PEOPLE v. DEVANCE SAUNDERS
Filed 6/29/06 (This opn. should follow companion case of P. v. Brendlin, also filed 6/29/06.)
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF CALIFORNIA
)
v. )
Defendant and Appellant. ) Super. Ct. No. CC246493
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May a peace officer order a traffic stop to investigate possible Vehicle Code violations when the vehicle's front license plate is missing and the registration tabs on the rear license plate have expired but the vehicle's rear window displays what appears to be a current temporary operating permit? We conclude that such an investigative stop does not run afoul of the Fourth Amendment, at least when the officer has no other ready means of verifying the vehicle's compliance with the law. We therefore affirm the judgment of the Court of Appeal.
Background
Defendant Devance Saunders appeals the denial of his motion to suppress evidence (Pen. Code, § 1538.5, subd. (i)) after having pleaded guilty to carrying a concealed weapon (id., § 12025, subd. (a)(2)), carrying a loaded firearm (id., § 12031, subd. (a)(2)), and being a felon in possession of a firearm (id., § 12021, subd. (a)) and ammunition (id., § 12316, subd. (b)). The following uncontradicted facts are taken largely from the Court of Appeal opinion in this case.
On March 31, 2002, San Jose Police Officers Mark Womack, Brian Simuro, and Javier Acosta were in an unmarked car near Club Rodeo on Coleman Avenue in San Jose. They were patrolling a gathering of motorcycle clubs engaged in an annual ritual called a â€
