Louis Bell v. State of Indiana , 2017 Ind. App. LEXIS 296 ( 2017 )

FILED
Jul 14 2017, 8:29 am
CLERK
Indiana Supreme Court
Court of Appeals
and Tax Court
ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE
Kimmerly A. Klee Curtis T. Hill, Jr.
Greenwood, Indiana Attorney General of Indiana
Ruth Ann Johnson Monika Prekopa Talbot
Suzy St. John Caryn Nieman-Szyper
Marion County Public Defender Agency Deputy Attorneys General
Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis, Indiana
IN THE
COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
Louis Bell, July 14, 2017
Appellant-Defendant, Court of Appeals Case No.
49A05-1606-CR-1390
v. Appeal from the Marion Superior
Court
State of Indiana, The Honorable Alicia Gooden,
Appellee-Plaintiff Judge
Trial Court Cause No.
49G21-1509-F4-32048
May, Judge.
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[1] Louis Bell appeals his convictions of Level 4 felony unlawful possession of a
firearm by a serious violent felon, 1 Level 5 felony possession of a narcotic drug, 2
Level 5 felony possession of cocaine, 3 Class B misdemeanor possession of
marijuana, 4 and Class C misdemeanor possession of paraphernalia. 5 Bell
asserts his convictions must be overturned because the trial court admitted
evidence that was obtained unconstitutionally. 6 We affirm.
Facts and Procedural History
[2] On September 7, 2015, around 1:00 a.m., Officer Justin Gough of the
Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD) observed a man, later
identified as Bell, riding a bike and trailing another bike by holding its
handlebars. Bell was “rapidly just kind of looking around the area constantly
looking if someone is watching or if someone is coming towards” him. (Tr. at
73.) Officer Gough explained this behavior is called “scanning.” (Id. at 14.)
State law requires a bike operated at night have a red rear light and a white
front light. Ind. Code § 9-21-11-9. The bike Bell was riding did not have this
1
Ind. Code § 35-47-4-5 (2014).
2
Ind. Code § 35-48-4-6 (2014).
3
Ind. Code § 35-48-4-6 (2014).
4
Ind. Code § 35-48-4-11 (2014).
5
Ind. Code § 35-48-4-8.3 (2015).
6
We held oral argument on this matter on March 2, 2017, at the Lafayette campus of Ivy Tech Community
College. We thank counsel for their advocacy and the students and staff at Ivy Tech for their warm
welcome.
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lighting. 7 Officer Gough parked down the road in front of Bell and waited for
him to approach. When Bell was around twenty feet away, Officer Gough
asked Bell, “Hey, do you mind if I talk to you for a minute?” (Tr. at 79.) Bell
replied, “What’s up?” and rode over to Officer Gough. (Id. at 80.)
[3] When Bell approached Officer Gough, Bell was “still scanning and looking
around, sweating. His heart was beating extremely fast.” (Id. at 81.) Officer
Gough asked Bell for his name. Officer Gough “r[a]n [Bell’s name] through
Control” and learned Bell did not have any warrants. (Id. at 115.) Officer
Gough asked Bell if he was in possession of anything illegal, and Bell said he
was not.
[4] Officer Gough observed a suspicious bulge in Bell’s front pocket. When he
asked Bell about it, Bell “looked away, started scanning again, and then didn’t
answer [Officer Gough’s] question.” (Id. at 90.) For “[o]fficer safety,” (id. at
123), Officer Gough “grabbed [Bell’s] hands to conduct an outer clothes pat-
down.” (Id. at 90.) The bulge was a gun. Officer Gough asked Bell if he had a
permit to carry the gun, and Bell said he did not.
[5] Officer Gough placed Bell under arrest and conducted a search incident to
arrest. Officer Gough found a screwdriver with a “removable cap.” (Id. at 95.)
In the cavity under the cap, Officer Gough found “a white plastic baggie [he]
believed to be [sic] cocaine [and] another clear plastic bag with a brown rock-
7
Nor did the bike he was trailing have lights.
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like substance [he] believed to be heroin.” (Id.) In a cigarette pack, Officer
Gough found a “glass smoking pipe . . . and then two small burnt marijuana
cigars.” (Id. at 98-99.)
