State v. Smith

Because I conclude that Officer Lewis’ actions in exceeding the permissible scope of a Terry search are not justified under the circumstances presented by the instant case, I respectfully dissent from the majority opinion. I would hold that, because Officer Lewis’ act of lifting defendant’s shirt without first performing a pat-down to ascertain the presence of a weapon constituted an unreasonable search, the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress.

The majority opinion agrees with both parties that Officer Lewis’ conduct extended beyond the scope of a permissible search pursuant to…