Court Rules If Officer Had Reliable Info

A Florida appeals court has ruled that a vehicle occupant can be prosecuted for drug charges after he was identified by a 911 caller who ultimately police could not locate and identify. The case emphasizes the real-time nature of dispatching and police work, and the value of an identified caller. Stephen DeLuca was detained by an Tallahassee police officer and then spotted discarding cocaine underneath his stopped vehicle in 2009. The detention was made after a man dialed 911 to provide specific information on two men in a GMC Yukon who pulled a 9mm handgun on him. The caller gave his name and phone number, provided a license plate number and more vehicle description, and a direction of flight. Officers began simultaneously searching for the vehicle and responding to the victim’s location. Officers found the Yukon, but shortly after failed to find the victim. The trial court therefore ruled the detention invalid, since the suspect could not be located (and might be false), and therefore was considered legally unreliable. However, the District Court of Appeals said an officer detained DeLuca while the caller information was still considered to be specific and reliable, and was therefore legally sufficient for a detention. Since the detention was legal, the officer’s observation of DeLuca discarding the narcotics was admissible. DeLuca will now be re-charged with the original narcotics offense. Download (pdf) the court’s decision and reasoning here.