Case Number: 21-3316

Judge: RESTREPO, Circuit Judge

Court: UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT

Plaintiff's Attorney: Meaghan Flannery
Matthew T. Newcomer [Argued]
Jennifer A. Williams
OFFICE OF UNITED STATES ATTORNEY

Defendant's Attorney: Salvatore C. Adamo, Esq

Description: Law enforcement officers conduct traffic stops every
day. No matter how minor the apparent infraction, every traffic
stop must comply with the Fourth Amendment. It wraps every
person, and every traffic stop, with a cloak of constitutional
protection. The Fourth Amendment also permits the
consideration of officer safety when confronting a potentially
dangerous situation. Weighing those concerns, we must decide
whether the use of a criminal record check, lasting
approximately two minutes, can be an objectively reasonable
3
safety precaution related to the mission of the traffic stop under
Rodriguez v. United States, 575 U.S. 348 (2015) and the Fourth
Amendment.
It can. We therefore will reverse the District Court’s
grant of the suppression motion and remand for further
consideration.

This traffic stop, which lasted less than eight minutes in
its entirety, began like many others—with a police officer
spotting minor traffic violations.1
On December 12, 2018,
Pennsylvania State Trooper Galen Clemons stopped a rented
Chrysler 300 in Ridley Township, Pennsylvania. Neither the
reason for the stop nor the legality of the stop at its outset is
disputed. Clemons traveled alone—without a partner or backup—and approached the car to discover two occupants: the
driver, Jamar Hunter, and a front seat passenger, Deshaun
Davis.2 After Hunter and Davis provided identification, 1 The traffic violations included the following: (1) speeding
(traveling at fifty-eight miles per hour in a thirty-five miles per
hour zone); (2) changing lanes without signaling; and (3)
crossing over a solid line while changing lanes.
2 The District Court discredited Clemons’ testimony regarding
Hunter’s nervousness and Davis’ evasiveness, noting that “the
dashcam video fail[ed] to support his description.” J.A. 7 nn.3–
4. The District Court also found much of Clemons’ testimony
to be “generalized” and “exaggerated.” Id.
exercise plenary review on questions of law, the District
Court’s credibility findings merit deference. See Anderson v.
City of Bessemer City, N.C., 470 U.S. 564, 575 (1985)
4
Clemons returned to his patrol car to perform a routine license
and warrant check, also known as a “CLEAN N.C.I.C.” check.3

This check revealed that both men had valid driver’s licenses
and no outstanding arrest warrants. It is at this point that
Hunter alleges the mission of the traffic stop ended and
Clemons no longer had constitutional authority to prolong the
stop.
Immediately after the routine check, Clemons
performed an additional check that extended the traffic stop: a
computerized criminal history check, also known as a “Triple
I” check.4
He spent around five minutes conducting both
checks in his patrol car, with the Triple I check taking
approximately “a minute or two.” J.A. 254. This computerized
criminal history check revealed that both Hunter and the
passenger had significant criminal histories, including firearm
and drug trafficking convictions.
Armed with this information, Clemons returned to
Hunter’s car. The officer ordered Hunter out of the car so that
he could perform a Terry frisk, during which he discovered a
loaded Glock-45 semi-automatic handgun in Hunter’s
waistband. He immediately arrested Hunter. The entire traffic
stop lasted less than eight minutes.
(concluding that credibility determinations made by the trial
judge demand great deference).
3
“CLEAN N.C.I.C.” refers to Commonwealth Law
Enforcement Assistant Network National Crime Information
Center.

This traffic stop, which lasted less than eight minutes in
its entirety, began like many others—with a police officer
spotting minor traffic violations.1
On December 12, 2018,
Pennsylvania State Trooper Galen Clemons stopped a rented
Chrysler 300 in Ridley Township, Pennsylvania. Neither the
reason for the stop nor the legality of the stop at its outset is
disputed. Clemons traveled alone—without a partner or backup—and approached the car to discover two occupants: the
driver, Jamar Hunter, and a front seat passenger, Deshaun
Davis.2 After Hunter and Davis provided identification,
1 The traffic The traffic violations included the following: (1) speeding
(traveling at fifty-eight miles per hour in a thirty-five miles per
hour zone); (2) changing lanes without signaling; and (3)
crossing over a solid line while changing lanes.
2 The District Court discredited Clemons’ testimony regarding
Hunter’s nervousness and Davis’ evasiveness, noting that “the
dashcam video fail[ed] to support his description.” J.A. 7 nn.3–
4. The District Court also found much of Clemons’ testimony
to be “generalized” and “exaggerated.” Id. Although we
exercise plenary review on questions of law, the District
Court’s credibility findings merit deference. See Anderson v.
City of Bessemer City, N.C., 470 U.S. 564, 575 (1985)
4
Clemons returned to his patrol car to perform a routine license
and warrant check, also known as a “CLEAN N.C.I.C.” check.3

This check revealed that both men had valid driver’s licenses
and no outstanding arrest warrants. It is at this point that
Hunter alleges the mission of the traffic stop ended and
Clemons no longer had constitutional authority to prolong the
stop.
Immediately after the routine check, Clemons
performed an additional check that extended the traffic stop: a
computerized criminal history check, also known as a “Triple
I” check.4
He spent around five minutes conducting both
checks in his patrol car, with the Triple I check taking
approximately “a minute or two.” J.A. 254. This computerized
criminal history check revealed that both Hunter and the
passenger had significant criminal histories, including firearm
and drug trafficking convictions.
Armed with this information, Clemons returned to
Hunter’s car. The officer ordered Hunter out of the car so that
he could perform a Terry frisk, during which he discovered a
loaded Glock-45 semi-automatic handgun in Hunter’s
waistband. He immediately arrested Hunter. The entire traffic
stop lasted less than eight minutes.
(concluding that credibility determinations made by the trial
judge demand great deference).
3
“CLEAN N.C.I.C.” refers to Commonwealth Law
Enforcement Assistant Network National Crime Information
Center.
4
The Triple I check retrieves criminal records from the same
network as CLEAN N.C.I.C.

Outcome: My colleagues conclude that the District Court erred in
granting Hunter’s suppression motion here. Because that result
is consistent with, and required by, the Supreme Court’s
analysis in Rodriguez, I join my colleagues’ opinion despite the
concerns I have expressed.

Plaintiff's Experts:

Defendant's Experts:

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