People v. Autry

Opinion

SILLS, P. J.

—A traffic officer asked Robert Autry to step out of his car for a “patdown” search. Autry complied and the officer felt two objects which were similar to hypodermic needles and syringes. The officer removed the objects—which were indeed two hypodermic needles and syringes—and arrested Autry, who was later found to have cocaine on him. Autry now claims the officer did not have enough information to justify the

[367]

(warrantless) patdown search, nor enough information to believe the two objects were weapons. A United States Supreme Court case,

Pennsylvania

v.

Mimms

(1977) 434 U.S. 106 [54 L.Ed.2d 331, 98 S.Ct. 330], disposes of the first claim. Common sense disposes of the second.

Facts

Sometime after midnight a police officer noticed Autry driving in an erratic manner similar to a person under the influence of alcohol or drugs. The officer decided to pull Autry over and check his condition. He turned on the overhead lights of his police car, and Autry pulled into a gas station. The area was dark. The interior of Autry’s car was not well illuminated.

The officer walked to the driver’s door and asked Autry for identification. Autry said he had none, but gave his name as Robert Edwards and supplied a date of birth. He was wearing a zippered jacket which bulged around and concealed his waist. He was fidgety. His hands kept going into his jacket or the seat next to him. The officer told him to keep his hands where they could be seen.

The officer walked back to his patrol car and called his dispatcher, who told him they could not find anyone with Autry’s supposed name and birth date. The officer asked for another patrol car to be sent to the scene and went back to Autry’s car to confirm the name. The officer noticed Autry’s hands kept moving back and forth, and the officer told him two more times to keep his hands visible. Again the officer asked Autry for his name and again was not able to confirm it. Autry told the officer he had recently done time for a robbery. The officer then decided to do a patdown search for his own safety. He asked Autry to step out of the car. Autry stepped out. The bulge was no longer noticeable, but the jacket still concealed Autry’s waist. The officer thought the jacket might be concealing a weapon.