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Officer’s queries with “please” and normal tone of voice, all recorded during the stop of defendant at the El Paso interstate bus terminal, showed defendant’s consent to a search of his person for drugs strapped to him was voluntary. The court concludes it was not an order. United States v. Trujillo, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26580 (W.D. Tex. February 29, 2012).*

Defendant’s conduct was suspicious around a car and indicated either theft, drug dealing, or a car jacking. When the officer stopped with lights, defendant attempted to back away. All this was more than a hunch of criminal activity. United States v. Bady, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26265 (S.D. Ill. February 29, 2012).*

Defendant’s 2255 claim that defense counsel failed to raise a racial motivation issue based on something the officer said during the stop is belied by the DVD of the stop. Defendant’s plea deal to a five year max was a huge benefit, considering where he would have fallen on the guidelines if the government pursued his priors. United States v. Curry, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 25803 (D. Neb. February 29, 2012).*

Defendant had to understand that a search of his person for drugs would mean going into the pockets. United States v. Stinson, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 4144 (4th Cir. February 28, 2012) (unpublished).*

33 minute delay in the stop here was reasonable and caused by the language barrier and waiting for an interpreter to arrive. United States v. Hernandez-Coria, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 24624 (D. Minn. January 25, 2012).*

Defendant was stopped in a taxicab, and marijuana was seen in plain view. People v Souffrant, 2012 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 1528, 2012 NY Slip Op 1521 (3d Dept. March 1, 2012).*

A defendant told he’s going to be frisked is “seized.” Here, the record is devoid of any factual justification for the frisk based on what “other people” said. If they were informants, there was no showing of basis of knowledge or any reason to be truthful. Commonwealth v. Arias, 2012 Mass. App. LEXIS 93 (February 28, 2012)*:

Here, the record reveals nothing about the informants' basis of knowledge or veracity. Hart and Halloran, the MBTA employees who told the police about the defendant, expressly stated that they were passing on information they had obtained from "other people" but said nothing about who the other people were and provided no information about the other people that would enable anyone to determine either their veracity or basis of knowledge. In that regard, we treat the individuals who gave information to Hart and Halloran as unknown informants even though police knew their identities by the time of the hearing. ... Nothing in the record suggests that the police knew who the informants were before they arrested the defendant or that they had any idea how the informants knew of the gun. Moreover, information obtained from known informants receives somewhat greater weight than that received from anonymous informants because known informants expose themselves to "charge[s] of filing a false report or any comparable consequence of providing false information to law enforcement." Commonwealth v. Mubdi, 456 Mass. 385, 397, 923 N.E.2d 1004 (2010). See Commonwealth v. Costa, 448 Mass. 510, 515-517, 862 N.E.2d 371 (2007). Here, the informants faced no such consequences when they made their disclosures to Hart or Halloran. Indeed, nothing in the record suggests that they even knew that Hart or Halloran would relay their information to authorities.

Update (8:35 ET) It appears Mitt Romney will easily win the Washington caucus. With almost 50% of the vote in, he seems to have an insurmountable lead with just over 37% of the vote. The real battle will be for second, where Ron Paul has a slight lead over Santorum and both have around 24% of the vote. But it won't matter. Another opportunity for Santorum to gain some positive coverage before Super Tuesday appears to have slipped through his fingers.

Update (6:30 ET): Results are starting to roll in. There are reports of very strong turnout and a strong showing by Ron Paul supporters. With about 10% of the vote in, reports have Romney in the lead with Paul following close behind and Santorum in third.

As attention is being focused on the upcoming Super Tuesday contests, a Saturday warm-up caucus event in Washington is flying mostly under the radar. Washington has a total of 43 delegates up for grabs, which is actually the second largest haul so far.

The event is expected to be competitive and the winner could receive a big boost heading into Super Tuesday. For Mitt Romney, the goal is to build on his current winning streak (four states, seven wins overall). A win might not help him much as far as the Tuesday events are concerned, but it would continue the "inevitability" theme and not dampen any momentum.

A loss for Romney, however, is always big news even when the contests are mostly ignored beforehand. A Rick Santorum win in Washington would get far more headlines and talk of a major resurgence would once again resurface. The media hype surrounding such a win could actually turn a few close races in Santorum's favor on Tuesday.

Polling has been scarce, but one post-Michigan poll by Public Policy Polling shows Romney leading Santorum 37-32% with Ron Paul a distant third. The Washington momentum seems to favor Romney and he has held rallies there with enthusiastic turnout.

WA Caucus Last Chance for Mini-Surge (Romney to Win) originally appeared on About.com Conservative Politics: U.S. on Saturday, March 3rd, 2012 at 07:33:10.

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NEW YORK — BP's multibillion-dollar settlement deal with people and businesses harmed by its 2010 oil spill removes some uncertainty about the potential financial damages it faces. It also may help the company restore its all-important relationship with the federal government.

