CA11: Automobile exception applied, so Gant argument moot

Defendant’s Gant almost hypertechnical search incident argument fails because the automobile exception applied in any event, so the search was good. United States v. Alston, 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 2367 (11th Cir. February 17, 2015).

Officers in Memphis were saturating an area known for burglaries, and they responded to a burglary call. Another officer encountered defendant in the area on the street sweating profusely with a backpack and a camera case around his neck. That officer ran defendant’s name and saw that he had a bunch of prior burglary arrests, which he mentioned, and then defendant started convulsing and fell to the ground. The officer didn’t know whether it was real or the defendant was faking hoping for a chance to run, which happens, but he treated it as real. While defendant was down, a pill bottle fell out of his pocket. Consent to search the backpack was sought and refused, which was respected. The pill bottle turned out to have the name and address of one of the recent burglary victims on it. Then defendant was arrested, and the search of the backpack was valid as a search incident. United States v. Jackson, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 182066 (W.D.Tenn. December 24, 2014).*