U.S. Supreme Court clarifies search and seizure rules.

• Author: Lewis, Scott

Byline: Scott Lewis

In New York v. Belton, 453 U. S. 454 (1981), the U. S. Supreme Court took a hint from noted search and seizure guru and professor, Wayne La Fave, who observed: "A highly sophisticated set of rules, qualified by all sorts of ifs, ands, and buts, and requiring the drawing of subtle nuances and hairline distinctions, may be the heady stuff upon which the facile minds of lawyers and judges eagerly feed, but they may be 'literally impossible of application by the officer in the field.'" Id., at 458. The Belton court authorized search of the entire passenger compartment of a vehicle, including closed compartments, as incident to a contemporaneous custodial arrest of the vehicle's occupant or occupants. Vehicle trunks are not included (id., at 460, n. 4), and no probable cause is needed to believe that the vehicle contains anything of evidentiary value.

Despite the Belton "bright line" rule, "ifs, ands, and buts" remained. One of the unsettled questions: What happens when the arrestee leaves his or her vehicle before the officer actually accosts the suspect? Put another way, when does the "occupant" of a car cease to be an "occupant?"

In Thornton v. United States, 2004 WL 1144370, decided May 24, a divided (5-4) Supreme Court held that the Belton rule applies even when the when the suspect is not in the vehicle before the officer has an opportunity to effect a stop.

Marcus Thornton was driving a Lincoln Town Car bearing plates listed to a 1982 Chevy. Norfolk, Virginia, police officer Deion Nichols noted the discrepancy. Before the officer could stop Thornton or signal him to stop, Thornton parked his car and got out. Nichols stopped Thornton while they were both on foot. Nichols asked Thornton if he could pat him down. Thornton consented and the officer noticed a bulge in Thornton's pocket, a bulge which turned out to be marijuana and cocaine. Nichols arrested Thornton, handcuffed him, and placed him in Nichols' unmarked squad car.

Nichols searched the Lincoln Town Car and found a 9mm handgun under the driver's seat. Thornton moved to suppress the handgun, arguing that Belton did not apply because he was no longer a vehicle "occupant." The motion was denied and Thornton was convicted of various drug and gun related offenses.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed. The court noted the discrepancy among the federal circuits and state courts in interpreting Belton. While supporting the majority view...