D.Nev.: Defendant did not abandon his car by running from it when he saw the police; the search of the car lacked any legal basis

Defendant parked his car in a residential area, saw the police, and ran. When they caught him, he laid prone on the ground and was patted down, finding no weapons. The following search of his pockets was without probable cause of any crime because it was simply lacking at that point, because the patdown revealed nothing. The search of his car was also unreasonable and without probable cause, and he did not abandon it by running away from it. He had stuff in the car he never disclaimed. The inventory of the car was tainted by the unlawful arrest. United States v. Williams, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 613 (D. Nev. January 4, 2015).

On a death penalty habeas appeal, defense counsel did pursue suppression of a murder-suicide note from his house. On the merits of the search, the Florida courts decided the entry was valid in response to his mother’s 911 call and her consent, and this was correct. “Together, those statements support the Florida Supreme Court’s factual determination that the police got Mrs. Lynch’s consent before entering the home. Lynch does not point to anything in the record that shows that determination was objectively unreasonable, which is his burden as a habeas petitioner. See Green, 595 F.3d at 1251. His failure to do so is fatal to his claim.” Lynch v. Sec., Fla. Dep’t of Corr., 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 307 (11th Cir. January 8, 2015).*