People v. Thompson

This is a case where a faulty brake light provided a pretext to stop defendants’ van. The defective light cloaked the stop’s real purpose. The police wanted to confirm uncorroborated information from an anonymous telephone call.

Patrol officers searched for defendants’ van after a radio dispatch from headquarters. The dispatch conveyed information received from an unidentified caller. The officers were told that defendants were headed to Carbondale from Carterville with alcohol and guns in their van. Officers located and followed the van because of the dispatched information.

The van was…