorand l et t i ng M r . St ew artoutof the vehi cl e, Ser geantW i nt er t on “as ked M r . St ew ar ti f he ha d anyw eapons orcontr aband i n the vehi cl e that[W i nt er t on] neede d t o be conc erned about . ” Id. at13. W hen St ew ar tr es ponded thathe had a g u n u n d e rt h e d r i v e r ’ s s e a t , S e r g e a n tWi n t e r t o n a s k e d h i m t o e x i tth e T a h o e . He d id , a n d W in te rt o n e s c o rt e d h im to th e b a c k o f th e v e h ic le . W h il e M r. S tew art w ait ed , S erg ea n t W intert o n ch ec k ed u n d er the d ri v er’s s eatand found i n a pi s t ol cas e a l oaded . 9 m i l l i m et erhandgun w i th the s afe tyoff. T h is disco v eryp rom p ted W intert o n to arres t M r. S tew art. H e d id n o t, h o w ev er, s ear ch the vehi cl e i nci dentt o t hi s arr es t . I ns t ead, he r ece i ved perm i s s i on fr om M r. S tew art t o en ter th e T ah o e fo r th e li m it ed p u rpo se o f find ing S tew art’s dr i ver ’ s l i cens e. A ft ers ever al fai l ed att empt s t o fi nd the l i cens e, and r epea t ed cal l s t o di s pat ch, Ser geantW i nt ert on w as abl e t o ver i fythatM r . St ew ar thad a v a lid Id a h o ’s d ri v e r’ s lic e n s e . W in te rt o n th e n to o k M r. S te w a rt to ja il. B efor e l eavi ng, how ever , W i nt er t on cal l ed forotheroffi cer s t o i m pound t he T ahoe a nd i nvent or yi t s cont ent s . O ne of thos e w as D eputyG r egoryR oy al , a dog h a n d ler . D e p u tyR o y a l ar riv e d to im p o u n d th e T a h o e , b u t d e c id e d to d e p lo yh is-5-

n a rc o tics d e tec tio n d o g B o o m e r b e fo re d o in g so . B o o m e r h a d b e e n c e rtifie d in C o lo ra d o a s a n a rc o tics d e tec tio n d o g in A u g u st 2 0 0 3

— a p p ro x im a telyo n e m o n th b e fo re th is s n iff

o c c u rre d

— a n d h e h a d n o t y e t b e e n c e rtifie d in U tah . D e p u ty R oy al s t ar t ed B oom er“att he bac k of the vehi cl e on the pas s engers i de, and [he ] w alke d B o o m er a rou n d , u p the p asse n g er side , aro u n d the f ron t, d o w n the d ri v er’s s i de of the vehi cl e, w her e B oom erthen al er t ed” on the r eardr i ver ’ s s i de by a g g re s s iv e ly sc ra tc h in g a t th e T a h o e . Id. a t 5 0

– 5 1 . D e p u ty R o y a l n o tifie d S e rg e a n t O ls e n o f th e a le rt a n d p u t B o o m e r a w a y . T he tw o offi cer s t hen bega n t o i nvent orythe Tahoe’ s cont ent s . N o s ear ch, inv en toryo r oth erw ise, o cc u rred u n ti l after B o o m er a lert ed . D u ri n g the in v en tory s ear ch, t he off

i cer s found a pa i rof r ol l erbl ades i n the Tahoe’ s r earhat ch, on the dr i ver ’ s s i de of the ca r . T heydi s cover ed i ns i de one r ol l erbl ade a four - t o fi vei nch- l ong packa ge that“w as w r apped i n ductt ape w hi ch appe ar ed t o have maybe a s ock thatw as s how i ng on t he cornerthatw as poki ng out . ” Id. at52. B as ed on D eputyR oy al ’ s t r ai ni ng, he s us pect ed the pac kage c ont ai ned nar cot i cs . R oy al cont act ed Ser geantO l s en, anotheroffi ceron the s cene , w ho opened the pac kage t o di s covera w hi t e, cry s t al - l i ke s ubs t ance thattur ned outt o be met hamphet ami ne. M r. S tew a rt w a s e v e n tu a llyin d icte d fo r p o ss e ss io n o f m e th a m p h e tam in e in vi ol at i on of 21 U . S. C . § 841( a) ( 1) and forpos s es s i on of a f i r earm bya r es tr i ct ed per s on i n vi ol at i on of 18 U . S. C . § 922( g) ( 9) . A j uryconvi ct ed hi m , and he w as-6-

