State v. Leino

A records and warrant check by a police officer during a lawful traffic stop does not unlawfully extend or expand the scope of the traffic stop in violation of Art. I, section 9 of the Oregon Constitution.

Leino appealed his convictions for unlawful possession of cocaine and methamphetamine based upon the trial court's error in denying his motion to suppress. After placing his bicycle into a garage, Leino was called out to the street by a police officer. The police officer asked for Leino’s driver’s license and radioed that information into dispatch. During this time the officer noticed Leino wearing a knife and asked if he could search Leino. Leino consented and the search revealed the drugs in dispute. Defendant asserts that the officer unlawfully detained him while radioing dispatch with his driver’s license information. The Court of Appeals held that the detention was lawful as it was an “unavoidable lull” during a standard police procedure of running a records and warrant check on the defendant. The Court also held that such investigation during the course of a traffic stop does not extend or expand the scope of the stop in violation of Art. I, section 9 of the Oregon Constitution. Affirmed.