People v. Assenato

After trial by jury defendant, Peter Assenato, was found guilty of unlawful possession of a controlled substance, armed violence and unlawful use of weapons by a felon, and was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment. He appeals, contending that (1) there was no probable cause to effectuate the traffic stop of his vehicle; (2) the stop for a traffic violation was merely a pretext to search for evidence; (3) the seizure and search of defendant after the stop was unconstitutional; (4) improper and prejudicial implications that defendant had committed other crimes were made in trial; and (5) the…