United States v. Carl Eugene Stephens, Opinion

Opinion by Judge PREGERSON; Dissent by Judge SNEED.

PREGERSON, Circuit Judge:

Carl Eugene Stephens appeals his conviction for possession with intent to dis*916tribute cocaine in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1). Stephens contends that the cocaine was discovered as a result of police conduct in violation of the Fourth Amendment. The district court admitted evidence of cocaine found in Stephens’s bag over Stephens’s motion to suppress. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 and 18 U.S.C. § 3742, and we reverse.

I

On September 19, 1997, defendant Carl Eugene Stephens was traveling by…