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Anonymous Tip On A DUI Has Got To Be Specific Plus Identity Information Is Suppressible
People v. Lopez, 2018 IL App (1st) 153331 (October). Episode 549 (Duration 12:56)
Is the identity of a driver subject to suppression after an illegal traffic stop?
Gist
On appeal, defendant contends that the court erred in denying his motion to quash arrest and suppress evidence. Specifically, he argues that the anonymous tip relied upon by the arresting officer was unreliable and inadequate to establish reasonable suspicion of drunk driving.
We reverse.
Charges
Defendant was charged with DWLS under section 6-303(a) of the Illinois Vehicle Code, stemming from a traffic stop. The court found defendant guilty and sentenced him to 24 months’ probation and 30 days’ imprisonment.
The Tip
The arresting officer testified that at around 8:00 p.m., he was on duty near the intersection of Pulaski Road and 50th Street in Chicago.
He received a message from another police vehicle that there “was a DUI driver heading outbound on Pulaski from 43rd Street.” The vehicle was described as a black Expedition with a partial license plate number NZ 1. The driver was described as “a male Hispanic.”
The officer did not know the identity of the person who reported the alleged drunk driver, nor did he know how much time elapsed between the initial report and the eventual traffic stop. He “guessed” that two minutes passed between the time the tip was reported and the time he identified the vehicle. This guess was based on the time it would take a car to travel from 43rd Street to 50th Street.
The Stop
The officer then spotted a black Expedition, with a license plate starting with N 211 driving southbound on Pulaski Road. He pulled up behind the Expedition at the intersection of Pulaski Road and 50th Street. He did not observe any traffic violations or improper lane usage.
After the light turned green, he activated his emergency lights, and the Expedition immediately pulled over. He did not have a warrant. Defendant was quickly identified and the officer determined that defendant’s license was not valid. He then arrested defendant for driving without a valid license.
Later defendant was charged with DWLS.
Issue
Defendant contends that the circuit court erred in denying his motion to quash arrest and suppress evidence because the officer lacked reasonable, articulable suspicion of criminal activity to perform the traffic stop.
Informant’s Tip
When analyzing whether an informant’s tip is sufficient to justify an investigatory stop, the court first assesses the reliability of the tip. Navarette v. California, 572 U.S. ___, ___, 134 S. Ct. 1683, 1688 (2014). If the tip is found to be reliable, the court then analyzes whether the tip “created reasonable suspicion of an ongoing crime *** as opposed to an isolated episode of past [wrongdoing].”
Informant’s DUI Tip
This court has had many opportunities to review the question of how reliable and detailed an informant’s tip about an allegedly drunk driver must be to justify an investigatory stop. See, e.g., Village of Gurnee v. Gross, 174 Ill. App. 3d 66, 69 (1988) (“reckless driving complaint, standing alone, did not provide articulable facts sufficient to justify an investigatory stop”); Village of Mundelein v. Minx, 352 Ill. App. 3d 216, 222 (2004) (finding “report[ ] that defendant was ‘driving recklessly,’ without indicating what observations led [the tipster] to this conclusion, e.g., whether defendant was speeding, running red lights, weaving between lanes, etc.” insufficient to justify stop); People v. Shafer, 372 Ill. App. 3d 1044, 1054 (2007) (finding tip from restaurant employee about a customer who was “creating a disturbance an...
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By Police NuggetsPeople v. Lopez, 2018 IL App (1st) 153331 (October). Episode 549 (Duration 12:56)
Is the identity of a driver subject to suppression after an illegal traffic stop?
Gist
On appeal, defendant contends that the court erred in denying his motion to quash arrest and suppress evidence. Specifically, he argues that the anonymous tip relied upon by the arresting officer was unreliable and inadequate to establish reasonable suspicion of drunk driving.
We reverse.
Charges
Defendant was charged with DWLS under section 6-303(a) of the Illinois Vehicle Code, stemming from a traffic stop. The court found defendant guilty and sentenced him to 24 months’ probation and 30 days’ imprisonment.
The Tip
The arresting officer testified that at around 8:00 p.m., he was on duty near the intersection of Pulaski Road and 50th Street in Chicago.
He received a message from another police vehicle that there “was a DUI driver heading outbound on Pulaski from 43rd Street.” The vehicle was described as a black Expedition with a partial license plate number NZ 1. The driver was described as “a male Hispanic.”
The officer did not know the identity of the person who reported the alleged drunk driver, nor did he know how much time elapsed between the initial report and the eventual traffic stop. He “guessed” that two minutes passed between the time the tip was reported and the time he identified the vehicle. This guess was based on the time it would take a car to travel from 43rd Street to 50th Street.
The Stop
The officer then spotted a black Expedition, with a license plate starting with N 211 driving southbound on Pulaski Road. He pulled up behind the Expedition at the intersection of Pulaski Road and 50th Street. He did not observe any traffic violations or improper lane usage.
After the light turned green, he activated his emergency lights, and the Expedition immediately pulled over. He did not have a warrant. Defendant was quickly identified and the officer determined that defendant’s license was not valid. He then arrested defendant for driving without a valid license.
Later defendant was charged with DWLS.
Issue
Defendant contends that the circuit court erred in denying his motion to quash arrest and suppress evidence because the officer lacked reasonable, articulable suspicion of criminal activity to perform the traffic stop.
Informant’s Tip
When analyzing whether an informant’s tip is sufficient to justify an investigatory stop, the court first assesses the reliability of the tip. Navarette v. California, 572 U.S. ___, ___, 134 S. Ct. 1683, 1688 (2014). If the tip is found to be reliable, the court then analyzes whether the tip “created reasonable suspicion of an ongoing crime *** as opposed to an isolated episode of past [wrongdoing].”
Informant’s DUI Tip
This court has had many opportunities to review the question of how reliable and detailed an informant’s tip about an allegedly drunk driver must be to justify an investigatory stop. See, e.g., Village of Gurnee v. Gross, 174 Ill. App. 3d 66, 69 (1988) (“reckless driving complaint, standing alone, did not provide articulable facts sufficient to justify an investigatory stop”); Village of Mundelein v. Minx, 352 Ill. App. 3d 216, 222 (2004) (finding “report[ ] that defendant was ‘driving recklessly,’ without indicating what observations led [the tipster] to this conclusion, e.g., whether defendant was speeding, running red lights, weaving between lanes, etc.” insufficient to justify stop); People v. Shafer, 372 Ill. App. 3d 1044, 1054 (2007) (finding tip from restaurant employee about a customer who was “creating a disturbance an...