CA8: Despite defendant’s inability to understand much English, he consented to a search

District court did not clearly err in concluding that a reasonable person would believe defendant had voluntarily consented to a search of his vehicle when he said “sure” in response to the officer’s request to search the car, despite giving his name when he was asked his age. Also, the passenger did not have standing to challenge the search. United States v. Guzman, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 3343 (8th Cir. February 21, 2012) (unpublished).*

During defendant’s stop for a traffic offense (with the real motive pursuing a meth trafficking investigation), defendant was really nervous and his answers didn’t make sense and he had no driver’s license. Defendant consented to a search, only challenging the basis for the stop, not the consent. Under the hood, it was apparent the air filter had been recently tampered with, and inside was powder methamphetamine. State v. Lopez, 2012 N.C. App. LEXIS 284 (February 21, 2012).*

The district court dismissed this § 1983 claim, inter alia, under Heck v. Humphrey because of a valid state conviction. Plaintiff never really addressed that on appeal, and the judgment is affirmed. Taylor v. Streicher, 465 Fed. Appx. 414, 2012 FED App. 0199N (6th Cir. 2012) (unpublished).*