Opinion ID: 1812472
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: facts

Text: ¶ 51 Officers Dummer and Stillman, who where in a marked squad car with the emergency lights and siren activated, stopped Johnson's vehicle for a suspected registration violation and for failing to signal a turn. As the officers approached Johnson's vehicle, Johnson leaned forward so that most of his head and shoulders disappeared from view. Officer Dummer testified that Johnson appeared to be reaching under the front seat. He said that based on his law enforcement experience, a movement of that type can occur when an occupant of a vehicle is trying to conceal weapons or contraband under the seat before an officer reaches the vehicle. Officer Stillman confirmed the description of Johnson's movement as he and Dummer walked to Johnson's vehicle. He also interpreted this movement as Johnson's placing something under the front seat. At no time has Johnson or his counsel ever disputed the accuracy of the officers' description of his movement as they approached. ¶ 52 Dummer explained that when he and Stillman reached the vehicle, Stillman asked Johnson to step out, and Johnson did so. Stillman then tried to do a pat-down search for weapons, but he was unable to complete it because whenever he got to the pocket on the left leg of Johnson's pants, Johnson fell to the ground. Therefore, Stillman asked Johnson to sit on the curb, and Dummer stood right behind him, always watching over him so that he didn't make any more movements. Stillman asked Johnson if there was anything illegal in the vehicle, and Johnson said there was not. Stillman then told Johnson that he was going to search the vehicle. Dummer said that Johnson affirmatively replied to Stillman, I don't have a problem with that. [1] ¶ 53 When Stillman searched the vehicle, he recovered a bag of marijuana from under the driver's seat. Dummer confirmed that the bag of marijuana was found where he had seen Johnson reaching. Johnson denied that the marijuana was his, but Stillman placed Johnson under arrest for its possession. He then searched Johnson incident to that arrest. When he did so, he discovered 11 individually wrapped rocks of crack cocaine in the pocket on the left leg of Johnson's pantsthe same pocket on which the officer had been unable to do a pat-down because Johnson had repeatedly fallen to the ground. After the cocaine was recovered, Dummer testified that Johnson said that he had begun selling crack cocaine only recently. ¶ 54 Johnson moved to suppress the drugs found in the car and on him, as well as his statement that he was selling crack cocaine. After an evidentiary hearing, the circuit court found that Johnson consented to the search of his vehicle, and it denied the motion. As part of a plea agreement, Johnson pled guilty and was convicted of possession with intent to deliver a lesser amount of crack cocaine than had been found on his person. ¶ 55 Johnson appealed his conviction based on a claimed error of the circuit court in denying his motion to suppress the admission of the drugs found and his statement to the officers. On appeal, the State conceded that Johnson did not consent to the search of his vehicle. The court of appeals reversed the circuit court decision on suppression, based in part on the State's concession, which the court of appeals accepted without discussion. We granted the State's petition for review.