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State v. Crawford8/23/2002
Affirmed.
This is an interlocutory appeal of an order suppressing all evidence obtained as a result of an automobile stop based upon an anonymous tip. The sole issue is whether the anonymous tip concerning a reckless driver on a highway provided a sufficient basis for a sheriff's deputy to stop the defendant's vehicle.
On August 18, 2000, at approximately 1:50 p.m., Johnson County Sheriff's Deputy Mark Leiker heard a dispatch request for a Spring Hill police officer to respond to a report of a "reckless" driver in a black Dodge pickup with Oklahoma license plates traveling northbound from the county line on 169 Highway. Deputy Leiker responded to the dispatch because he was in the area and a Spring Hill police officer was not available. Deputy Leiker parked near the intersection of 207th Street and 169 Highway, approximately 1 mile north of the county line. Approximately 8 minutes later, a black Dodge Dakota pickup with Oklahoma license plates passed through the intersection traveling northbound. Traffic on the highway was light at the time. Without attempting to follow the pickup, Deputy Leiker activated his emergency equipment and stopped the vehicle. Deputy Leiker did not observe any reckless driving by the defendant prior to the stop.
The subsequent investigation leading to Crawford's arrest for driving under the influence (DUI) need not be related in detail. Crawford does not challenge the probable cause to arrest. Suffice it to say, Crawford failed his field sobriety tests, failed a preliminary breath test, and subsequently failed his Intoxilyzer breath test.
Crawford was charged with DUI, in violation of K.S.A. 2000 Supp. 8-1567. He filed a motion to suppress the evidence obtained during the vehicle stop. After a hearing on the motion, the district court ruled that the stop was investigatory in nature and that the deputy lacked the required reasonable suspicion to make a Terry stop. See Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 20 L. Ed. 2d 889, 88 S. Ct. 1868 (1968). The district court suppressed all evidence obtained by the police as a result of the stop and detention. The State timely appeals the ruling.
"In reviewing a trial court decision regarding the suppression of evidence, we review the factual underpinnings of the decision by a substantial competent evidence standard of review and review the ultimate legal decision drawn from those facts de novo with independent judgment." State v. Webber, 260 Kan. 263, Syl. 3, 918 P.2d 609 (1996), cert. denied 519 U.S. 1090 (1997). The facts and circumstances leading up to and including the stop in this case are not in dispute. Therefore, whether the district court properly suppressed the evidence is solely a question of law, and our standard of review is unlimited. State v. Vandiver, 257 Kan. 53, 56, 891 P.2d 350 (1995).
The State asserts the anonymous tip that a black Dodge Dakota pickup truck was driving recklessly was sufficient information to justify stopping the vehicle. Crawford counters that the stop was not justified as either a valid investigatory stop or a valid public safety stop.
The traffic stop of a vehicle by a law enforcement officer is a seizure under the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution. State v. Hopper, 260 Kan. 66, 69, 917 P.2d 872 (1996). The law recognizes two different types of traffic stops. An "investigatory stop" is permitted under K.S.A. 22-2402, which is a codification of Terry, 392 U.S. 1. The law also permits a "public safety stop," recognized in Kansas in State v. Vistuba, 251 Kan. 821, 824, 840 P.2d 511 (1992). Whether a traffic stop can be supported solely by an anonymous tip is a fact-sensitive question which must be determined on a
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