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car lights as the vehicle stopped. When the driver got out and began walking toward the house, the officer told
her to stop and come back to the vehicle. A command, given by a uniformed officer while his patrol lights were
operating, would be understood by reasonable persons to mean that they were not free to leave or refuse the
officer s order.

Since the encounter was not consensual, the defendant was entitled to Fourth Amendment protections. A
brief investigatory stop of a vehicle is prohibited unless it is based on reasonable suspicion. It is not necessary
for an officer to rely on personal observation in order to make a stop. An informants tip may provide reasonable
suspicion or probable cause if it contains sufficient indicia of reliability. By itself, an anonymous telephone
call rarely will provide sufficient suspicion because it cannot be determined how the informant came by the
information or whether the informant is truthful. Although there was some conflict in the testimony at the
suppression hearing about the point, it was determined that, at the time the tip was received, the informants
identity was unknown to police. Reasonable suspicion might be established in spite of a tip being anonymous
if it is suitably corroborated or otherwise exhibit[s] sufficient indicia of reliability. Generally, corroboration
of mere innocent details is insufficient to corroborate an anonymous tip. The color, make, and model of the
vehicle was corroborated, as was the road on which it was travelling and the approximate time it would be in that
location. The officer also determined, as the informant said, that two women were riding in the Blazer. However,
corroboration of innocent details that could be obtained easily when the tip was provided will not lend support
to the tip.

None of these facts, even if verified, indicated that the women were engaged in criminal activity. The
State argued that other details were found to be true, and that corroboration of those facts supplied the necessary
indicia of reliability. None of those facts were known at the time of the seizure, though. Facts not known to be
true at the time the officer detained the citizen cannot corroborate a tip.

The encounter between the officer and the two suspects was not consensual and at least reasonable
suspicion was required to support it. Because the anonymous tip on which the officer acted was not shown to be
reliable, by corroboration or otherwise, and because no independent reason existed to suspect criminal activity,
the detention was unlawful and the suppression motion was properly granted.

State v. Wilson, 2011 WL 923954 (Tex. App. Texarkana).

SEARCH AND SEIZURE VEHICLE IMPROPERLY PARKED ON SHOULDER OF HIGHWAY IN
A DARK RESIDENTIAL AREA WITH PARKING LIGHTS ON JUSTIFIED COMMUNITY
CARETAKING FUNCTION STOP.

Two sheriff s deputies saw the defendant sitting in his truck late at night, parked on the side of the
highway with the parking lights on. They decided to approach defendants truck to make sure he was
okay. The officers found the defendant sitting in the truck wearing only a blue tank top and his underwear.
He said he was okay, but the deputies saw an open alcohol container in the vehicle and a twelvepack of beer on
the floorboard. When asked for identification and insurance, the defendant produced only an expired
identification card and a pizza coupon.

After he was removed from the vehicle and told to sit on the tailgate of the truck, the defendant claimed
he was an undercover agent for the Texas Rangers, and his credentials were inside the vehicle. He gave the
deputies permission to retrieve these credentials. Inside the cab, one of the officers saw a large knife on the
floorboard, but no credentials were found. The defendant was arrested for impersonating a public servant and
possessing an unlawful weapon. In an inventory of the contents of the truck, officers moved a pair of trousers
on the seat and a baggie of marijuana fell out. A charge of possession of a controlled substance was added to the

A Peace Officer’s Guide to Texas Law 13 2013 Edition