IN: Def was stuck under car at gas station then freed herself before officer got over there; stop under community caretaking function was unreasonable

Defendant was stuck under her car at a gas station when the officer saw her. He started toward her and she freed herself, got in the car and was attempting to drive away when the officer stopped her. Surveying cases from all over the country, the court concludes that a community caretaking stop would have been appropriate except for here because the defendant freed herself and obviously didn’t need help. Stopping her after that was unreasonable. M. O. v. State, 2016 Ind. App. LEXIS 484 (May 12, 2016), case ordered expunged by changing name, 2017 Ind. LEXIS 203 (March 7, 2017) (see Treatise § 21.07).

Under Oregon’s more narrow automobile exception rule, a parked car with the driver behind the wheel and the engine running is “mobile” enough to dispense with a search warrant. State v. Andersen, 361 Ore. 187, 2017 Ore. LEXIS 170 (March 9, 2017), revg 269 Ore. App. 705, 346 P.3d 1224 (2015).

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