United States Tenth Circuit

In a prosecution for drug-related offenses, denial of a motion to suppress evidence is affirmed where: 1) an officer who stopped a pickup truck had a sufficient basis to conclude that defendant, who was in another vehicle, and the driver of the pickup were traveling together; 2) thus, when the officer discovered that the truck was carrying marijuana, probable cause to arrest defendant arose; and 3) defendant's constitutional rights were not violated even if his detention were an arrest since the initial stop was permissible.

Appellate Information

• Decided 12/23/2008
• Published 12/24/2008

Judges

• LUCERO, Circuit Judge., Before TACHA, LUCERO, and O'BRIEN, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Tenth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• Thomas L. Wright, El Paso, TX, for the Defendant-Appellant., Terri J. Abernathy, Assistant United States Attorney (Gregory J. Fouratt, United States Attorney and Gregory B. Wormuth, Assistant United States Attorney, with her on the brief), Office of the United States Attorney, Las Cruces, NM, for the Plaintiff-Appellee.