s ent ence d t o ni nety - s even mont hs i m pr i s onm entand forty - ei ghtm onths of s upervi s ed r el eas e. DI S CU S S I ON I . W i nt ert on’ s Q ues t i on t o St ew art W as C onst i t ut i onal . M r. S tew a rt b a se s h is first a rg u m e n t— th a t W in ter to n v io late d h is F o u rth A m endmentr i ght s byas ki ng aboutt he pr es ence of w eapons orcontr aband— on Un itedS ta tes v . Ho lt , 264 F. 3d 1215 ( 10th C i r . 2001) ( en banc ) . I n Ho lt , a m ajo rityo f

th is C o u rt sitting e n b a n c “ d e lin e a te[ d ] th e sc o p e o f p e rm iss ib le ques t i oni ng dur i ng a r out i ne tr aff i c s t op, ” i d. at1217, byhol di ng “thatboth the l ength and s cope of

a tr aff i c s t op ar e r el evantfac t or s i n deci di ng w hethert he s t op c o m p o rt s w ith th e F o u rt h A m e n d m e n t,” i d. at1227. D i s cus s i ng the “s cope” as pect , w e hel d t hatan “offi cer ’ s ques t i on aboutt he exi s t ence of a l oaded w eapon i n t he vehi cl e” di d notvi ol at e the dr i ver ’ s Four th A m endmentr i ght s beca us e that i nqui r y“w as j us t i fi ed on the gr ounds of off i cers afe ty . ” Id. a t 1 2 1 7 . T he en ba nc Ho ltcour t , how ever , s pl i ton the ques t i on pr es ent ed her e: w hethert he C ons t i tut i on perm i t s offi cer s t o as k aboutunl oaded w eapons orot her contr aband. Fourj udges “r ej ect [ed] t he governm ent ’ s i nvi t at i on t o adopt ” a “br i ght - l i ne rul e al l ow i ng an off i cerconduct i ng a tr aff i c s t op t o as k the dr i ver aboutt he pr es ence of w eapons , abs entr eas onabl e s us pi ci on thatt he dr i verm aybe arm ed and da nger ous . ” Id. at1230 ( opi ni on of B r i s coe, J . ) . O ne j udge s aw no cons t i tut i onal pr obl em w i t h s uch ques t i ons as l ong as t heydi d not“pr ol ong the-7-

dur at i on of the s t op oral t eri t s fundament al char act eras a Terry - type det ent i on. ” Id. at1237 ( opi ni on of H enry , J . ) . A nd fourj udges pr efe rr ed nott o r es ol ve that q u e s tio n in th a t c a s e d u e to a n in a d e q u a te ly d e v e lo p e d fa c tu a l r e c o rd . Id. at 1 2 2 6

– 2 7 (o p in io n o f

E b e l, J .). T hus , fol l ow i ng Ho lt , the c o n sti tuti o n ali tyo f in q u ir ies su ch as W intert o n ’s t o M r . St ew artw as an open que s t i on. So i f Ho ltw er e the mostr ece ntdeci s i on on t hi s s ubj ect , M r . St ew art ’ s ar gum entm i ghtw el l have mer i t . U nfor tunat el yfor hi m , i ti s not . T he Supr eme C our thas s i nce a dopt ed J udge H enry ’ s vi ew i n Ho lt byhol di ng t hatt he cont entof pol i ce que s t i ons dur i ng a l aw ful det ent i on does not i m pl i cat e the Four t h A m endmentas l ong as thos e ques t i ons do notpr ol ong the d e te n tio n . Muehl er v. Mena , 544 U . S. 93, 101 ( 2005) . W e have appl i ed Muehl er in tr affic stop ca ses to reso lve F o u rth A m en d m en t objecti o n s sim il ar to M r. S te w a rt ’s . See Uni t ed Stat es v. A l car az -A r el lano , 4 4 1 F .3 d 1 2 5 2 , 1 2 5 8

– 5 9 (1 0 th C ir. 2 0 0 6 ); Uni t ed Stat es v. Wal l ace , 4 2 9 F . 3 d 9 6 9 , 9 7 4 (10 th C ir . 2 0 0 5 ). W e now m ake e xpl i ci tw hatw e i m pl i ed i n A l car az -A r el lano and Wal lace : i n l i ghtof Muehl er , t h e l a n g u a g e f r o m Ho lta p p ro v in g tra ffic s to p q u e stio n s o n ly w hen the off

i cer s s peci fi cal l ym ent i on l oadedw e a p o n s is n o lo n g e r g o o d la w . See Al car az -A r el l ano , 441 F. 3d at1258 ( “I n l i ghtof Muehl er , w e have hel d that

