People v. Lopez, California Supreme Court, November 25, 2019
Summary: “Acting on an anonymous tip about a motorist’s erratic driving, a police officer approached defendant Maria Elena Lopez after she parked and exited her car. When the officer asked if she had a driver’s license, she said she did not. Police then detained her for unlicensed driving and, without asking her name, searched the car for Lopez’s personal identification. They found methamphetamine in a purse sitting on the front passenger’s seat.” The Supreme Court found the search unconstitutional, stating “we now hold the Fourth Amendment does not contain an exception to the warrant requirement for searches to locate a driver’s identification following a traffic stop.”
Sample Motion to Suppress: Download
Court Opinion: Download
Keywords: Suppress, Fourth, Warrant, Privacy, Vehicle, Traffic, Identification