I actually think you dropped it on accident do you throw it on the ground I throw nothing on the ground I promise you I did this is a camera OK I didn't throw nothing on the ground I promise you didn't see me throw nothing yes I did you got any coke no no I don't have nothing no OK I'll just go I'll just go to my sister's house um she had coke on her OK so she's going to jail for that is cause the coke she threw was right there in the grass on August 24th 2,023 Trooper Lucky of the Indiana State Police conducted a traffic stop that escalated through four distinct criminal charges before the encounter ended inside a hospital this analysis examines the constitutional and statutory framework governing each phase passenger detention constructive drug possession physical resistance and battery on a law enforcement officer separating the passenger from the vehicle was lawful without additional justification in Maryland versus Wilson The Supreme Court held in 1997 that officers may order any passenger out of a vehicle during a lawful stop on officer safety grounds alone that authority traces back to Pennsylvania versus Mims and requires no individualized suspicion Latonya's spontaneous disclosure of a prior failure to appear in active probation status was fully admissible Miranda versus Arizona applies only to custodial interrogation a passenger detained roadside not yet under formal arrest who volunteers self incriminating information has no Miranda Protection over those statements the controlling legal issue is constructive possession under Indiana Code section 35 48 4 6 the statute criminalizes knowing or intentional possession of cocaine as a Level 6 felony at baseline elevating to Level 5 at 5 grams and Level 4 at 10 grams Indiana courts interpret possession to include both actual and constructive control constructive possession requires the state to prove the defendant had the intent and capability to maintain dominion and control over the contraband throwing cocaine out of a vehicle in direct view of an officer does not defeat that element it establishes it under Illinois versus Kabala's the observed discard also provided stand alone probable cause for arrest and vehicle search independent of the original DUI basis for the stop from a defense standpoint the constructive possession challenge collapses when the officer is a direct eyewitness to the discard the argument that the narcotics belong to someone else fails against that testimony the discard simultaneously confirmed possession and forfeited any Fourth Amendment suppression argument the defense would otherwise have raised physical resistance during the handcuffing sequence triggers Indiana Code section 35 44.131 base resisting is a class a misdemeanor it becomes a Level 6 felony when the subject uses or threatens force The Indiana Supreme Court clarified in Poquette versus state that only one resisting conviction may arise from a single continuous act a relevant in sentencing limitation if multiple counts are filed the trooper's use of force is governed by Graham versus Conner decided by the Supreme Court in 1989 objective reasonableness is assessed from the officer's perspective at the moment not in hindsight the 3 g factors crime severity immediate threat and active resistance all favored escalation soft empty hand control progressing to head stabilization when a bite was alleged remains within the proportionate range under that standard the biting allegation introduces Indiana Code Section 35 44.126 Battery on a law enforcement officer a level 6 felony at minimum it elevates to Level 5 if the contact results in bodily injury a bite that breaks skin meets that threshold the evidentiary outcome depends entirely on injury photographs and camera footage not on the on camera denial which creates a factual dispute but does not neutralize physical evidence at the hospital Latonya demanded access to a psychiatrist no constitutional provision guarantees immediate access to a mental health professional during custody processing the operative standard is Estelle versus gamble from 1976 deliberate indifference to serious medical needs constitutes an Eighth Amendment violation the trooper's EMS call out and hospital transport satisfied that obligation when Latonya verbally invoked her right to an attorney the trooper ordered transport rather than continuing questioning the correct response under Miranda Trooper Lucky receives a B+ the stop separation EMS call out and use of force continuum were all legally defensible de escalation was verbalized before each physical escalation and no weapons were deployed despite active resistance and a biting allegation two procedural gaps prevent a higher grade transporting by patrol vehicle despite a credible cardiac complaint and absence of a clearly audible Miranda advisement in available footage prior to formal arrest Latonia receives a C the cocaine discard was the single most legally destructive act of the encounter it confirmed possession and eliminated most viable suppression