Virginia v. David Lee Moore (553 U.S. 164)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided April 23, 2008 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 553 U.S. 164 · 128 S. Ct. 1598
- Decided
- April 23, 2008
- Term
- October Term 2007
- Vote
- 9–0
- Majority author
- Justice Scalia
- Issue area
- Criminal Procedure
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome
- Petitioning party won
- Ideological direction
- Conservative
Opinion excerpt
Justice Scalia delivered the opinion of the Court. We consider whether a police officer violates the Fourth Amendment by making an arrest based on probable cause but prohibited by state law. I On February 20, 2008, two city of Portsmouth police officers stopped a car driven by David Lee Moore. They had heard over the police radio that a person known as “Chubs” was driving with a suspended license, and one of the officers knew Moore by that nickname. The officers determined that Moore’s license was in fact suspended, and arrested him for the misdemeanor of driving on a suspended license, which is punishable under Virginia law by a year in jail and a $2,500 fine, Va. Code Ann. §§18.2-11 (Lexis 2004), 18.2-272 (Supp. 2007), 46.2-301(0 (2005). The officers subsequently searched Moore and found that he was carrying 16 grams of crack cocaine and $516 in cash. See 272 Va. 717, 636 S. E. 2d 395 (2006); 45 Va. App. 146, 609 S. E. 2d 74 (2005). Under state law, the officers should have issued Moore a summons instead of arresting him. Driving on a suspended license, like some other misdemeanors, is not an arrestable offense except as to those who “fail or refuse to discontinue” the violation, and those whom the officer reasonably believes to be likely to disregard a summons, or likely to harm themselves or others. Va. Code Ann. §19.2-74 (Lexis 2004). The intermediate appellate court…
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