HERBERT L. BUTLER, APPELLANT,
v.
THE STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
The court held that the defendant's flight and abandonment of cocaine did not constitute a seizure under the Fourth Amendment, thus the evidence was admissible.
Police officers observed the defendant in a high-drug area and approached him without founded suspicion. The defendant fled, discarding cocaine, and w…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Abandonment Of Contraband cases and more on FLexlaw
COPE, Judge.
Defendant Herbert Butler appeals his conviction for possession of cocaine, challenging denial of his motion to suppress. We affirm.
Two police officers observed defendant in an area known for narcotics transactions. The officers intended to question defendant but had no founded suspicion for an investigative stop under Florida’s Stop and Frisk Law. See § 901.151, Fla.Stat. (1989). The officers halted their vehicle about ten feet away from defendant and got out. Before they said anything, defendant put his hand in his pocket, turned, and ran away. The officers chased him. Defendant threw down two zip-lock plastic baggies of cocaine. Defendant was caught and arrested. He pled nolo contendere, reserving the right to appeal denial of the motion to suppress.
We affirm under the controlling and indistinguishable authority of California v. Hodari D., — U.S.-, 111 S.Ct. 1547, 113 L.Ed.2d 690 (1991). The Supreme Court ruled that no seizure of the person occurs for fourth amendment purposes where the subject flees, and that the abandonment of contraband in flight is therefore not a fruit of an unlawful seizure of the person. To that extent Hodari D. modifies the reasoning, though not the result, in State v. Perez, 15 F.L.W. D1355 (Fla. 3d DCA May 15, 1990), jurisdiction accepted, 570 So. 2d 1305 (Fla.1990), and State v. Oliver, 368 So. 2d 1331 (Fla. 3d DCA 1979), cert. dismissed, 383 So. 2d 1200 (Fla.1980).
Affirmed.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
State v. Green, 601 So. 2d 617 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992)…(1991), the supreme court ruled that no seizure of the person occurs for fourth amendment purposes where the subject flees, and that abandonment of contraband in flight is therefore not a fruit of an unlawful seizure of the person. Butler v. State, 579 So. 2d 890 (Fla. 3d DCA 1991). A careful reading of the transcript of the instant suppression hearing reveals that the trial judge clearly understood that abandonment of the gun was at issue. Thus, since defendant was fleeing from the officer when he abandoned…
-
D.E. v. State, 605 So. 2d 574 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992)…L.Ed.2d 690 (1991); State v. Green, 601 So. 2d 617 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992); State v. Hollinger, 596 So. 2d 521 (Fla. 5th DCA 1992); State v. Wilson, 595 So. 2d 1106 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992); Wade v. State, 589 So. 2d 322 (Fla. 1st DCA 1991); Butler v. State, 579 So. 2d 890 (Fla. 3d DCA 1991) (no seizure where officers got out of their car and before they said anything, the defendant fled). Affirmed.…
-
Green v. State, 591 So. 2d 1159 (Fla. 5th DCA 1992)…r, 368 So. 2d 1331 (Fla. 3d DCA 1979), cert. dis’m., 383 So. 2d 1200 (Fla. 1980) and A. G. v. State, 562 So. 2d 400 (Fla. 3d DCA 1990); State v. Perez, 592 So. 2d 1099 (Fla. 3d DCA 1990), juris, accepted, 570 So. 2d 1305 (Fla.1990); Butler v. State, 579 So. 2d 890 (Fla. 3d DCA 1991); and State v. Arnold, 579 So. 2d 902 (Fla. 4th DCA 1991) (on rehearing). AFFIRMED. COBB, COWART and GRIFFIN, JJ., concur.…
Previewing 3 of 4 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- California v. Hodari D., 499 U.S. 621 (U.S. 1991)
- State v. Oliver, 368 So. 2d 1331 (Fla. 3d DCA 1979)