CA7: Possibility an interloper put drug residue in trash out for collection doesn’t negate PC or what it might prove

The fact it’s possible that someone else could have dropped drug residue in defendant’s trash container at the street doesn’t negate probable cause. [It also shows the lack of a reasonable expectation of privacy in trash containers at the street.] United States v. Carswell, 2021 U.S. App. LEXIS 13525 (7th Cir. May 6, 2021).

“Therefore, in the post–‘unavoidable lull’ landscape, Gerba’s call for a drug dog eight seconds into a traffic stop—before he had made contact with defendant or developed any independent constitutional justification to investigate anything beyond the traffic infraction—was an unconstitutional investigative action.” State v. Escudero, 311 Or. App. 170, 2021 Ore. App. LEXIS 595 (May 5, 2021) (decided under Oregon Constitution).

Officer saw apparent hand-to-hand transactions at a car wash. They approached, a defendant’s throwing drugs into his car was probable cause for its search under the automobile exception. United States v. Roberson, 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 86703 (E.D. Ark. May 6, 2021).*