United States v. Ellis

OPINION

GRIFFIN, Circuit Judge.

Plaintiff, the United States of America, appeals an order of the district court granting defendant Dewayne Ellis’s motion to suppress. The government argues that the district court erred by suppressing incriminating evidence seized during a traffic stop and defendant’s post-arrest statements. For the reasons set forth below, we agree and reverse and remand.

I

In its order, the district court made the following findings of fact:

On Friday, April 16, 2004, Trooper [Andrew] Topp, an Ohio State Highway Patrol Trooper, was working the 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. shift.…