Mississippi police don’t need to have perfect knowledge of other state’s laws on temporary tags
Facts In 2009, M.H.P. Trooper Harris Bryan pulled over a vehicle for an illegal temporary out of state license. The driver, Rodrigo Godinez, consented to a search and $20,800 was found in three separate bundles. A small amount of shake (loose marijuana) was also found in the vehicle. Two other adults were in the vehicle […]
Officers stopped vehicle based on reasonable suspicion that driver was wanted for murder
Facts In 2009, Jermaine Kelly was at his father’s house with his cousin Donta Davenport. Davenport later told police that two men kicked the back door open and demanded money. One had a handgun and one had an assault rifle. Davenport gave them money and fled the house. He then heard several gunshots before he […]
Sheriff answering arrestee is not interrogation in this case
Facts Bobby Batiste, Andreas Galanis and Daewoo Joo were students at Mississippi State University who shared a four bedroom apartment. Each tenant had a key that opened the front door of the apartment and that particular tenant’s bedroom door. One suite was empty. In 2008, Galanis and Batiste went to a bank where Galanis was shocked […]
Driver was in constructive possession of handgun found under his seat
Facts In 2010, Willie Weekly and Beverly Edwards were robbed at gunpoint in a parking lot in Jackson, Mississippi. Two men in a dark colored sedan got a credit card, $400, and a straight razor in the robbery. After giving a description of the robbers and the vehicle to the police, a BOLO was put […]
Mother gave oral consent to search her home
Facts In 2009, nine year old Farrah spent the night at her grandmother’s house. Dennis Brown is Farrah’s uncle and was living with Farrah’s grandmother, Eva Sylvester. The next day, Farrah told her mother that Brown had sexually assaulted her. Kimberly Willis, who is Brown’s sister and a daughter of Sylvester, asked police to come […]
You must have reasonable suspicion before you can demand that someone provide you with a name and social security number
Facts In 2010, the Starkville chief of police called the police station and requested someone investigate a man walking two pit bulls near Louisville Street. The chief of police noted that the man did not seem to have control over the dogs, which posed a potential danger to a pedestrian in the area. Sergeant Shawn Word responded […]