Certification – 4th Amendment Violation – Reasonable Suspicion and Seizures

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WI Supreme Court

Case Name: State of Wisconsin v. Heather Jan VanBeek

Case No.: 2021 WI 51

Focus: Certification – 4^th Amendment Violation – Reasonable Suspicion and Seizures

This case is before us on certification from the court of appeals pursuant to Wis. Stat. § (Rule) 809.61 (2019-20). The court of appeals certified the following question: “whether a consensual encounter becomes an unconstitutional seizure under the Fourth Amendment when an officer requests and takes an individual’s driver’s license to the officer’s squad car without reasonable suspicion.” Accordingly, we review the Circuit Court of Sheboygan County’s judgment of conviction of Heather VanBeek for possession of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia. VanBeek’s conviction arose from a search of her vehicle that she contends violated her right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures under the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

On the certified question, we conclude that the answer depends on the totality of circumstances surrounding an encounter. Further, while VanBeek was not seized when Officer Oetzel took her driver’s license to run a records check, VanBeek was seized when Oetzel returned to her vehicle, withheld her driver’s license and continued to question her and her passenger in order to hold her until a drug-sniff dog, i.e., the K9 unit, that he had requested arrived. Finally, we conclude that the seizure was unlawful because, based on the totality of circumstances, Oetzel did not have reasonable suspicion that VanBeek was engaged in criminal activity at the time he seized her. Accordingly, we reverse the circuit court’s judgment of conviction and remand with instruction to grant VanBeek’s motion to suppress.

Reversed and cause remanded

Concur: DALLET, J., filed a concurring opinion, in which ANN WALSH BRADLEY and KAROFSKY, JJ., joined.

Dissent: ZIEGLER, C.J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which REBECCA GRASSL BRADLEY and HAGEDORN, JJ., joined.

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Derek A Hawkins is Corporate Counsel, at Salesforce.