State v. Joe

OPINION

BAILEY, Judge.

Case Summary

Appellant-Plaintiff, State of Indiana (“State”), appeals the trial court’s granting of the motion of Appellee-Defendant, Edward L. Joe (“Joe”), to suppress the evidence of a handgun seized from Joe’s ear.

Issue

Restated, the dispositive issue is whether the search which uncovered the handgun was lawful as a limited Terry 1 search for weapons.

Facts

The uncontradicted evidence reveals that two policemen were patrolling a neighborhood well known for drug trafficking and shootings. The police officers pulled a car over for speeding and for driving left of center.…