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State v. Tague2/25/2004
Discretionary appeal from the district court's ruling sustaining defendant's motion to suppress evidence obtained after a traffic stop. AFFIRMED AND CASE REMANDED.
This appeal involves a decision by the district court sustaining Steven Tague's motion to suppress evidence obtained after an officer stopped Tague's vehicle for crossing the left edge line of a divided highway. The district court ordered all evidence gained as a direct result of the stop suppressed and inadmissible at trial. The State filed an application for discretionary review, which we granted. We do not believe the police had sufficient grounds to stop Tague's vehicle. This stop violated Tague's rights as guaranteed by article 1, section 8 of the Iowa Constitution. The officer did not have probable cause or reasonable suspicion to stop Tague's vehicle when it briefly crossed the left edge line. We affirm the ruling of the district court.
Background Facts and Proceedings
Shortly before 2 a.m. on July 22, 2002, police officer Michael Gonzales of the Le Claire Police Department was traveling north in his patrol vehicle on Cody Road in Scott County, Iowa. Cody Road is a four-lane highway, with two lanes of traffic heading north and two lanes heading south. A painted median divides these lanes. Officer Gonzales observed a vehicle driven by Tague enter Cody Road and proceed northbound in the inside lane. Officer Gonzales observed Tague's vehicle for about a mile. Just as the vehicles approached the Interstate 80 junction, Officer Gonzales observed the left tires of Tague's vehicle cross over the left edge line of Cody Road and return to the roadway. At that point, Officer Gonzales activated his vehicle's overhead emergency lights and stopped Tague's vehicle. When Officer Gonzales asked Tague for his driver's license, he detected the odor of alcohol on Tague. He also noticed a slight slur to Tague's speech and that Tague had bloodshot, watery eyes. Officer Gonzales asked Tague if he had been drinking. Tague responded that he had a couple of alcoholic beverages.
Officer Gonzales conducted a field sobriety test, which resulted in Tague's arrest for operating under the influence. Officer Gonzales also issued Tague a citation for driving left of center in violation of Iowa Code section 321.297 (2001).
Officer Gonzales transported Tague to the police station where he administered a breath test. The breath test showed Tague had a.201 blood alcohol content. The State charged Tague with operating while intoxicated, third offense, and driving under suspension while barred as a habitual offender. Tague moved to suppress the evidence of his intoxication, alleging the officer who stopped Tague's vehicle lacked reasonable cause to make the stop and detain Tague in violation of the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution and article I, section 8 of the Iowa Constitution.
At the hearing on the motion to suppress, Officer Gonzales testified he did not observe Tague driving erratically and could not recall whether Tague's vehicle was weaving on the roadway. When asked to describe the movement of Tague's vehicle, he testified he observed both left tires just barely, but completely cross the left edge line and "then they came back" on the roadway. The district court granted the motion to suppress and ordered all evidence gained as a direct result of the stop, including the Data Master breath test results, suppressed and inadmissible at trial. The State filed an application for discretionary review, which we granted.
Issue
This court must determine whether there was probable cause or reasonable suspicion to legally stop Tague's vehicle and detain him under t
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