AMIN RUDDACK, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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The court held that the officers lacked reasonable suspicion to detain and search the appellant, as his actions were not indicative of criminal activity or a threat to officer safety.
Police officers observed the appellant in a high-crime area, and as they approached, he moved his hand behind his back. An officer grabbed his arm, sa…
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STONE, Judge.
This is an appeal from an order denying a motion to suppress. The facts are undisputed. We find insufficient support in the record for the conduct of the subject search.
Two police officers on general patrol in a “high crime” area, looking for drug activity, entered an apartment building. They observed the appellant leave one apartment and walk toward another. There was nothing suspicious about the defendant or his conduct, and nothing was said by the officers or by the defendant. As the officers approached, the appellant moved his hand behind his back, at which time one of the officers grabbed his arm. The officer could see the edge of a plastic baggie in the appellant’s closed fist. The officer then forced open the fist and uncovered marijuana.
There was absolutely nothing said or done, other than the movement of appellant’s hand, to arouse a suspicion of criminal activity, or a reasonable fear that the defendant posed an immediate threat to the officers’ safety. There was nothing about the defendant’s behavior or his location, other than the fact that the building he was in was located in a high crime area, to serve as a factual basis to detain the defendant or search for a weapon. Nor were there any exigent or unusual circumstances which would justify the officer’s actions. The detention and search did not rise to the level authorized by section 901.151, Florida Statutes, or Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 88 S.Ct. 1868, 20 L.Ed.2d 889 (1968).
Accordingly, the judgment and sentence are reversed. See Baggett v. State, 531 So. 2d 1028 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988); Jenkins v. State, 524 So. 2d 1108 (Fla. 3d DCA 1988); R.B. v. State, 429 So. 2d 815 (Fla. 2d DCA 1983).
GLICKSTEIN and WALDEN, JJ., concur.
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Citator
Cited By (18 total)
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Dees v. State, 564 So. 2d 1166 (Fla. 1st DCA 1990)…apons search or investigatory stop. See, e.g., Baggett v. State, 531 So. 2d 1028, 1030 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988) (“the fact that appellant placed his hand in his jacket after seeing Officer Nye did not give rise to a founded suspicion”); Ruddack v. State, 537 So. 2d 701, 701 (Fla. 4th DCA 1989) (that appellant moved his hand behind his back did not reasonably raise suspicion of criminal activity or pose threat to officer’s safety); Jenkins v. State, 524 So. 2d 1108, 1109 (Fla. 3d DCA 1988) (that appellant put his h…
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Johnson v. State, 610 So. 2d 581 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992)…of a companion’s flight. Smith v. State, 592 So. 2d 1239, 1240 (Fla. 2d DCA 1992). Second, a quick movement as if to conceal something is a legally insufficient reason to justify an investigatory stop. Gipson, 537 So. 2d at 1082; Ruddack v. State, 537 So. 2d 701 (Fla. 4th DCA 1989); Walker v. State, 514 So. 2d 1149, 1150 (Fla. 2d DCA 1987). Appellant’s placing his hand in his pocket, without more, did not justify the stop, Dees, 564 So. 2d at 1168, even though the neighborhood was known to have a high crime…
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In the Interest of T.M.M., 560 So. 2d 805 (Fla. 4th DCA 1990)…viction for violation of probation where the facts showed that appellant was carrying a brown paper bag in broad daylight in a high crime area and that the man turned the other way when he saw the policeman looking at him. See also Ruddack v. State, 537 So. 2d 701 (Fla.4th DCA 1989). In the instant case, the deputy did not have a founded suspicion of criminal activity. The record clearly indicates that the deputy wanted to stop K.L.M. simply because appellant had been arrested the week before. As the officer…
Previewing 3 of 18 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)
- In the Interest of R.B. v. State, 429 So. 2d 815 (Fla. 2d DCA 1983)
- Yates v. State, 429 So. 2d 815 (Fla. 2d DCA 1983)
- Jenkins v. State, 524 So. 2d 1108 (Fla. 3d DCA 1988)
- Baggett v. State, 531 So. 2d 1028 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988)