Although the company still has a few major legal ...

HENRYVILLE, Ind. (AP) — Powerful storms leveled small towns in southern Indiana, transforming entire blocks of homes into piles of debris, tossing school buses into a home and a restaurant and causing destruction so severe it was difficult to tell what was once there. As night fell, dazed residents shuffled ...

California has decided against applying for a waiver from No Child Left Behind, but local officials in the Golden State still want relief from the widely maligned, decade-old law.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on Friday called on the Obama administration to expand its opt-out program to the individual district ...

ATHENS, Ala. — Apparent tornadoes destroyed houses, sent people to hospitals and tore up the roof of a maximum security prison in northern Alabama as bad weather threatened more twisters across the region Friday, two days after storms killed 13 people in the Midwest and South.

Anxiety mounted from Georgia ...

CHARDON, Ohio (AP) — Students mourning the deaths of three teens in a shooting at an Ohio high school returned to class Friday, a day after charges were filed in juvenile court against the 17-year-old suspect.

Police were on hand as students arrived under cloudy skies by car, on foot ...

NEW YORK — Broadcasters have sued a startup backed by media billionaire Barry Diller that sends live local TV feeds to iPhones and iPads in the New York area.

Two groups of broadcasters, including ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and the local PBS station, filed suits Thursday in federal court, saying ...

Defendant was not in a “Catch-22” by having to establish standing since it couldn’t be used to prove guilt. The trial court explained it to her. State v. Vu, 2012 Ohio 746, 2012 Ohio App. LEXIS 650 (9th Dist. February 27, 2012):

[*P23] Vu asserted in the court below that the trial court placed her in a "Catch-22" by insisting that she prove a possessory interest in the properties, as any such proof would aid the State's case. She also avers on appeal that it is illogical that she was barred from seeking suppression on the basis that she lacked a possessory interest, but was found guilty of possession, for which there had to be evidence of a possessory interest. The answer to both arguments lies in the difference between the suppression stage and the trial stage.

[*P24] Although the State bore the burden of proof at trial, it was Vu's burden to prove that she possessed a legitimate expectation of privacy for purposes of suppression. Redding, 2010 Ohio 4286, at ¶ 8, quoting Blackert, 1992 Ohio App. LEXIS 3818, 1992 WL 174642, at *3. Further, any evidence she introduced at the suppression stage to prove that she had a possessory interest would not have been admissible against her at trial on the issue of guilt. Simmons, 390 U.S. at 394. The trial court explained both propositions of law to Vu's counsel at the suppression stage. Even so, Vu's counsel maintained that he did not have any testimony to offer, the record spoke for itself, and Vu automatically should be entitled to challenge the applicable search warrants, given that the State intended to pursue possession charges against her. The United States Supreme Court has specifically rejected the notion of "automatic standing," however, and it was Vu's burden to demonstrate a privacy interest. State v. Johnson, 63 Ohio App.3d 345, 347-348, 578 N.E.2d 867 (9th Dist.1989), citing United States v. Salvucci, 448 U.S. 83, 91-93, 100 S. Ct. 2547, 65 L. Ed. 2d 619 (1980). Because she failed to carry her burden, the trial court did not err by concluding that she lacked standing to challenge the warrants issued for the houses at Troon Avenue, Baywood Drive, and Autumnwood Lane and the apartments at Grand Lake Drive and Stoneybrook Lane.

Come on: Simmons is almost 45 years old.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — A measure to ban the use of foreign laws in domestic courtrooms is progressing in Florida's statehouse, one of dozens of similar efforts across the country that critics call an unwarranted campaign driven by fear of Muslims.

Forty such bills are being pursued in 24 ...

The affidavit was more than just “bare bones,” and the good faith exception was satisfied. The question is not “just lacking” in probable cause, but so lacking that no reasonable officer could rely in it. United States v. Oldaker, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 25788 (N.D. W.Va. February 16, 2012).*

Officers had reasonable suspicion for a probation search, and probable cause was not the standard. United States v. Bolivar, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 4096 (9th Cir. February 29, 2012).*

To satisfy the Fourth Amendment, an inventory did not require watch commander approval. The policy mentions it, but failure to follow is not a Fourth Amendment issue when the inventory is otherwise proper. State v. Stewart, 2012 Ida. App. LEXIS 17 (February 27, 2012).*

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. — A man who witnesses say was watched via webcam while kissing a Rutgers University student who later committed suicide took the stand Friday, telling jurors he noticed the webcam while the two were being intimate.

"I had just glanced over my shoulder and I noticed there ...

HARRISBURG, Ill. — Kera Wise picked through the fragments of her aunt and uncle's tornado-ruined home with a determined hustle under clear skies that weather forecasters warned could again turn dark and dangerous.

Wise figured she had little time to waste Thursday as she stuffed photo albums and what few ...