‘ [a] s l ong as t he [de put y ’ s ] ques t i oni ng di d notext end the l ength of the det ent i on,

. . . t her e i s no Four t h A m endmenti s s ue w i th r es pectt o the cont entof the ques t i ons . ’ ” ( quot i ng Wal l ace , 429 F. 3d at974) ) . T he corr ectFour th A m endment-8-

i nqui r y( as s um i ng t he det ent i on i s l egi t i m at e) i s w hetheran off i cer ’ s tr aff

i c s t op ques t i ons “ext ended the t i m e” thata dr i verw as det ai ned, r egar dl es s of the q u e s tio n s ’ c o n te n t. Muehl er , 544 U . S. at101. H er e, M r . St ew artconce des i n hi s r epl ybr i ef that“[i ] tcert ai nl ycan’ tbe s ai d t hat[Ser geantW i nt ert on’ s ] ques t i on i n and of i t s el f appr eci abl yext ended the d u ra tio n o f

th e s to p .” R e p ly B r. 5 . T h is a d m is s io n e n d s o u r i n q u ir y . W e th e re fo re a ffirm th e d istric t co u rt’s r u lin g th a t W in ter to n ’s q u e ry— e v e n th o u g h it so u g h t in fo rm a tio n a b o u t “ any w ea p o n s o r co n tr ab an d in the v eh icl e,” R . V o l. III , a t 1 3 (e m p h a sis a d d e d ), n o t ju st lo a d e d o n e s— w a s c o n stitu tio n a l. I I . T he T ahoe Search W as C onst i t ut i onal und er t he A ut om obi l e E x cept i on to th e W a rr a n t R eq u irem en t. M r . St ew artnextar gues t hatt he di s tr i ctcourterr ed byhol di ng thatt he sea rch o f h is T ah o e w as a law fu l search incid en t t o arrest. C it ing this C o u rt ’s deci s i on i n Uni t ed Stat es v. D ennis on , 410 F. 3d 1203, 1209 ( 10th C i r . 2005) , t he governm entconce des thatt hi s rul i ng i s err oneous beca us e M r . St ew ar thad l eft th e sc e n e a n d w a s e n ro u te to th e p o lice sta tio n w h e n th e p o lice se a rc h e d h is T ahoe. A ppel l ee’ s B r . 13–14. T he governm entneverthel es s as ks us t o aff i r m on th e a ltern a tiv e g ro u n d th a t th e se a rc h w a s ju stified u n d e r th e a u to m o b ile exce pt i on t o t he w arr antr equi r ement . B eca us e ther e ar e s uffi ci entgr ounds i n t he re c o rd to s u p p o rt th e g o v e rn m e n t’ s a lte rn a tiv e th e o ry, s ee Uni t ed Stat es v. L edford , 44 3 F . 3d 70 2, 70 7 (10th C i r. 20 05 ), w e affirm on t hat basi s.-9-

“T h e p o li ce m aysea rch an au tom o b il e a n d the c o n tai n ers w ith in itw h ere t heyhave pr obabl e ca us e t o bel i eve c ontr aband orevi dence i s cont ai ned. ” C al i f or ni a v. A cev edo , 5 0 0 U .S . 5 6 5 , 5 8 0 (1 9 9 1 ). “A c a n in e a ler t g iv e s ris e to pr obabl e ca us e t o s ear ch a ve hi cl e. ” Un i t e dS ta t e s v . Wi l l i a ms , 403 F. 3d 1203, 1207 ( 10t h C i r . 2005) . T hi s i s s o even w hen the dog al er toccur s dur i ng a w arr ant l es s s ni ff on “ t he ext er i orof a ve hi cl e dur i ng a l aw ful tr aff i c s t op” b e c a u s e s u c h s n iffs d o n o t im p lic a te th e F o u rt h A m e n d m e n t. Id. ( ci t i ng Il l i nois v. C abal l es , 5 4 3 U . S . 4 0 5 , 4 0 9 (20 0 5 )). T h e re c o rd re v e a ls th a t S e rg e a n t W in ter to n h a d tw o o bjec tiv e lyre a so n a b le b a s e s fo r s to p p in g M r. S te w a rt ’s T a h o e . F ir s t, it la c k e d a f ro n t lic e n s e p la te . S e c o n d , it s re a r lice n se p late w a s o b sc u re d . R . V o l. III, at 2 8

