E.D.Tenn.: Turn signal statute is unambiguous, and officer’s mistake wasn’t objectively reasonable under Heien

The Tennessee turn signal statute is clear and unambiguous, unlike the brake light statute in Heien. Officer “Garrison did not have a reasonable suspicion that Pate had violated the traffic laws. Thus, the stop was unlawful. As a passenger, Fortune had the right to challenge the stop. Brendlin v. California, …” United States v. Fortune, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 55064 (E.D. Tenn. March 24, 2017), adopted, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 55730 (E.D. Tenn. April 11, 2017).

The affidavit for search warrant provided probable cause on the totality. Moreover, the CI made a controlled buy 72 hours earlier from the house. United States v. Norton, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 55369 (S.D. Ga. March 20, 2017),* adopted, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 55347 (S.D. Ga. Apr. 11, 2017).*

This entry was posted in Reasonableness. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.