[6] The State charged Bell with Level 4 felony unlawful possession of a firearm by
a serious violent felon, Level 5 felony possession of a narcotic drug, Level 5
felony possession of cocaine, Class B misdemeanor possession of marijuana,
and Class C misdemeanor possession of paraphernalia. Bell filed a motion to
suppress the fruits of Officer Gough’s search arguing his encounter with Officer
Gough was not consensual and, as such, the pat-down violated his rights under
the federal and Indiana constitutions. The trial court denied the motion.
Following a bench trial, the court convicted Bell of all charges and sentenced
him accordingly.
Discussion and Decision
[7] Bell did not seek interlocutory review of the denial of his motion to suppress but
instead appeals following trial. The issue he raises is therefore “appropriately
framed as whether the trial court abused its discretion by admitting the evidence
at trial.” Washington v. State, 784 N.E.2d 584, 587 (Ind. Ct. App. 2003). Our
standard of review for rulings on the admissibility of evidence is essentially the
same whether the challenge is made by a pre-trial motion to suppress or by trial
objection. Lundquist v. State, 834 N.E.2d 1061, 1067 (Ind. Ct. App. 2005). We
do not reweigh the evidence, and we consider conflicting evidence most
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favorable to the trial court’s ruling. Id. However, we must also consider the
uncontested evidence favorable to the defendant. Id.
[8] “Although a trial court’s determination of historical facts is entitled to
deferential review, we employ a de novo standard when reviewing the trial
court’s ultimate determination of reasonable suspicion and probable cause.”
Lindsey v. State, 916 N.E.2d 230, 238 (Ind. Ct. App. 2009), trans. denied.
In other words, when a trial court has admitted evidence alleged
to have been discovered as the result of an illegal search or
seizure, we generally will assume the trial court accepted the
evidence presented by the State and will not reweigh that
evidence, but we owe no deference as to whether that evidence
established the constitutionality of a search or seizure.
Johnson v. State, 992 N.E.2d 955, 957 (Ind. Ct. App. 2013), trans. denied.
1. Initial Stop8
[9] Bell asserts that although Officer Gough “was within his right to stop Bell for
the bicycle violation,” (Appellant’s Br. at 19), he was actually investigating
8
The parties disagree whether the interaction between Bell and Officer Gough began as a consensual
encounter, which would “not compel Fourth Amendment analysis.” McNeal v. State, 62 N.E.3d 1275,
1280 (Ind. Ct. App. 2016). The trial court concluded the “encounter between [Bell] and Officer
Gough, leading up to the ‘pat down’ search, was a consensual one[.]” (App. Vol. II at 86.) Thereafter,
the court concluded that “even if the encounter was not consensual . . . Officer Gough had reasonable
suspicion to stop [Bell] based upon the totality of the circumstances.” (Id.) Even if we presume Bell
approached Officer Gough voluntarily, the consensual nature of the stop quickly evolved into an
investigatory stop. See Combs v. State, 851 N.E.2d 1053, 1059 (Ind. Ct. App. 2006) (consensual stop
evolved into an investigatory stop on request for identifying information), trans. denied. Thus, we turn
to whether Officer Gough had at least reasonable suspicion to stop Bell.
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whether the second bike was stolen. 9 However, as the State notes, even if the
traffic stop was pretext to investigate the possibility the second bike was stolen,
Indiana law allows pretextual traffic stops when the officer has observed a
traffic violation. See Mitchell v. State, 745 N.E.2d 775, 787 (Ind. 2001)
(pretextual traffic stops not unconstitutional “even if the officer may have an
ulterior motive of furthering an unrelated criminal investigation”).
[10] In Indiana, “[w]henever a law enforcement officer believes in good faith that a
person has committed an infraction or ordinance violation, the law enforcement
officer may detain that person for a time[.]” Ind. Code § 34-28-5-3. “[A] traffic
stop and limited search is permissible where an officer has at least reasonable
suspicion that a traffic law, or other law, has been violated.” Sanders v. State,
989 N.E.2d 332, 335 (Ind. 2013), reh’g denied.
[11] In the middle of the night, Bell was riding a bike that did not have the lights
required by law for a bike to be ridden at night. 10 Officer Gough thus had
reasonable suspicion to detain Bell for the traffic violation. See, e.g., State v.
