Many criminal cases begin with routine traffic stops. In many of those stops the police discover evidence of criminal activity. It is important to remember that the police cannot simply stop you whenever they feel like it. If an officer stops your vehicle without a legally valid reason, a lawyer can bring a motion to suppress to keep the evidence out of court.
For this reason, anyone facing criminal charges after a traffic stop should talk to an attorney about their case immediately. Call us at (203) 327-1500 or send us an email to set up your consultation with Koffsky & Felsen, LLC. We will work to determine if the police illegally stopped you or seized evidence in your case—and if so, we will aggressively work to get that evidence thrown out of court.
A Valid Traffic Stop Requires Reasonable Suspicion
The Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution prohibits law enforcement officers from conducting unreasonable searches and seizures. A search or a seizure is presumed to be unreasonable when it is conducted without a warrant. However, the courts have established exceptions to this rule. These exceptions typically allow a police officer to conduct a search or effect a seizure in cases where requiring an officer to obtain a warrant would risk the loss or destruction of evidence.
It is without question that pulling someone over is a seizure within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment. In order for a traffic stop to be valid, the officer performing the stop must have reasonable suspicion that a crime is being or has recently been committed. The reasonable suspicion standard is less than the probable cause required to conduct a search. The officer performing the stop must be able to provide articulable facts that indicate that criminal activity was likely occurring. In other words, a traffic stop cannot be based on a mere hunch or an impermissible reason such as racial profiling. That being said, if a person matches the description of someone who has recently committed a crime in the area, the stop would likely be upheld as valid.
Other reasons that would likely justify a traffic stop include the following:
- Speeding
- Swerving in or from your lane
- Failing to use headlights at night
- Non-moving violations such as broken taillights or expired tags
- Making an improper turn
The Evidence Gathered in an Illegal Traffic Stop Can Often Be Suppressed
A corollary to the Fourth Amendment’s prohibition on unreasonable searches and seizures is that evidence gathered in violation of the law can generally be suppressed. This means that if a judge agrees that the evidence was gathered during an unreasonable search and seizure, it will be deemed inadmissible in court. For example, if you are pulled over for no reason and a police officer sees a bag of marijuana on your passenger seat and arrests you, there is a good chance that the marijuana evidence will be thrown out. Without access to this critical evidence, there is little chance that the state could move forward with a drug possession case against you.
Evidence Does Not Get Suppressed Automatically
As a criminal defendant, it is important to understand that the rule that allows illegally gathered evidence to be suppressed is not automatically enforced by the court. In other words, the judge does not review the evidence to see if it was gathered illegally. Instead, it is up to the defense attorney to bring the issue to the judge’s attention and argue that the stop was not legally valid and therefore the evidence that was seized should be thrown out. Because both identifying a Fourth Amendment violation and filing a motion to suppress evidence are complicated matters and require significant legal training, it is important for anyone facing a criminal case after a traffic top to speak to an attorney as soon as possible.
Call Koffsky & Felsen, LLC Today to Discuss Your Case with a Connecticut Criminal Defense Lawyer
If you have been accused of a crime after a traffic stop, you should speak to an attorney as soon as you can. At Koffsky & Felsen, LLC, our experienced criminal defense lawyers will analyze the facts of your case and determine whether the facts demonstrate that the police violated your constitutional rights. If so, we will do everything we can suppress the evidence that was gathered against you. To schedule a case evaluation with a member of our legal team, call our office today at (203) 327-1500 or send us an email through our online contact form.
