Opinion ID: 2442232
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Detainment

Text: Next, Burris argues that the evidence should have been suppressed because Captain Best had no legal reason to detain him for fifteen to twenty minutes after he was initially stopped for the traffic violations. Although Burris did not raise this argument in his motion to suppress, he clearly developed this argument during the suppression hearing, and the State failed to object. Thus, we find that the issue is properly preserved for appeal. According to Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 88 S.Ct. 1868, 20 L.Ed.2d 889 (1968), given the lawfulness of the initial stop, the question is whether the resulting detention was reasonably related in scope to the circumstances which justified the interference in the first place. Arkansas Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.1 states that an officer may detain a suspect for not more than fifteen minutes or for such time as reasonable under the circumstances if the officer has a reasonable suspicion that the person is committing, has committed, or is about to commit either 1) a felony, or 2) a misdemeanor involving danger of forcible injury to persons or of appropriation of or damage to property. A reasonable suspicion has been defined as a suspicion based upon facts or circumstances that give rise to more than a bare, imaginary, or purely conjectural suspicion. Hammons v. State, 327 Ark. 520, 940 S.W.2d 424 (1997); Williams v. State, 321 Ark. 344, 902 S.W.2d 767 (1995). In making this determination, the trial court may consider several factors, including, but not limited to: (a) the demeanor of the suspect; (b) the gait and manner of the suspect; (c) any knowledge the officer may have of the suspect's background or character; and (d) any apparent effort of the suspect to avoid identification or confrontation by the police. Ark.Code Ann. § 16-81-203 (1987). In this case, Captain Best detained Burris for approximately fifteen to twenty minutes to explain to him the traffic violations for which he was stopped and to question him about his possible possession of guns and drugs. Captain Best testified that he detained and questioned Burris because: 1) he was aware that Burris had been previously arrested on drug and gun charges; 2) Burris lied to him about his prior arrests; 3) Burris appeared unusually nervous and avoided eye contact; and 4) he was concerned for his own safety. Burris argues that Captain Best should not have been able to consider his prior convictions and arrests under Ark.Code Ann. § 16-81-201(1) (1987), which states that the subchapter shall not be construed to: Permit an officer to stop just any passerby and search him, nor allow the search of any person merely because he has a criminal record. (Emphasis added.) We find that this argument fails for two reasons. First, the statute states that an officer may not stop a passerby and search him because he has a criminal record. Captain Best stopped Burris for traffic violations, not because of his criminal record. Additionally, the statute says that a person may not be searched merely because he or she has a criminal record. Captain Best retrieved a loaded weapon from Burris's car only after Burris disclosed that he had the weapon in his vehicle, and not merely because he had a criminal record. Furthermore, the inventory search of Burris's car occurred after Burris's arrest and not merely because he had a criminal record. For these reasons, we find that Captain Best had a reasonable suspicion that Burris was in possession of drugs which is a felony under Ark.Code Ann. § 5-64-401 (Supp.1995). Moreover, Captain Best detained Burris for only fifteen or twenty minutes which we find is reasonable under the circumstances as required by Rule 3.1. Thus, we conclude that Captain Best lawfully detained Burris.