Guam: PC developing during the statutory 15 mins for stop and frisk separately supports detention

Consent tolls the 15 minute statutory stop and frisk rule. And, even if it didn’t developing probable cause obviates the stop and frisk statute’s application. People v. Taman, 2013 Guam 22, 2013 Guam LEXIS 22 (November 8, 2013):

[*27] Accordingly, we hold that, as a matter of law, the development of probable cause obviates the fifteen-minute limit imposed by Guam’s Stop and Frisk Act on investigative detentions that are supported by reasonable suspicion, because the appearance of probable cause transforms the nature of the detention and thereby removes the encounter from the strict parameters of the statute. The trial court committed reversible error when it held that it “cannot reasonably adopt” an interpretation of the statute that would allow indefinite detention so long as the police develop probable cause within fifteen minutes of the initial stop, an interpretation the trial court felt “subverts [the Act’s] entire purpose.” RA, tab 46 at 4-5 (Dec. & Order). A prolonged detention supported by probable cause might implicate a constitutional claim, but the language of the statute as written does not preclude the police from extending their investigation well beyond fifteen minutes.

The “15 minute” rule comes from the ALI Model Code of Pre-Arraignment Procedure.