UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. JARON HOWARD MORGAN - Articles

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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. JARON HOWARD MORGAN

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Jun 26, 2023

Court: 6th Circuit Court (Published Opinions)

Attorneys 1: ON BRIEF: Scott Graham, SCOTT GRAHAM PLLC, Portage, Michigan, for Appellant.

Attorneys 2: ON BRIEF: Erin K. Lane, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY’S OFFICE, Grand Rapids, Michigan, for Appellee.

Judge(s): SUTTON, Chief Judge; BATCHELDER and STRANCH, Circuit Judges

Court Appealed: United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan at Grand Rapids

SUTTON, Chief Judge. Early on a February morning in Lansing, Michigan, an officer noticed a man, later determined to be Jaron Morgan, seemingly passed out at the wheel of a stopped, still running, car. Without knocking on the car door, shining a flashlight into the car, or otherwise trying to arouse Morgan, the officer opened the car door and asked Morgan whether everything was okay. Morgan was groggy, and the officer asked for his identification. An altercation ensued. The officer arrested Morgan and found a firearm in the car and drugs on him, prompting a criminal indictment. The district court denied Morgan’s motion to suppress under the Fourth Amendment based on the community-caretaking doctrine, Morgan conditionally pleaded guilty, and the court sentenced him to 204 months. We reverse the district court’s denial of the motion to suppress.

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