Keck, 4 N.E.3d 1180, 1184 (Ind. 2014) (“If an officer observes a driver commit a
traffic violation, he has probable cause - and thus also the lesser included
9
Bell asserts Officer Gough was on a “fishing expedition” in order to “target[] citizens in bad
neighborhoods.” (Appellant’s Br. at 25.) Bell points to no evidence to support his assertion Officer Gough
was “targeting citizens;” nor did we see any such evidence in our review of the record.
10
Officer Gough acknowledged Bell had a white desk light clipped to the back of his shirt, but that did not
satisfy the requirement of the statute. See Ind. Code § 9-21-11-9 (requiring red back light and white front light
on bike operated at night).
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reasonable suspicion [required for a Terry stop] - to stop that driver.”); see also
State v. Quirk, 842 N.E.2d 334, 340 (Ind. 2006) (even a minor traffic violation
“creates probable cause to stop the driver”). Thus, Bell has not demonstrated
the trial court erred in determining the initial stop was constitutional.
2. Pat-Down Search
[12] The parties disagree whether Officer Gough’s pat-down of Bell violated our
federal and state constitutions. We begin with the federal analysis.
A. Fourth Amendment
[13] The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution protects citizens
against unreasonable searches and seizures by prohibiting them without a
warrant supported by probable cause. U.S. Const. amend. IV. To deter State
actors from violating that prohibition, evidence obtained in violation of the
Fourth Amendment generally is not admissible in a prosecution of the citizen
whose right was violated. Clark v. State, 994 N.E.2d 252, 260 (Ind. 2013). The
State has the burden of demonstrating the admissibility of evidence collected
during a seizure or search. Id.
[14] The trial court concluded Officer Gough had reasonable suspicion to pat Bell
down for weapons. Bell argues Officer Gough did not have reasonable
suspicion to conduct a pat-down search because Bell cooperated with Officer
Gough’s request to talk. Bell asserts his sweating and fast heart-rate could have
been due to his bike-riding. The State asserts the “pat-down was proper under
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the Fourth Amendment” because Officer Gough had a reasonable belief his
safety was in danger. (Appellee’s Br. at 16.)
[15] To conduct a pat-down during a Terry stop, an “officer need not be absolutely
certain that the individual is armed; the issue is whether a reasonably prudent
man in the circumstances would be warranted in the belief that his safety or that
of others was in danger.” Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 27 (1968). “In addition, a
police officer ‘justified in believing that the individual whose suspicious
behavior he is investigating at close range is armed and presently dangerous to
the officer or to others,’ is entitled to conduct a limited patdown [sic] search of
the suspect’s outer clothing to search for a weapon.” Jackson v. State, 669
N.E.2d 744, 747 (Ind. Ct. App. 1996) (quoting Terry, 392 U.S. at 24).
[16] Here, the encounter occurred after 1:00 a.m. in a high-crime area, Bell had a
suspicious bulge in his pocket, and Bell did not answer Officer Gough’s
question about the bulge in his pocket. Officer Gough had observed Bell was
“still scanning and looking around, sweating [and h]is heart was beating
extremely fast.” (Tr. at 81.) Because Bell did not answer Officer Gough’s
question regarding the bulge in his pocket, Officer Gough believed Bell was
“hiding something or being evasive.” (Id. at 90.) Under these circumstances,
we conclude it was reasonable for Officer Gough to be concerned for his own
and the public’s safety. 11 The pat-down search was not a violation of Bell’s
11
The dissent notes the determination of sufficient authorization to conduct a lengthier traffic stop and a pat-
down search is “fact sensitive.” Slip op. at ¶ 23. We agree. We also agree that reasonable suspicion cannot
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Fourth Amendment rights, and the trial court did not err in admitting the
handgun discovered during the pat-down or the other evidence seized during
the search incident to arrest. See Scisney v. State, 55 N.E.3d 321, 325 (Ind. Ct.
App. 2016) (pat-down “constitutionally permissible” when Scisney did not
respond to a question regarding whether he had any weapons), trans. denied.
B. Article 1, Section 11
[17] The language of Article 1, Section 11 tracks the Fourth Amendment; however,
“Indiana has explicitly rejected the expectation of privacy as a test of the
reasonableness of a search or seizure.” Litchfield v. State, 824 N.E.2d 356, 359
(Ind. 2005). Instead, the legality of a search “turns on an evaluation of the
reasonableness of the police conduct under the totality of the circumstances.”
