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CA4: Defendant free to go when officer asked more questions; stop not unreasonably extended

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Defendant was clearly free to go when the officer started to ask more questions, so the stop was not unreasonably extended. United States v. Farrior, 2008 U.S. App. LEXIS 16575 (4th Cir. August 5, 2008)*: Contrary to Farrior's assertion, the officers did not unreasonably prolong the traffic stop. Under our and other circuits' precedents, the traffic stop ended once Officer Morris returned his license and registration, orally warned him to fix his tag light, and told him that he was free to go. See, e.g., United States v. Singh, 363 F.3d 347, 356 (4th Cir. 2004) (holding that once an officer issues a warning or citation and returns a driver's license and registration, the driver may "proceed on his way, without being subject to further delay by police for additional questioning" (internal quotation marks omitted)); United States v...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on August 07, 2008 (boomark / email).