Opinion ID: 2173941
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: did wyant constitutionally stop childs?

Text: In our analysis of the undisputed testimony, Wyant, before stopping Childs, had no indication and, therefore, no real or factually based suspicion that Childs had been engaged in, was presently engaged in, or was about to engage in any criminal activity. According to Wyant, the sole and simple basis for his stopping Childs' car was to check if the vehicle was within the in-transit period. The State asserts that Wyant had a particularized suspicion that Childs was violating § 60-302 because, in every situation where a motorist drives a car displaying an In Transit decal, the officer who sees a car being driven on a street without plates should suspect a violation is occurring in his presence. Brief for appellee at 6. If the State's argument that an In Transit plate furnishes a particularized suspicion of lawbreaking, and, therefore, criminal activity, the result would be a constitutionally suspect presumption that every motorist who uses In Transit decals is presumed to be a lawbreaker involved in criminal activity. Yet, [t]he presumption of innocence, although unarticulated in the U.S. and Nebraska Constitutions, is a basic component of a defendant's fair trial and, therefore, an aspect of due process in the criminal justice system. State v. Jasper, 237 Neb. 754, 759, 467 N.W.2d 855, 859 (1991). Accord State v. Harney, 237 Neb. 512, 466 N.W.2d 540 (1991). See, also, Estelle v. Williams, 425 U.S. 501, 96 S.Ct. 1691, 48 L.Ed.2d 126 (1976). Moreover, § 60-302, read in conjunction with § 60-320(3)(b), authorizes operation of a motor vehicle for 15 days provided that the vehicle properly displays In Transit decals. It is true that § 60-320(3)(b) states that [u]pon demand of proper authorities, there shall be presented by the person in charge of such motor vehicle or trailer, for examination, a duly executed bill of sale therefor, a certificate of title, or other satisfactory evidence of the right of possession by such person of such motor vehicle or trailer. However, the preceding statute does not direct police to stop all vehicles displaying In Transit decals. Hence, the inescapable questions are: For a stop to check the validity of In Transit decals, what is the standard for a police officer's stopping a particular vehicle but not another? On what basis does an officer stop an In Transit motorist from among all other In Transit motorists who, for all appearances and purposes, are lawfully traveling on a public highway or street? None of the Nebraska statutes implicated in Childs' case supplies a reasonable standard for stopping a motorist whose vehicle displays In Transit decals. Moreover, whatever might be statutorily prescribed or authorized for stopping In Transit motorists is subject to the constitutional safeguard against an unreasonable search and seizure. Without a reasonable standard for stopping motorists to check the validity of In Transit decals, a distinct and perhaps substantial segment of the motoring public is left to random and roving stops by police in the `unfettered discretion of officers in the field.' State v. Crom, 222 Neb. 273, 277, 383 N.W.2d 461, 463 (1986) (quoting from Brown v. Texas, 443 U.S. 47, 99 S.Ct. 2637, 61 L.Ed.2d 357 (1979)). When faced with a question similar to that in Childs' appeal, courts in at least two other states have held that police exceed their authority for an investigatory stop of a vehicle when the basis for the stop is solely the display of temporary or In Transit license plates, placards, or decals. See State v. Chatton, 11 Ohio St.3d 59, 63, 463 N.E.2d 1237, 1240 (1984), cert. denied 469 U.S. 856, 105 S.Ct. 182, 83 L.Ed.2d 116: [O]nce the police officer herein observed the temporary tags, appellee could no longer be reasonably suspected of operating an unlicensed or unregistered vehicle. See, also, State v. Farley, 308 Or. 91, 94, 775 P.2d 835, 836 (1989): Upon seeing the temporary permit, the justification of any investigation was vitiated. Plain and simple, the officer had no statutory authority to proceed further. That authority ended with the officer's discovery that the traffic infraction he was investigating had not actually occurred. We cannot accept that every motorist who operates a vehicle displaying In Transit decals waives the protection against an unconstitutional stop and invalid search and seizure as a consequence of the stop. First, even if In Transit decals were issued in return for a motorist's waiver of the constitutional protection against an unreasonable search and seizure, surrender of the constitutional guarantee in exchange for In Transit decals might well be too costly and excessive a price to pay for driving a vehicle on a public highway or street. Second, assuming that a waiver of the protection against an unreasonable search and seizure were constitutionally permissible under the circumstances, none of the evidence in Childs' case supports existence of a waiver, the voluntary and intentional relinquishment of a known right, privilege, or claim, [which] may be demonstrated by or inferred from a person's conduct. State v. Kennedy, 224 Neb. 164, 170, 396 N.W.2d 722, 726 (1986). Accord, Ehlers v. Perry, 242 Neb. 208, 494 N.W.2d 325 (1993); Stuhr v. Stuhr, 240 Neb. 239, 481 N.W.2d 212 (1992); State v. Clear, 236 Neb. 648, 463 N.W.2d 581 (1990). We believe that there are other, less intrusive means to check the validity of In Transit decals without random and roving stops for that purpose. However, we decline to comment about those other available means, lest our expression be an intrusion into the province of the legislative or executive branch, or both branches, appropriately controlling operation of motor vehicles on public highways and streets. Consequently, we hold that because Wyant lacked a reasonable and articulable suspicion or basis for the conclusion that Childs had been involved, was presently involved, or was about to become involved in any criminal activity, Wyant's stopping Childs violated U.S. Const. amend. IV and Neb. Const. art. I, § 7. See, State v. Thomas, 240 Neb. 545, 483 N.W.2d 527 (1992); State v. Coleman, 239 Neb. 800, 478 N.W.2d 349 (1992); State v. Twohig, 238 Neb. 92, 469 N.W.2d 344 (1991); State v. Staten, 238 Neb. 13, 469 N.W.2d 112 (1991). For that reason, the district court, pursuant to Childs' suppression motion and his constitutional objection renewed at trial, should have suppressed and excluded the convictive evidence obtained after Wyant unconstitutionally stopped Childs. Since the State has used constitutionally inadmissible and tainted evidence to convict Childs, his conviction should have been set aside.