Opinion ID: 150729
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Fourth Amendment Merits 5

Text: 4 We also note that our decision to resolve Pack’s case on the merits without addressing the “standing” issue is not an exercise of “hypothetical jurisdiction” like that prohibited by the Supreme Court in Steel Co. v. Citizens for a Better Environment. 118 S.Ct. 1003, 1016–17 (1998). This follows from the fact that the question of Fourth Amendment “standing” is not truly a question of standing in the first place, but is instead an issue of the merits of Pack’s claim. See Rakas, 99 S.Ct. at 428 (stating that there is no useful analytical purpose to be served by considering a matter of standing distinct from the merits of a defendant’s Fourth Amendment claim). 5 Contrary to the suggestion of the dissent, nothing in United States v. Arvizu, 122 S.Ct. 744 (2002), requires a remand, nor does the dissent cite any case requiring such a remand on the basis of Arvizu. It is clear that “as a general matter determinations of reasonable suspicion and probable cause should be reviewed de novo on appeal.” Ornelas v. United States, 116 S.Ct. 1657, 1663 (1996). “This court may affirm the district court’s ruling on a motion to suppress based on any rational supported by the record.” United States v. Waldrop, 404 F.3d 365, 368 (5th Cir. 2005). See also United States v. IbarraSanchez, 199 F.3d 753, 758 (5th Cir. 1999) (same). “To the extent the underlying facts are undisputed, as they essentially are here, we may resolve questions such as probable cause and reasonable suspicion as questions of law.” Blackwell v. Barton, 34 F.3d 298, 305 (5th Cir. 1994). See also Ibarra-Sanchez at 758 (same); United States v. Kye Soo Lee, 962 F.2d 430, 435 n.17 (5th Cir. 1992) (where determinative facts are not disputed, probable cause is a question of law); United States v. Basey, 816 F.2d 980, 988 (5th Cir. 1987) (reasonableness in investigatory stop cases ultimately a question of law). Here the only evidence before the magistrate judge was the testimony of Worley and the videotape of the stop (with audio). At no time did Pack testify (he was clearly protected by United States v. Simmons, 88 S.Ct. 967, 975-76 (1968)). Nor did Williamson testify. All the evidence at the hearing was presented by the United States in support of its previously filed opposition to the motion to suppress which alleged not only a lack of standing but also that, in any 11 Case: 08-41063 Document: 00511174826 Page: 12 Date Filed: 07/15/2010 No. 08-41063 We analyze the legality of traffic stops for Fourth Amendment purposes under the standard articulated by the Supreme Court in Terry v. Ohio, 88 S.Ct. 1868 (1968). Brigham, 382 F.3d at 506. Under this standard, we make a twopart inquiry. Id. First, we examine whether or not the officer’s decision to stop the vehicle was justified at its inception. Id. Second, we determine whether or not the officer’s subsequent actions were reasonably related in scope to the circumstances that caused him to stop the vehicle in the first place. Id. An officer’s subsequent actions are not reasonably related in scope to the circumstances that caused him to stop the vehicle if he detains its occupants beyond the time needed to investigate the circumstances that caused the stop, unless he develops reasonable suspicion of additional criminal activity in the meantime. Id. at 507. If the officer develops reasonable suspicion of additional criminal activity during his investigation of the circumstances that originally caused the stop, he may further detain its occupants for a reasonable time while appropriately attempting to dispel this reasonable suspicion. See id. We have held that an officer may examine driver’s licenses and vehicle registrations and run computer checks as part of his investigation of the circumstances that originally caused the stop. Id. at 508. He may also ask about the purpose and itinerary of the occupants’ trip as part of this investigation, because we consider these questions to be reasonably related in scope to his investigation of the circumstances that caused the stop. See id. at event, Worley’s “continued detention of Pack after the computer checks were returned was permissible” because “he had developed a reasonable suspicion that the defendant was engaged in criminal activity,” citing, inter alia, Pack’s extreme nervousness, the highway being a known drug corridor, and the above noted illogical and conflicting stories that Pack and Williamson told Worley about their travels. Pack has at no time – here or below – challenged the facts as related by Worley (and recited in the magistrate judge’s reports) regarding the stop as hereinabove set out. 12 Case: 08-41063 Document: 00511174826 Page: 13 Date Filed: 07/15/2010 No. 08-41063 506–08. Additionally, we have held that an officer may ask questions on subjects unrelated to the circumstances that caused the stop, so long as these unrelated questions do not extend the duration of the stop. Shabazz, 993 F.2d at 436–37. The reasoning behind this rule is that the Fourth Amendment protects against detention, not questioning. Id. at 436. Thus, no Fourth Amendment harm is done where the officer asks the occupants of a vehicle questions that are unrelated to his reason for stopping the vehicle while waiting for routine computer checks to be processed. See id. at 436–37. The first part of the two-part Terry inquiry is not at issue in Pack’s case, because it is undisputed that Williamson’s vehicle was speeding, so it is undisputed that Worley’s stop was justified at its inception. See, e.g., Shabazz, 993 F.2d at 435 (5th Cir. 1993) (“Appellants do not argue, nor could they, that the initial stop of their vehicle for speeding was improper.”). The Government argues that the second part of the Terry inquiry was also satisfied. It argues that the facts that emerged during Worley’s investigation of Williamson’s speeding offense were sufficient to create reasonable suspicion in his mind that Pack was engaged criminal activity, justifying Worley’s decision to detain Pack until the canine unit arrived. Pack argues that Worley’s decision to detain him beyond the time it took to investigate Williamson’s speeding offense6 violated the 6 It is not clear exactly when Pack alleges his detention became illegal. His brief is equivocal on this point, and at oral argument, his counsel suggested that it might have become illegal after the license checks were completed at 8:49 a.m., after the criminal history checks were completed at 9:05 a.m., or after the vehicle’s registration was confirmed at 9:10 a.m. Because Pack did not clearly present arguments in favor of one time over any of the others, we will presume he asserts that his detention became illegal at 9:10 a.m., after the last of Worley’s computer checks was completed. See Sanders v. Unum Life Ins. Co. of Am., 553 F.3d 922, 926 (5th Cir. 2008) (“‘A party waives an issue if he fails to adequately brief it’ on appeal.” (quoting Audler v. CBC Innovis Inc., 519 F.3d 239, 255 (5th Cir. 2008)). Cf. Brigham, 382 F.3d at 508 (holding that an officer may run computer 13 Case: 08-41063 Document: 00511174826 Page: 14 Date Filed: 07/15/2010 No. 08-41063 second part of the Terry inquiry, because Pack contends that the facts that emerged during Worley’s investigation could not have created reasonable suspicion that Pack was engaged in drug trafficking. A. Questioning a Passenger Who Has Committed No Violation In his brief, Pack argues that “It is unclear whether a state trooper who makes a traffic stop has the authority to require any and all passengers in that car to identify themselves and then run a computer check on passengers.” He also asserts that it is unclear “whether an officer can question a passenger who has committed no violation.”