argument simultaneously each subsequent choice compounded the exposure resistance added a felony charge the bite allegation added a potential level 5 charge silence and physical compliance after the initial stop would have preserved every legal remedy available to her the driver receives a B cooperation was appropriate throughout but consenting to a vehicle search while a passenger was detained for narcotics possession surrendered a meaningful Fourth Amendment challenge without evidentiary benefit first takeaway discarding contraband in Plain View does not defeat possession it proves it the observed discard satisfies the dominion and control element of constructive possession and forfeits the suppression argument that would have been the defense's strongest avenue second resistance during a lawful detention is never legally neutral every act of noncompliance is independently chargeable compliance under protest followed by a legal challenge in court is always the superior strategic choice third once a battery allegation is documented on body cam a verbal denial is not a defense the outcome belongs to physical evidence photographs medical records and camera footage that evidentiary record is established at the scene not in the courtroom let us know if there is an interaction or legal topic that you would like us to discuss in the comments below thank you for watching and don't forget to subscribe to our channel for more content on police court interactions what's your name ma'am Latonya Latonya I'm Trooper Lucky with the Indiana State Police he he explained why we stopped you guys right uh huh OK OK gotcha I was just looking at this picture here I thought maybe it didn't quite look like you that's me that's me what's the last four okay I appreciate you we'll be right back with you okay I'll have you come back here okay if you want to sit on the curb you can I'm told cause I get I'll get stiff haha you what I'll get stiff be hard for me to get up OK that's all OK you're good now I just got out of out of for what um um failure to appear for what yeah probation uh huh come on why oh no that's why I got no warts I don't have no warts Tim what's wrong stop I don't have no warts stop I'll talk to you in a second I don't have no warts I didn't do nothing no I did no I didn't let go let go I don't have anything that wasn't me hey ma'am if you resist me I'm gonna charge you with resisting arrest I'm sorry that was not me I promise I didn't do anything stop resisting him stop that wasn't me I haven't done anything please stop we're not we're not going anywhere until you calm down okay I've been doing everything if you if you calm down I'll talk to you okay is that fair is that fair okay alright so I promise so right now I want you to relax your arms relax your arms okay don't tense up on me again okay I want you to spread your feet okay and I want you to relax your arms okay alright just like this don't don't don't pull away from me again okay alright let your arms go touch the back of your hands together ma'am touch the back of your hands together like stop yep exactly there you go you're good okay don't move okay you're just being detained we'll figure it out don't worry you got any more on you no that's not mine that don't belong to me that's not mine I promise you that stop moving that's not mine I promise you watch do you throw it on the ground I throw nothing on the ground I promise you I did this is a camera OK I didn't throw nothing on the ground I promise you didn't see me throw nothing yes I did no you didn't you're telling a story you didn't get me so nothing that was not mine I stood right there you didn't get me so nothing in the ground I wouldn't if I thought it I wouldn't I wouldn't throw it in front of you I actually think you dropped it on accident I don't have nothing I don't do that oh my mama that's not mine hey you you got any coke no no I don't have nothing no OK I'll just go I'll just go to my sister's house um she had coke on her OK so she's going to jail for that um is there any more in the car no I just picked her up she just got in right there on the 15th okay who does the car belong to that's that's my car okay um can I search it yeah I mean yeah I don't have nothing in my car okay just stay here for a second the reason why I wanted you to sit over here not on the curb OK is cause the coke she threw was right there in the grass I just didn't want you near it so that way there's no miscommunication OK yup yup OK good deal that's not mine OK that's not mine I appreciate it that's not mine sir that's not mine can you move her actually I'll just come over that's not mine I don't have any that's not mine your phone's in the purse I'm giving you a chance to be honest before I search your purse if there's more in here I'm not willing to work with you but if you're honest I will work with you I know I'm gonna find some coke or something in there so tell me what I'm gonna find I'll be honest and I'll work with you that's not mine don't lock me up OK