IN: Gant officer safety exception permits SI of vehicle if passengers remain inside

Gant permits a search incident of a vehicle despite the detained driver when passengers remain in the car, if there is potential evidence in the car. Stark v. State, 960 N.E.2d 887 (Ind. App. 2012):

Davis [United States v. Davis, 569 F.3d 813 (8th Cir. 2009)], Goodwin-Bey [United States v. Goodwin-Bey, 584 F.3d 1117 (8th Cir. 2009)], and Young [Commonwealth v. Young, 78 Mass. App. Ct. 548, 940 N.E.2d 885 (Mass. App. Ct. 2011] indicate that, where unrestrained passengers remain in a vehicle, a search of the vehicle incident to a defendant’s arrest is permissible to alleviate officer safety concerns and to prevent the destruction of evidence. We find this analysis persuasive. The Court in Gant emphasized the officer safety basis for the search incident to arrest exception. Gant, 556 U.S. at 332, 129 S. Ct. at 1716. The three passengers here were unsecured during Officer Shockey’s arrest of Stark, Stark had behaved suspiciously regarding his jacket, and they were in a high crime area. An objective officer considering these facts would have been warranted in conducting a search of the vehicle incident to Stark’s arrest under Gant‘s officer safety considerations. See United States v. Salamasina, 615 F.3d 925, 930 (8th Cir. 2010) (holding that, where the defendant’s fiancée repeatedly entered and exited the vehicle, spoke to the defendant in a foreign language, and attempted to close the garage door, “[a]n objective officer considering these facts, in conjunction with the fact that officers had just executed an arrest warrant on [the fiancée] on drug charges, would be warranted in conducting a search of the vehicle incident to [the defendant’s] arrest under Gant’s officer-safety consideration”). The search of the vehicle incident to Stark’s arrest was permissible under Gant, and the trial court properly denied Stark’s motion to suppress.