Taylor v. State, 49A02-9309-CR-522
| Citation | 639 N.E.2d 1052 |
| Case Date | September 13, 1994 |
| Court | Court of Appeals of Indiana |
Page 1052
v.
STATE of Indiana, Appellee-Plaintiff.
Second District.
Steven R. Jacobs, Indianapolis, for appellant.
Pamela Carter, Atty. Gen., Jodi Kathryn Rowe, Deputy Atty. Gen., Indianapolis, for appellee.
Page 1053
KIRSCH, Judge.
Appellant-Defendant Joseph Taylor appeals his conviction of Auto Theft, a Class D felony. 1 He presents a single issue for review which we restate as follows: Did an investigatory stop violate Taylor's rights against unreasonable search and seizure protected by Article I, § 11 of the Indiana Constitution and the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution?
We affirm.
The facts most favorable to the trial court's decision are as follows: On January 15, 1993, Indianapolis police officer Christopher Smith was on routine patrol. He observed a van which he believed to contain a single occupant. The van was parked by a boat ramp off the roadway. Officer Smith approached the van in his patrol car. As he approached, the van started up and began to drive away. Officer Smith noticed that the van had a broken vent window. He then activated his overhead lights to stop the vehicle. A radio check disclosed that the van had been reported stolen. The defendant was arrested and convicted of auto theft.
Article I, § 11 of the Indiana Constitution is the starting point of our analysis. It provides:
"Unreasonable search or seizure.--The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable search, or seizure, shall not be violated; and no warrant shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the person or thing to be seized."
We commence our analysis under the Indiana Constitution even though the State search and seizure provision is similar to its Federal analogue, the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution, and even though federal law interpreting that amendment is well-developed.
Indiana courts have the responsibility of independent constitutional analysis. Cooper v. State (1989), Ind., 540 N.E.2d 1216, 1217. This enables the Indiana Constitution to carry out its policies and to protect its citizens. In carrying out this responsibility, our courts should decide such issues independently of federal law. Decisions of the United States Supreme Court and other federal courts construing similar federal constitutional provisions may be persuasive, but Indiana courts should grant neither deference, nor precedential status, to such cases when interpreting provisions of our own constitution.
Indiana's decision to apply federal constitutional interpretations to state constitutional provisions must be made on a case-by-case basis. In the event Indiana courts interpret our constitutional provisions consistent with federal interpretation, the decision is one of Indiana law. As such, it remains unchanged by subsequent...
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Martin v. Richey, 53A04-9603-CV-104
...analyzing state constitutional issues, Indiana courts have the responsibility of independent constitutional analysis. Taylor v. State, 639 N.E.2d 1052, 1053 (Ind.Ct.App.1994) (citing Cooper v. State, 540 N.E.2d 1216, 1217 (Ind.1989)). This is so because the protections provided by the India......
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Kenner v. State, 49A04-9802-CR-89
...has adopted the Terry rationale in determining the legality of investigatory stops under Indiana's constitution. Taylor v. State, 639 N.E.2d 1052, 1054 (Ind.Ct.App.1994). In Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 88 S.Ct. 1868, 20 L.Ed.2d 889 (1968), the United States Supreme Court established the rule......
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State v. Gerschoffer, 71A05-0003-CR-116.
...grant neither deference, nor precedential status to such cases when interpreting provisions of our own constitution." Taylor v. State, 639 N.E.2d 1052, 1053 (Ind.Ct.App. 1994). In sum, Indiana courts have the responsibility of independent constitutional analysis. Questions arising under the......
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Baldwin v. Reagan, 32S00-9812-CV-767.
...analysis, examined the question of whether a brief police detention of an individual violated art. I, § 11. Taylor v. State, 639 N.E.2d 1052, 1054 (Ind.Ct.App.1994). As we were to do in Brown, Judge Kirsch found that the constitutional provision required the detention to be reasonable. He w......