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Salim Hamlettv.The State

CourtCourt of Appeals of Georgia
Docket No.A13A0474
DecidedJuly 16, 2013
JudgesCourt of Appeals of Georgia
Tags
CriminalCriminal ProcedureFourth AmendmentSearch and SeizureSearch WarrantProbable CauseTraffic StopMotion to SuppressReversalDissent
Case Summary

Salim Hamlett and his brother Jalim were convicted after a joint trial for burglary and possession of tools for a crime. Salim, who was a passenger in Jalim’s truck, challenged the denial of their joint suppression motion and their post-trial motions. Before the traffic stop, police had secretly installed a GPS device on Jalim’s truck and monitored it continuously for more than two weeks under a Cobb County order. The Georgia Court of Appeals held that the GPS operation was a Fourth Amendment search and that the affidavit did not establish probable cause connecting Jalim, the truck, and the suspected burglaries. The officers used the GPS information to identify and stop the truck; the court therefore held that evidence obtained through that sequence had to be suppressed. Because Salim was seized as a passenger, he could challenge the constitutionality of the stop even though he did not own the truck. The court reversed the burglary and possession-of-tools convictions of both brothers. It affirmed Jalim’s separate misdemeanor traffic convictions, which were supported independently by the covered tag and defective brake lights. The court also rejected or did not need to reach the remaining post-trial claims in light of the suppression ruling. Judges Andrews, Dillard, and Ray dissented, finding probable cause and a lawful investigation.

Opinion

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