DeGroat v. State

The defendant appeals the denial of a motion to suppress claiming a law enforcement officer’s stop of the motor vehicle the defendant was operating on a public road without headlights was pretextual and citing Kehoe v. State, 521 So.2d 1094 (Fla.1988), Monroe v. State, 543 So.2d 298 (Fla. 5th DCA 1989) and State v. Gibson, 560 So.2d 1370 (Fla. 5th DCA 1990).

Section 316.217, Florida Statutes, provides that every vehicle operated upon highways within this state shall display lighted lamps and illuminating devices from sunset to sunrise and at certain other times. We hold as a matter of law…