– 2 9 . T h e tra ffic s t op w as t her efor e l aw ful . A nd aft erSer geantW i nt er t on arr es t ed M r . St ew ar tfor keepi ng a l oaded gun i n hi s car , anothervi ol at i on of U t ah l aw , D eputyR oy al a rr iv e d a n d d e p lo y e d B o o m e r b e fo re a n y o n e s e a rc h e d th e T a h o e . Id. a t 6 0

– 6 1 . B o o m e r a le rt e d o n th e T a h o e ’s re a r d ri v e r’ s s id e b ya g g re s s iv e ly sc ra tc h in g a t it. Id. at50–51. T hi s al ertgave r i s e t o pr obabl e ca us e t o s ear ch M r . St ew ar t ’ s T ahoe and i t s cont ent s . T he off i cer s di d s o, and di s cover ed the drugs , onl yaft erB oom er a le rt e d . Id. at 61 . B ase d o n thes e fac ts, w e h o ld tha t th e o fficers’ sea rch o f M r. St ew ar t ’ s T ahoe w as l aw ful underthe aut om obi l e exc ept i on t o the w arr ant re q u ir e m e n t.-10-

M r . St ew art , how ever , ur ges us nott o aff i rm on thi s bas i s . H e s t at es that he fi r s tl earned of Boom er ’ s s ni ff a tthe evi dent i aryhear i ng, and thatthe bel at ed di s cl os ur e pr event ed hi m fr om adequa t el yi nves t i gat i ng i t . W hi l e the t i m i ng of th e d isc lo su re m a yb e su sp e c t, M r. S tew a rt n o n e th e les s w a s a b le to in v e stig a te fu ll y . H is l aw y er tho rou g h lycro ss-ex am ined D ep u tyR o y al ab o u t B o o m er’s tra in in g a n d e x p e rie n c e . H e th e n a sk e d fo r a n d re c e iv e d m o re th a n ten d a y s to f u rth e r in v e stig a te B o o m e r’s q u a lific a tio n s a n d D e p u tyR o y a l’s re p o rt. H is p o sth e a rin g in v e stig a tio n d id n o t p ro d u c e a n yn e w e v id e n c e th a t M r. S tew a rt c o u ld h a v e u s e d to e x p a n d th e s c o p e o f D e p u ty R o y a l’ s c ro s s -e x a m in a tio n . A ccor di ngl y , t he exa ctt i m e thatM r . St ew ar tl earned of Boom er ’ s al er tdoes not change t he Four t h A m endmentcal cul us her e. Si m i l ar l y , M r . St ew artur ges us t o i gnor e B oom er ’ s al er tbeca us e the di s t r i ctcourti ns t ruct ed the governm entt o “s ki p the dog” a nd des cr i bed the dog sni ff as “supe rfl uo us. ” R . V ol. V , at24 –2 5. T he d i stri ctcou rtm ade these com m ents , ho w ever, du ri ng oral argum ent on M r. S t ew art ’s m oti on t o sup press , n o t du ri n g the e v iden ti aryh ea ri n g s o n that m o ti o n . T h e c o u rtg av e M r. S tew art tre m e n d o u s la titu d e in th e e v id e n tiary he a rin g to c o n d u c t w h a tev e r in q u iryh e fe lt w as appr opr i at e. O nl yaft eri tdeci ded thatthe s ear ch w as pr oper l ycat egor i zed a s an i nvent or ys ear ch ora s ear ch i nci dentt o arr es tdi d the di s tr i ctcourtl i m i tthe p ro s e c u to r’ s a rg u m e n ts a b o u t th e d o g s n iff.-11-

W e a re n o t li m ited b yth e d istric t co u rt’s le g a l co n c lu sio n s. In d e e d , this is pr eci s el yt he type of c as e s us cept i bl e t o aff i r m ance on al t ernat e gr ounds : the defe ndanthad eve r yoppor tuni t yt o devel op a fa ctual r ecor d on thi s i s s ue. O ur v iew o f th o se fa c ts p e rsu a d e s u s th a t th e d o g sn iff m a yb e se re n d ip ito u s, b u t itis n o t s u p e rflu o u s . CO NC L US I ON W e A F F IR M t he d i stri ctcou rt ’s den i al of M r. S t ew art ’s m oti on t o sup press .