VI: Tardy response to vague shots fired call had no RS for stopping defendant

Responding to a shots fired call 25-30 minutes after where officers had no real description of the shooter or the street where shots came from did not give officers reasonable suspicion to stop the defendant. People v. Fredericks, 54 V.I. 161 (Super. Ct. 2011):

The facts known to the police in this case were: 1) there was an anonymous report of shots fired on Garden Street; 2) they responded 25 to 30 minutes after the shots were fired; and 3) upon their response the officers encountered a group of men on a street which intersected with Garden Street who were, by the officers’ own testimony, not engaged in any criminal, or even suspicious, behavior. Conspicuously absent from the facts known to the officers was any description of any person or persons who fired the reported shots. To establish reasonable suspicion to support a warrantless stop, the government must not only demonstrate that there was criminal activity afoot, but also present evidence that the particular person in question was involved in some criminal activity. No facts were produced which sustain any reasonable belief or suspicion that Mr. Fredericks was involved in any criminal activity. In fact, both officers testified that none of the individuals they stopped were engaged in any illegal activity or acting suspiciously.