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AN ANONYMOUS RADIO TRANSMISSION PROVIDED THE COLOR, MAKE, LOCATION AND LICENSE PLATE NUMBER OF A CAR WHICH WAS ALLEGED TO HAVE BEEN CARJACKED; THE POLICE OFFICERS FORCIBLY STOPPED THE CAR BEFORE VERIFYING THE LICENSE PLATE NUMBER; THE POLICE DID NOT HAVE “REASONABLE SUSPICION” AT THE TIME OF THE STOP (FIRST DEPT). ​

The First Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined that the forcible stop of the vehicle defendant was driving was not supported by “reasonable suspicion.” The stop was based upon an anonymous radio transmission. The transmission provided the color, make, license plate number and location of a vehicle which had been carjacked. The police saw a vehicle matching the description in a parking lot but did not verify the license plate number until after the forcible stop:

… [T]he arresting officer testified that at approximately 12:30 a.m. on June 30, 2016, he and his partner received a radio transmission that a black Toyota with Pennsylvania license plate JCS1537 had been carjacked, the car was being tracked in real time, and its current location was near West 165th Street and Amsterdam Avenue in Manhattan. No evidence was presented as to the basis for the transmission or how the vehicle was being tracked. The officers responded to that location and saw a man standing by the trunk of a black Toyota with his hands by his waist in an open-air parking lot. A parking lot attendant confirmed that a black Toyota with Pennsylvania license plate had recently entered the lot. The officers then saw the black Toyota trying to exit. The officer stopped the car by drawing his gun, putting his hand up, and telling it to stop. The officer noticed that the Toyota had no front plate, which was not required in Pennsylvania, and a parking receipt on the windshield for the same license plate number as the stolen vehicle. * * *

The police officer’s testimony failed to provide any information that would have corroborated the anonymous radio transmission. Without knowing the source or nature of the tip with respect to either the carjacking report or the real-time tracking, the forcible stop was not justified by a reasonable suspicion … . The testimony that defendant was standing near the trunk of a black Toyota in a parking lot was not corroborative since such conduct was neither unlawful nor suspicious. The officer’s testimony indicated that he only noticed the lack of the front license plate and parking receipt reflecting a matching license number with the carjacked vehicle after he had already forcibly stopped defendant. Thus, this corroborating information cannot justify the officer’s actions … . People v Martinez-Jaquez, 2026 NY Slip Op 02045, First Dept 4-2-26

Practice Point: Consult this decision for insight into the corroboration required before the police can act on an anonymous tip.

 

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