Id. Reasonableness is determined by balancing: (1) the degree of concern,
suspicion, or knowledge that a violation has occurred; (2) the degree of
intrusion imposed by the search; and (3) the extent of law enforcement needs.
Id. at 361.
[18] The trial court concluded the “limited pat down search of [Bell] did not violate
[] Article I, Section 11 of the Indiana Constitution.” (App. Vol. II at 86.) Bell
be created solely by Bell’s presence in a high-crime area, see Clark, 994 N.E.2d at 266, that we must be careful
placing too much weight on a citizen’s nervousness when confronted by police, see Pinner v. State, 74 N.E.3d
226, 233 (Ind. 2017), and that the law requires a police officer to have particularized suspicion that a person
is armed and is a threat to safety. See Patterson v. State, 958 N.E.2d 478, 486 (Ind. Ct. App. 2011). We
disagree with the dissent about the implications of those statements of law for the case at hand. Bell’s
commission of a traffic infraction gave Officer Gough probable cause to stop Bell, and as we explained
above, the other circumstances provided Officer Gough particularized suspicion that Bell posed a threat to
Officer Gough’s safety.
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argues he should not have been patted-down because the stop should not have
continued after Officer Gough found Bell did not have active warrants. In
support, he cites State v. Richardson, 927 N.E.2d 379, 384 (Ind. 2010), in which
our Indiana Supreme Court held observation of an “unusual bulge” is not
enough to provide reasonable suspicion. The facts here are distinguishable
because Officer Gough also observed Bell was nervous, he was scanning the
area, and he did not answer Officer Gough’s question about the bulge in his
pocket.
[19] Applying the Litchfield factors to the facts, we hold the warrantless search did
not violate Article 1, Section 11 of the Indiana Constitution. The degree of
suspicion was high because Bell’s bikes did not have the required lighting and
Officer Gough observed Bell “scanning and looking around, sweating. His
heart was beating extremely fast.” (Tr. at 81.) When Officer Gough asked Bell
about the bulge in his pocket, Bell “looked away, started scanning again, and
then didn’t answer [Officer Gough’s] question.” (Id. at 90.) The intrusion into
Bell’s privacy was minimal as it was merely “an outer clothes pat-down.” (Id.)
Finally, the law enforcement needs were high given the circumstances leading
up to the pat-down. Officer Gough was justified to feel concern for officer and
public safety. Under the totality of circumstances, we conclude the pat-down
was reasonable. As such, Bell’s Article 1, Section 11 rights were not violated
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and the admission of evidence found thereafter in the search was not error. 12
See Johnson v. State, 38 N.E.3d 658, 664 (Ind. Ct. App. 2015) (“outer-clothing
pat down” of non-compliant defendant was not a violation of Section 11), trans.
denied.
Conclusion
[20] Officer Gough had reasonable suspicion to stop Bell due to the traffic violation
created by the lack of lights on the bicycle. Once stopped, neither Bell’s Fourth
Amendment nor Article 1, Section 11 rights were violated by the pat-down
search. Thus, admission of the evidence was not an abuse of discretion.
Accordingly, we affirm Bell’s convictions.
[21] Affirmed.
Kirsch, J., concurs.
Robb, J., dissents with separate opinion.
12
Bell also claims the State is using his possession of a screwdriver as an after-the-fact justification for Officer
Gough’s decision to search him for officer safety. (Appellant’s Br. at 23.) In support, he cites Webb v. State,
714 N.E.2d 787, 789 (Ind. Ct. App. 1999), in which the State “imputed to [the officer] a new theory for the
stop despite [the officer’s] own testimony as to why he stopped Webb.” Officer Gough’s probable cause
affidavit indicates the reason for the stop as “the city ordinance infraction, as well as suspicious behavior.”
(App. Vol. II at 23.) Officer Gough testified during the suppression hearing that his reason for conducting
the pat-down was because Bell was acting nervous, “had a bulge in his front right pocket as well as a
screwdriver in his rear right pocket,” (Tr. at 26), and would not answer questions about whether that bulge
was a weapon. Thus, the State did not impute to Officer Gough a justification that was not advanced by
Officer Gough himself, and Webb is not relevant.
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IN THE
COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
Louis Bell, Court of Appeals Case No.
49A05-1606-CR-1390
Appellant-Defendant,
v.
State of Indiana,
Appellee-Plaintiff.
