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MA & AL: Defendant's flight on seeing police here was reasonable suspicion

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Nothing the police did, other than being there, caused the defendant to flee. They had reasonable suspicion. Commonwealth v. Franklin, 2010 Mass. LEXIS 217 (May 17, 2010): The line we have attempted to draw is fact specific. Here, the defendant's flight was not prompted by anything the police did, and, indeed, began before the officers got out of their vehicle. There was no evidence that the police exercised any show of authority or commanded the defendant to stop. See Commonwealth v. Grandison, supra at 138. Nor did they block or impede his path. See Commonwealth v. Sykes, 449 Mass. 308, 313, 867 N.E.2d 733 (2007). Accordingly, the judge's conclusion that the defendant was seized when the police left their vehicle and began to run after him was incorrect...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on May 19, 2010 (boomark / email).