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Shearer v. Municipality Of Anchorage6/23/2000
y now, twenty minutes have gone by, and Shearer's house is dark. Provost knocks for several minutes. At length, Shearer answers the door. He is dressed in pajamas, he is barefoot, and he has a toothbrush in his hand. He is obviously preparing for bed.
Under these hypothetical facts, there is no specific, articulable reason to believe that Shearer would resume driving. Thus, even if there was reason to believe that Shearer was intoxicated, there would be no reason to believe that he presented an "imminent public danger", and so a Coleman investigatory stop would not be permitted.
Concededly, the actual facts of Shearer's case do not so clearly prove Shearer's lack of intent to resume driving. But it is not Shearer's burden to negate all speculative possibility that he might decide to leave his house and begin driving again. Rather, it is the Municipality's burden to come forward with specific, articulable facts that affirmatively indicate that Shearer might resume driving. There are no such facts in this case.
Accordingly, Provost's investigative stop of Shearer was unlawful, and the evidence obtained during that investigative stop should have been suppressed. I would reverse Shearer's conviction.
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