How a Voluntary Encounter Overturned a Ruling to Suppress Evidence
Suppressing evidence is one of the best tools available to your Woodlands DWI Attorney. If the evidence is suppressed by the judge then it can’t be used against you. Not all evidence meets the strict legal requirements for suppression. The typical situation is when police have obtained evidence against you without probable cause for detaining you. If you end up giving the police reasonable suspicion and probable cause through your voluntary actions before you have been officially detained then your opportunity to suppress evidence may disappear and your Woodlands DWI Attorney may have a much harder time defending your case. Cynthia Priddy was arrested for DWI on March 20, 2008. Let’s look at her story and discuss the difference between a voluntary encounter with police and an investigative detention.
The Police Stop
Sergeant John Klenk of the Burkburnett Police Department testified that on the evening of March 20, 2008, dispatch received a call from an unidentified person at Red River Hospital regarding Cynthia Priddy, who had sought admission to the hospital. Sergeant Klenk testified that the person from the hospital told dispatch that the hospital could not admit Cynthia Priddy because the hospital was full but also said that Cynthia had been drinking and appeared to be intoxicated. This person also said that Cynthia had left the hospital in a Hummer. The person from the hospital provided dispatch with Cynthia’s name, make of car, location and direction of her departure, and her address.
Sergeant Klenk located the Hummer at around 11:00 or 11:15 p.m. – about fifteen minutes after receiving the information from dispatch-on the side of the road in front of Citibank, legally parked, but still running and with its lights on. The officer testified that the Hummer was in a “business” area in downtown Burkburnett, and none of the nearby stores or businesses was open at that time. He pulled in behind the Hummer, turned his spotlight on it, and ran the license tags, but he could not tell if anyone was inside because of the heavy tint on the windows. As he approached the Hummer, Read more…