there's nothing in there there's nothing in there OK nothing nothing that's not mine do you have a medical condition we should know about ma'am yes what do you have I have fail your heart so Justin fail your heart yes I do okay do you need to see a doctor right now yes yes yes I'm sweating bullets do you want EMS to come here yes okay 13 2:55 that's not mine can I have my asthma please I gotta tell the ambulance uh what don't mind that does not belong to me hey stop moving your arms when she's trying to search you I don't have anything is she letting you search yeah that's all I have is a lighter that's it yeah that's all I have nothing you got more coke no is that what you found yeah no he found no coke on me he haven't found no drugs on me I did no you did you said I dropped something I didn't drop nothing sir that's not mine that's not mine you're wrong and then you say stuff was on his seat that's not mine I just got in the car with him I promise you have you taken vitals on her I promise you cause if she doesn't need to be transported by you I can just transport her yes daddy I want to go to the hospital just bring me my property you're okay you're okay if I take you to the hospital no I want I'm gonna go with them let this baby my problem but you're wrong you're accusing me of something I'll take that you're wrong that's not nothing nothing nothing nothing nothing nothing I'm just saying he's coming out OK hey listen to me listen to me you're wrong I'm wrong this officer right here is going to transport you to the hospital I don't have anything OK I'm a cop that's what I'm gonna say you're wrong you're accusing me sir hey hey I don't have anything that's not mine listen that's not me that's not mine I'm gonna transport you to the hospital OK that's not mine where was this at huh in my bra I keep a lighter in my bra I smoke cigarettes what's the paper call huh my paper in the car I'll be sweating sir ain't nothing in there I promise you I don't have no drugs I didn't have no drugs sir okay that's fine come on come on come on I have a right to talk to a therapist I want to talk to a therapist please before you take me let me talk to a therapist please there's no therapist a psychiatrist yes they are yes they are stop screaming please I'm not doing anything wrong people in this hospital are sick and you're you're I'm sick but y'all don't care nothing about me being sick people in this hospital are literally dying OK I'm dying too you're not dying I got heart failure you're perfectly fine no that's what they say they're perfect they'll tell y'all anything I want to talk to a psychiatrist I need to talk to a psychiatrist that you'll treat me at base or whatever on me and I want to talk to a psychiatrist keep your arms down keep your arms down okay I want to talk to the side there's kids in the hospital keep your arms down I want to talk to a psychiatrist please talk to a therapist please for one minute can I talk to a therapist stand up I want to talk to a therapist she just keeps putting them down I want to talk to a psychiatrist we're just not the force bro oh no you got braces my braces are really gonna be f*cked up stop for real I want to talk to a therapist alright can I talk to the forest it's a sunny day Missy ah it's a sunny day stand up I just want to talk to us I just want to talk to us you got my *ss up I want to talk to us let me pull my clothes stop it please let me put my phone just walk let me put my phone you hurt me you hurt me you hurt me you're abusing me you're abusing me you're abusing me okay you heard me alright come on you heard me I want to talk to you sorry I have a right to talk to a counselor please I have a right I have a right I have a right I have a right wait a minute I have a right hey she's bit me I didn't bit you stop I have a bite stop I didn't bite you yes you did I did not bite you I did not bite you I have a right to talk to a family I have a right I didn't bite you stop I have a right to talk to a family and I'm not feeling good y'all force me out of here I have a right I have a right I have a right I have a right I did not bite you I'm wrong I did nothing wrong I want to talk to a fairy I did nothing wrong hey y'all come in here tell me I'm fine stop I'm just doing this I'm not going nowhere you tell me I'm fine and I'm not fine I'm not fine sir I'm not please I'm saying I'm not fine stop moving your head I can't stop why why because you're biting why I'm not biting you take your hand off of my head take your hand off of my head please please take your hand off my head you ain't gonna take me like that OK don't bite that don't get off of me like that OK don't bite don't treat me like I'm a dog quit doing that that's what our police is do quit treating me like I'm a f*cking dog I am sick and y'all don't give a f*ck I want to talk to a doctor psychiatrist y'all don't give a f*ck that's what y'all do to black people treat us like sh*t everywhere we go y'all treat us like sh*t every time a police get involved it's about sh*t