UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, PLAINTIFF-APPELLEE,
v.
JOSE RODRIGUEZ SANTIBANEZ, DEFENDANT-APPELLANT
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The court held that stopping vehicles at a permanent checkpoint for citizenship checks and searching a vehicle based on the odor of marijuana are constitutional.
An immigration officer stopped Santibanez for an immigration check and smelled marijuana. A search revealed 240 pounds of marijuana. Santibanez was co…
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PER CURIAM:
Santibanez was stopped for an immigration check at the La Gloria checkpoint. While interrogating Santibanez concerning his citizenship the immigration officer smelled the odor of marijuana coming from the interior of the vehicle. His assistant thereupon opened the rear door of the station wagon and found 240 pounds of marijuana. Santibanez moved to suppress this evidence. The motion was denied. Santibanez was found guilty of possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute. He appeals, contending that the search and seizure were illegal. We affirm.
We find no constitutional dereliction in stopping vehicles at this permanent checkpoint for the purpose of determining the occupant’s citizenship. Such a stop is considerably less intrusive than a search, Terry v. Ohio, 1968, 392 U.S. 1, 88 S.Ct. 1868, 20 L.Ed.2d 889. Cf. United States v. Ortiz, 422 U.S. -, 95 S.Ct. 2585, 45 L.Ed.2d 623, 43 L.W. 5026 (June 30, 1975).1
The odor of marijuana emanating from the vehicle’s interior gave the immigration officer probable cause to then conduct the search. The motion to suppress the evidence was thus properly denied.
Affirmed.
. The question here presented was expressly reserved by the Supreme Court in Ortiz.
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United States v. Martinez-Fuerte, 428 U.S. 543 (U.S. 1976)
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United States v. Whitmire, 595 F.2d 1303 (5th Cir. 1979)
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United States v. Adan Serna Torres, 537 F.2d 1299 (5th Cir. 1976)
Previewing 3 of 22 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (U.S. 1968)
- United States v. Ortiz, 422 U.S. 891 (U.S. 1975)