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In the case of Smith v. State of Florida, the District Court ruled as follows: The Appellate Court reversed the trial court's denial of defendant's motion to suppress in a matter involving possession of cocaine and misdemeanor possession of cannabis. The officer observed an SUV parked in front of a vacant lot in a residential area at about 2:30 a.m. with its lights off and someone seated in the driver's seat. Though the police officer observed no illegal activity, the police officer turned on his overhead emergency lights, lit up the interior of the SUV with his spotlight, & approached the SUV to check it out. On nearing the car, the police officer smelled marijuana and then saw contraband while talking to the driver, which led to the defendant's arrest. The District Court held that given the totality of the circumstances, the police officer "seized" defendant at what time the officer parked "catty corner" to the defendant's automobile, activated his emergency overhead lights, & used a spotlight to illuminate the defendant's SUV. Since the officer had no reasonable suspicion to "seize" defendant before the police officer smelled the odor of the marijuana, the Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed the denial of the motion to suppress and remanded the matter to vacate defendant's convictions.  This case summary is provided by criminal defense attorneys Michael Dye and Daniel Rosenberg. For more information, please visit the firms' websites by clicking on the following links. For Michael Dye: criminal lawyer For Daniel Rosenberg: broward criminal attorney
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