An officer who observed a traffic offense and waited for defendant to drive another five blocks could reasonably still stop the car. \u201cAlthough the officers did not initiate the traffic stop for seven minutes, and did not pull Brown over for five blocks, that delay did not extinguish probable cause because the officers witnessed the traffic infraction firsthand and this Court has not extended the staleness doctrine to these circumstances. \u2026 Further, because probable cause existed, the officers’ other motivations in initiating the stop-to further investigate Brown’s behavior going into and exiting the convenience store or to find a place to effectuate the stop-did not undermine the reasonableness of the stop.\u201d United States v. Brown, 2021 U.S. App. LEXIS 3478 (11th Cir. Feb. 9, 2021). [This is the same as probable cause to arrest. There is no constitutional requirement that an arrest occur as soon as probable cause forms. The only limit is whether probable cause dissipates or goes stale in the meantime.]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
An officer who observed a traffic offense and waited for defendant to drive another five blocks could reasonably still stop the car. \u201cAlthough the officers did not initiate the traffic stop for seven minutes, and did not pull Brown over … Continue reading