(Download) "State v. Ochoa" by Supreme Court of the State of Oklahoma ~ Book PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: State v. Ochoa
- Author : Supreme Court of the State of Oklahoma
- Release Date : January 08, 2008
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 61 KB
Description
{1} Defendant, Julian Ochoa, has appealed a district court decision denying his motion to suppress evidence discovered after Defendant was stopped for a seatbelt violation then arrested on outstanding warrants. Defendant argued to the district court that the stop was pretextual because the officer who reported the seatbelt violation wanted Defendant stopped so the officer could question Defendant in relation to a drug trafficking investigation. Defendant asserted that article II, section 10 of the New Mexico Constitution prohibits pretextual stops. The Court of Appeals reversed the district court on other grounds, holding that the stop violated New Mexicos misdemeanor arrest rule because the violation did not occur in the presence of the officer who stopped Defendant. State v. Ochoa, 2006-NMCA- 131, 14, 140 N.M. 573, 144 P.3d 132. We granted certiorari. We reverse the Court of Appeals because the misdemeanor arrest rule does not apply to investigatory traffic stops and hold that the stop was reasonable under the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution. We therefore remand to the Court of Appeals to address the pretextual stop issue.