Alaska Employment Law

U. S. District Judge Timothy Burgess has accepted Magistrate Judge John Roberts’ recommendation to deny a criminal defendant’s request to suppress the results of a car search, relying on the Supreme Court’s recent opinion in Arizona v. Johnson, 129 S.Ct. 781 (2009).

Roberts reasoned:

Contrary to the argument of Mujahid the defendant’s expectation of privacy in his automobile was not compromised under the circumstances of this case by the relocation of the vehicle from the scene to the FBI building to conduct a search.

Under Arizona v. Johnson, 129 S.Ct. 781 (2009) the high court ruled that in a traffic stop the Fourth Amendment “seizure” of the occupants of the vehicle extends until the officer completes the purpose of the stop and informs the occupants that they are free to leave. In Johnson the court held that an officer’s inquiries into matters unrelated to the purpose of a traffic stop does not render the seizure “unreasonable” under the Fourth Amendment so long as the questioning does not measurably extend the duration of the stop. The search of Mujahid’s vehicle pursuant to the search warrant was not unreasonably extended in duration.

U.S. v. Mujahid, 2009 WL 1419157 D.Alaska May 12, 2009), adopted by U. S. v. Mujahid, 2009 WL 1419096 (D.Alaska May 20, 1009).  More details are available at 2009 WL 1419073 (D.Alaska May 4, 2009).