Robb, Judge, dissenting.
[22] I agree with the majority that Officer Gough’s initial stop of Bell was
appropriate because he observed Bell committing a traffic infraction. However,
I disagree with the majority that Bell’s constitutional rights were not violated by
the pat-down search that followed. Therefore, I respectfully dissent.
[23] As the majority states, Officer Gough observed Bell committing a traffic
infraction, giving him at least reasonable suspicion for the initial stop of Bell.
See slip op. at ¶ 11. But it is important to note here that an infraction is not a
crime. See, e.g., Smith v. State, 38 N.E.3d 218, 223 (Ind. Ct. App. 2015) (noting
traffic infractions are civil, rather than criminal, in nature). The permissible
scope of Officer Gough’s encounter with Bell must be viewed through that lens.
A seizure for a traffic violation justifies an investigation of that violation, but
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“[a] routine traffic stop . . . is a relatively brief encounter” that is more
analogous to a Terry stop than to a formal arrest. Knowles v. Iowa, 525 U.S. 113,
117 (1998). Thus, “[l]ike a Terry stop, the tolerable duration of police inquiries
in the traffic-stop context is determined by the seizure’s mission—to address the
traffic violation that warranted the stop . . . and attend to related safety
concerns.” Rodriguez v. U.S., 135 S. Ct. 1609, 1614 (2015) (quotation and
citations omitted). Because addressing the infraction is the purpose of the stop,
the stop may last no longer than is necessary to effectuate that purpose. Id. The
Indiana Code recognizes this limitation:
(a) Whenever a law enforcement officer believes in good faith
that a person has committed an infraction or ordinance violation,
the law enforcement officer may detain that person for a time
sufficient to:
(1) inform the person of the allegation;
(2) obtain the person’s:
(A) name, address, and date of birth; or
(B) driver’s license, if in the person’s possession; and
(3) allow the person to execute a notice to appear.
Ind. Code § 34-28-5-3. Moreover, “it [is] appropriate to examine whether the
police diligently pursued a means of investigation that was likely to confirm or
dispel their suspicions quickly . . . .” U.S. v. Sharpe, 470 U.S. 675, 686 (1985).
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A seizure that is lawful at the beginning may nonetheless violate the Fourth
Amendment “if its manner of execution unreasonably infringes” on protected
interests. Illinois v. Caballes, 543 U.S. 405, 407 (2005). What is sufficient to
authorize police to stop a person must be determined by considering the totality
of the circumstances—“the whole picture.” U.S. v. Cortez, 449 U.S. 411, 417
(1981). That determination is necessarily fact sensitive. Clark v. State, 994
N.E.2d 252, 264 (Ind. 2013).
[24] In ruling on admission of evidence at trial following the denial of a pre-trial
motion to suppress, the trial court must consider the foundational evidence
presented at trial as well as any evidence from the suppression hearing that is
favorable to the defendant and uncontradicted at trial. Gerth v. State, 51 N.E.3d
368, 372 (Ind. Ct. App. 2016). Here, the evidence from both hearings shows
Officer Gough saw Bell riding his bike in the late evening hours in a high crime
area, trailing another bike and “looking at the area back and forth at a very
rapid pace that wasn’t normal.” Tr. at 14. Officer Gough noticed Bell did not
have the proper lighting on his bike but also suspected Bell was involved in
other criminal activity due to the presence of the second bike and decided he
wanted to investigate the situation. Officer Gough stated Bell was “free to
disregard” his request to talk, but had Bell not responded positively, “I would
have gotten into my police vehicle and initiated my lights and made a traffic
stop.” Id. at 37-38; see also id. at 80-81. When Bell agreed to speak with Officer
Gough, the officer radioed in at 1:09 a.m. that he was doing an investigation
and gave control Bell’s name. Less than two minutes later, control determined
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Bell had no outstanding warrants. As Officer Gough and Bell were talking,
Officer Gough noticed Bell was sweating “extremely bad,” continued to scan
the area, and was “extremely nervous because I could . . . see almost where his
heart was beating in his chest back and forth.” Id. at 22; see also id. at 81-82.
