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76 U. Cin. L. Rev. 323 (2007-2008)
Requiring Independent Police Corroboration of Anonymous Tips Reporting Drunk Drivers: How Several State Courts Are Endangering the Safety of Motorists

handle is hein.journals/ucinlr76 and id is 331 raw text is: REQUIRING INDEPENDENT POLICE CORROBORATION OF ANONYMOUS TIPS REPORTING DRUNK DRIVERS: HOW SEVERAL STATE COURTS ARE ENDANGERING THE SAFETY OF MOTORISTS Denise N. Trauth, M.S.. * I. INTRODUCTION Since the United States Supreme Court decided Terry v. Ohio, police officers have had the legal authority to make investigatory stops, provided that the officers' suspicions prompting the stops were supported by some specific, articulable facts that were reasonably consistent with criminal activity.1 Many jurisdictions have allowed anonymous tips to satisfy the reasonable suspicion requirement, as long as some indicia of reliability supported the tips.2 Although the United States Supreme Court declined to adopt a blanket firearm exception to the requirement of independent police corroboration of criminal activity,3 many state courts4 and the Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit5 have held that officers' corroborations of non-criminal details in anonymous tips reporting erratic or drunk driving can sufficiently justify investigatory stops of vehicles even if officers have not personally observed criminal activity or traffic violations.6 Some states, on the other hand, have held that anonymous tips about drunk or erratic driving are insufficient without officer corroboration of criminal activity or * Associate Member, 2006-2007 University of Cincinnati Law Review. The author would like to thank her parents for their support and encouragement, and Professor Christo Lassiter for his guidance on this topic. 1. 392 U.S. 1, 8-9 (1968). 2. See generally People v. Wells, 136 P.3d 810, 811-16 (Cal. 2006); State v. Myhre, 124 P.3d 126, 128-32 (Mont. 2005); State v. Prendergast, 83 P.3d 714, 715-24 (Haw. 2004); Bloomingdale v. State, 842 A.2d 1212, 1213-22 (Del. 2004); State v. Golotta, 837 A.2d 359, 361-72 (N.J. 2003); State v. Crawford, 67 P.3d 115, 116-20 (Kan. 2003); State v. Rutzinski, 623 N.W.2d 516, 518-28 (Wis. 2001); State v. Walshire, 634 N.W.2d 625, 625-29 (Iowa 2001); State v. Boyea, 765 A.2d 862, 862-77 (Vt. 2000). 3. Florida v. J.L., 529 U.S. 266, 272-74 (2000). In J.L., the state of Florida urged the Court to adopt an exception to the reliability analysis when anonymous tipsters reported possession of firearms. Id. at 272. The Court opined that a firearm exception would allow unknown informants to harass others by instigating embarrassing police searches. Id. at 273. 4. See cases cited supra note 2. 5. United States v. Wheat, 278 F.3d 722, 724-38 (8th Cir. 2001). 6. See id.; cases cited supra note 2.

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