2. Traffic stops

court of appeals decision (1-judge; not eligible for publication) Traffic Stop Reasonable suspicion to stop vehicle for violating § 346.31(2), right hand turns to be made close as practicable to right-hand edge curb or highway… Read more

court of appeals decision (1-judge; not for publication) Vehicle Stop – Rear Plate State Name Obscured Stop proper where rear plate bracket obscured name of state, even though “America’s Dairyland” visible at bottom of plate;  pretextual nature of stop irrelevant… Read more

court of appeals decision (1-judge; not for publication) Vehicle Stop – Reasonable Suspicion – Anonymous Tip Insufficient Anonymous tip “from an unknown informant calling from an unknown location” that driver in restaurant parking lot pouring out beer insufficiently reliable to support subsequent stop, where no traffic violations or erratic driving observed… Read more

State v. Leneral Louis Williams, 2010 WI App 39; for Williams: Richard L. Zaffiro; Resp Br.; Reply Br. Seizure – Some Restraint Necessary ¶16      The Fourth Amendment is not implicated until there has been a seizure. The Court in Terry described a seizure as “whenever a police officer accosts an individual and restrains his [or her] freedom to walk… Read more

court of appeals decision; for Conaway: Philip J. Brehm; for Griffin: Michael S. Murphy Reasonable Suspicion for Traffic Stop, Excessive Window Tint, Generally ¶3    The window tint regulation at issue here is easily summarized. Rear window tinting is permitted only if the window allows at least 35% of light to pass through, except that the limitation does… Read more

State v. Michael L. Popke, 2009 WI 37, reversing unpublished opinion For Popke: John Miller Carroll, Aaron W. Schenk Issue / Holding: ¶26      In the case at hand, the officer had reasonable suspicion that the defendant was operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated. Similar to the specific and articulable facts observed by the officer in Post, the officer… Read more

State v. Melvin Bridges, 2009 WI 66, PFR filed 5/18/09 For Bridges: Michael S. Holzman Issue/Holding: Frisk of Bridges during routine traffic stop (defective brake lights) upheld, where the early-evening stop was in an area “where the police had received numerous complaints of gunshots fired at night,” and Bridges when pulled over had made “a questionable movement”; State v… Read more