Officer Gough also noticed a screwdriver in Bell’s back pocket and a “bulge” in
his front pocket. Id. at 26; 83. Officer Gough asked Bell if he had anything
illegal on him or anything the officer should know about, and Bell responded,
“no.” Id. at 26; 89. Officer Gough then specifically asked Bell about the bulge
in his pocket; Bell did not offer an answer. At that point, Officer Gough
believed Bell was “hiding something,” id. at 90, grabbed Bell’s hands, pulled
them behind his back, and began the pat-down that ultimately uncovered a
firearm approximately thirty minutes later. See id. at 118 (control determined at
1:41 a.m. that Bell had prior convictions after Officer Gough found the gun and
requested information).
[25] Based on his testimony at both the suppression hearing and Bell’s trial, at no
time did Officer Gough talk with Bell about the infraction giving rise to the
stop, nor did he ask him about the second bike. See Sharpe, 470 U.S. at 686.
Rather than addressing the purpose of the stop, Officer Gough asked an open-
ended question about whether Bell had anything illegal on him, and when Bell
responded in the negative, asked more specifically about the bulge in Bell’s
pocket. I do not discount the legitimate concern for officer safety, but I do not
believe the evidence supports the conclusion that reasonable suspicion
developed for Officer Gough to conduct the pat-down of Bell even after Bell
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refused to answer the officer’s question. “[I]n order to pass constitutional
muster, reasonable suspicion must be comprised of more than an officer’s
general ‘hunches’ or unparticularized suspicions.” Stalling v. State, 713 N.E.2d
922, 924 (Ind. Ct. App. 1999) (quoting Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 27 (1968)).
[26] Officer Gough testified he conducted the pat-down because of Bell’s “behavior
as well as the bulge in his pocket that he didn’t answer my question about.” Tr.
at 123. Bell was riding a bike in a high crime area, pulling another bike
alongside, approaching an intersection with multiple lanes in each direction.
That Bell was sweating and looking around to assess the area for possible
threats to his own safety is neither unreasonable nor immediately indicative of
suspicious behavior. Nor, necessarily, is the fact that Officer Gough believed he
was nervous. Nervousness is not enough to constitute reasonable suspicion, as
“it is common for most people to exhibit signs of nervousness when confronted
by a law enforcement officer whether or not the person is currently engaged in
criminal activity.” Pinner v. State, 74 N.E.3d 226, 233 (Ind. 2017) (quotation
omitted). In short, I do not believe Officer Gough’s description of Bell’s
behavior supports reasonable suspicion that Bell posed a danger to the officer or
others.
[27] I acknowledge that “a set of individually innocent facts, when observed in
conjunction, can be sufficient to create reasonable suspicion of criminal
activity.” Id. at 534. But I do not believe Bell’s behavior coupled with Officer
Gough’s observation of a “bulge” in Bell’s pocket is sufficient, either. Officer
Gough never described the bulge in any detail whatsoever. He simply repeated
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several times over the course of the suppression hearing and bench trial that Bell
had a bulge in his pocket. On the basis of that testimony, the bulge could have
been as small as a wad of tissues or bills, it could have been keys or a wallet. Cf.
State v. Richardson, 927 N.E.2d 379, 381 (Ind. 2010) (officer describing a “very
large, unusual bulge” in defendant’s pocket); Dunson v. State, 64 N.E.3d 250,
252 (Ind. Ct. App. 2016) (officer testifying he noticed a bulge in the defendant’s
groin area stated, “there was a flat top to it with a shirt over top that. Ah,
there’s a larger bulge beneath that about the waist line . . . .”). In short, Officer
Gough gave no reason why he found the bulge suspicious and therefore did not
establish a reasonable belief that Bell was hiding a weapon that could be used to
harm Officer Gough or others in the area. 13
[28] Finally, Bell’s failure to answer Officer Gough’s specific question about the
bulge does not support reasonable suspicion of criminal activity. Defendants
are not obligated to answer questions unrelated to the purpose of the stop. See
Florida v. Royer, 460 U.S. 491, 497-98 (1983) (noting that during a Terry stop,
refusal to answer questions does not, without more, furnish reasonable
suspicion); Washington v. State, 898 N.E.2d 1200, 1205 (Ind. 2008) (noting
officer’s brief questioning during a traffic stop about whether the defendant had
any weapons or drugs did not violate the Fourth Amendment because
13
Bell did have a screwdriver. However, it was in plain view, and in the context of this stop, Bell was likely
carrying the screwdriver as a tool. Based on Bell’s conduct as described by Officer Gough during the stop,
there is no reason to believe Bell gave Officer Gough any signs or signals he might reach for the screwdriver
to wield as a weapon.
