Court Opinion

ID: 9697240
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-25 19:09:19.594457+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:20:30.048758
License: Public Domain

EAKIN, Judge,
concurring.
I agree that the search here was improper, but write separately to address the issue of consent; our decision should not be read to discourage officers from tendering assistance to persons in appellant’s predicament, nor to disparage the need to protect officers by precluding safety searches.
The officer legitimately offered the appellant a ride from the isolated location in which she found herself by virtue of her companion’s conduct; common sense and simple civility demanded no less. It was likewise legitimate for the officer to condition the ride on a search, for safety reasons or pursuant to policy. His error was that he did not advise the appellant of this condition; he merely searched after she accepted the ride.
The appellant agreed to accept a ride, but the record does not show she knew that agreement was conditioned on a search. Simply accepting a ride without knowing it will subject you to a search is not a consent to search. Had the officer told her of the precondition, she could have consented and been given a ride, or declined and found an alternative to the officer’s benefaction. Since she was not told of the precondition, she cannot have consented to it, and the search was invalid.