New Mexico v. Ketelson

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The issue presented in this appeal was whether a police officer could temporarily remove a visible firearm from a vehicle to prevent immediate access to it by an occupant during the short duration of a lawful traffic stop. In November 2008, officers from the Hobbs Police Department stopped a GMC Jimmy with expired temporary tags. On his approach towards the vehicle, an officer saw a black nine millimeter handgun lying on the back seat floorboard. The officer asked Defendant Gregory Ketelson to step out of the vehicle, and his partner retrieved the firearm from the back seat floorboard. Neither Defendant nor his passenger was in the vehicle when the officers retrieved the firearm. After the firearm was removed, Defendant signed a card consenting to the search and admitted that the firearm belonged to him. Officers ran a background check and found that Defendant had a prior felony conviction. Officers then arrested Defendant as a felon in possession of a firearm. Prior to trial, Defendant moved to suppress the firearm and statements made to the police regarding its ownership. The State responded that the entry into the vehicle and removing the firearm were lawful as a "minimal intrusion" necessary for officer safety while the officers determined that Defendant was a felon. The district court found that the State did not make a showing sufficient to support exigent circumstances. Rather, the court found that both Defendant and the driver of the car were "at all times cooperative, and they created no apparent threat or imminent danger to life or serious damage to property." Accordingly, the district court granted the motion to suppress, noting that non-felons may legally carry loaded handguns in private automobiles, and thus, the State must make some showing beyond the mere presence of a firearm in the car before officers effect a warrantless "seizure." Upon review, the Supreme Court concluded that with respect to the Fourth Amendment, the officers had a reasonable articulable suspicion permitting them to remove the weapon. Furthermore, the Court concluded that the officers' removal of the firearm was a minimal intrusion, which was reasonable given the grave need for officer safety during traffic stops. The Court reversed the judgments of the Court of Appeals and the district court and remanded the case for further proceedings. View "New Mexico v. Ketelson" on Justia Law