FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - The Kentucky Supreme Court has thrown out evidence gathered during a traffic stop, ruling that a man who was sentenced to 20 years in prison on drug trafficking and other charges had been improperly detained.
The Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer (https://bit.ly/1S0S1gG) reports that 50-year-old Thomas J. Davis was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2014 after having been pulled over by McLean County sheriff’s deputy Tim McCoy. McCoy had stopped Davis in 2010 on suspicion of driving under the influence.
McCoy said that he had seen Davis’ vehicle cross the center line of the road a few times. After pulling him over, he said he smelled alcohol and saw an open beer can in his car. According to court records, Davis admitted to drinking some of the beer while driving. McCoy then administered sobriety tests, which Davis passed.
McCoy then asked to search the car. Davis objected, but McCoy proceeded, using a drug-sniffing dog, which detected methamphetamine.
After Davis’ arrest, deputies found more methamphetamine and items associated with drug trafficking.
The Supreme Court justices ruled that Davis had been lawfully stopped but there had been no valid reason to conduct the drug searches. The judges wrote that “any prolonging of the stop beyond its original purpose is unreasonable and unjustified.”
The justices ordered a new case hearing to be conducted.
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Information from: Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer, https://www.messenger-inquirer.com
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