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defendant did not have to answer the questions). And unlike the situation in
Scisney v. State, 55 N.E.3d 321 (Ind. Ct. App. 2016), there was no other basis for
finding Bell’s failure to answer suspicious. In Scisney, officers investigating a
call of shots fired in a high crime area spotted the defendant walking with a
man who met the description of the suspect. The defendant touched his
waistline when he observed officers and then as he walked toward one officer,
did not respond when asked if he had any weapons. On the basis of all of those
facts, we found the pat-down did not constitute a constitutional violation. Id. at
324.
[29] Recently, our supreme court decided the case of Jacobs v. State, No. 49S02-1509-
CM-31258 (Ind. June 29, 2017). In Jacobs, there had been multiple reports of
shots fired by youths wearing red clothing near an apartment complex and
nearby park in a high crime area. Police increased their focus on that area, and
two days later, an officer saw several people in the park that he believed should
have been in school. Some of the people were wearing red, and although the
defendant briefly had a red shirt slung over his shoulder, he was not wearing
red. When the group observed a park ranger in a marked car patrol the area,
the defendant quickly walked away, only to return after the ranger left the area.
The officer then called for backup and when additional marked cars arrived, the
defendant again quickly walked away from the assembled group. Officers
followed in their car and ordered the defendant to stop. Instead, he continued
to walk away, at which point the officers exited their patrol car and ordered the
defendant to the ground. The defendant complied and was handcuffed; when
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defendant got to his feet, the outline of a handgun was clearly visible in his
pocket. The defendant’s objection to the officers’ testimony and admission into
evidence of the handgun were overruled at his bench trial and he was convicted
of possession of a handgun without a license, a Class A misdemeanor. On
appeal, our supreme court held the search was constitutionally impermissible
under both the United States and Indiana Constitutions. See Jacobs, slip op. at
1. Although the officer reasonably believed the defendant was a truant, by the
time of the stop, school was out of session and suspicion of truancy could not
justify the stop. That the defendant turned and left the park upon seeing the
park ranger is insufficient to establish reasonable suspicion. Id. at 5. And the
fact the defendant temporarily displayed a red shirt—a known gang color—
when juveniles wearing red had fired shots two days earlier in the same area
“require[s] one inferential leap too many” because at the time of the stop, the
defendant was not wearing red and “police had no articulable suspicion that
[the defendant] specifically was involved in any way with the shooting . . . .” Id.
Although “taken as a whole,” the defendant’s actions were suspicious and the
defendant was in fact found to be carrying an unlicensed handgun, “at the time
police moved to detain [the defendant], police did not have a reasonable
suspicion that he had engaged in or was about to engage in any criminal
conduct.” Id. at 6.
[30] Here, there were no reports of a stolen bike or other criminal activity in the area
that Officer Gough believed Bell could have been involved with, Bell never
made a move toward either the visible screwdriver or the alleged “bulge,” and
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his behavior was similar to the behavior of most people stopped by the police. I
believe after Officer Gough had confirmation Bell had no outstanding warrants
and asked Bell if he had anything illegal on him and Bell said he did not,
Officer Gough should have written a citation for the traffic infraction if that was
his intent, 14 and allowed Bell to go on his way. When “taken as a whole,” even
though Bell was committing an infraction and even if his actions were
suspicious, Officer Gough had only a hunch, not a reasonable suspicion, that
Bell might be involved in criminal activity when he stopped him. Pursuant to
Jacobs, this is insufficient to overcome Fourth Amendment protections. See id.
[31] Again, I do not take lightly the peril police officers are placed in every day.
However, “[a] generalized suspicion that an individual presents a threat to an
officer’s safety is insufficient to authorize a pat-down search,” Patterson v. State,
958 N.E.2d 478, 486 (Ind. Ct. App. 2011), and I believe that is all the evidence
here shows. I would hold the Fourth Amendment prohibited the pat-down
search of Bell. 15
14
Officer Gough testified at the suppression hearing that he was not intending to issue a citation for the lack
of bicycle lights because Bell stopped and talked with him. Tr. at 41.
15
Likewise, based on the totality of the circumstances, I believe the Indiana Constitution also prohibited the
pat-down.
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