People v. Price

OPINION OF THE COURT

Jasen, J.

The issue raised by this appeal, one of first impression in New York, is whether the use of a trained dog to indicate the presence of a controlled substance in a passenger’s luggage constitutes a search within the purview of the Fourth Amendment. We hold that it does not.

Defendant Leonard Price and his codefendant, Carl Parsons, arrived at the Los Angeles airport shortly after midnight, Los Angeles time, on January 12, 1979. Detective Kaiser of the Los Angeles Police Department, who was assigned to patrol the airport that evening, observed that both men were…