Summary
The Indiana Supreme Court held that police use of force on a detainee's throat to prevent the swallowing of suspected contraband violated the unreasonable-search-and-seizure protection in Article 1, Section 11 of the Indiana Constitution. Applying the Litchfield totality-of-the-circumstances framework and adopting a general rule from Conwell, the court ordered suppression of the evidence and reversed the denial of the defendant's motion to suppress.
Holdings
- The application of force to a detainee's throat to prevent the swallowing of suspected contraband violates Article 1, section 11's prohibition against unreasonable search and seizure.
- Evidence obtained as a result of the unconstitutional application of physical force to Grier's throat must be suppressed.
Questions Presented
- Whether police use of physical force against a detainee's throat to prevent the detainee from swallowing suspected contraband violated Article 1, section 11 of the Indiana Constitution.
- Whether the evidence obtained through that conduct should be suppressed.
Disposition
reversed_and_remanded
Cases Cited (10)
- State v. Gerschoffer, 763 N.E.2d 960, 965 (Ind. 2002)(followed)
- Holder v. State, 847 N.E.2d 930, 940 (Ind. 2006)(followed)
- Litchfield v. State, 824 N.E.2d 356, 361 (Ind. 2005)(followed)
- Trimble v. State, 842 N.E.2d 798, 803 (Ind. 2006)(followed)
- Conwell v. State, 714 N.E.2d 764, 768 (Ind. Ct. App. 1999)(adopted)
- Adams v. State, 762 N.E.2d 737, 745-46 (Ind. 2002)(followed)
- Jones v. State, 655 N.E.2d 49, 54 (Ind. 1995)(followed)
- Brown v. State, 653 N.E.2d 77, 80 (Ind. 1995)(followed)
- Shultz v. State, 742 N.E.2d 961, 966 (Ind. Ct. App. 2001)(followed)
- Grier v. State, 855 N.E.2d 1043 (Ind. Ct. App. 2006)(reversed)
Cited In (0)
No citing cases on record yet.
Court Document
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