People v. Mendoza

Two Aurora police officers pulled over defendant, Hugo Mendoza, to investigate two minor violations of the Illinois Vehicle Code. After the traffic stop was completed, one of the officers began asking Mendoza questions unrelated to the ostensible reason for the stop (that is, the minor violations of the Illinois Vehicle Code). The second officer, meanwhile, began shining his flashlight into Mendoza’s car. The second officer saw a handgun sticking out from under the front seat, and Mendoza was eventually arrested and charged with unlawful use of a weapon (720 ILCS 5/24 — 1.6(a)(1), (a)(3)(A)…