Douglas

Lathel Douglas, after being apprehended in Richmond carrying a loaded .380-caliber semiautomatic handgun, pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm (Pen. Code, § 29800) and admitted a prior prison commitment (§ 667.5, subd. (b)) in exchange for a lower term prison sentence. The issue on appeal is whether the weapon seized from him should have been suppressed as the fruit of an unconstitutional detention.

The People justify the detention on the ground Douglas was on post-release community supervision (PRCS) and therefore subject to a mandatory search condition. (§§ 3450, 3453, subd. (f), 3465.) Douglas claims this rationale does not apply because the police officer who stopped him did not have sufficient advance knowledge of his search condition to lawfully detain him. We conclude the officer’s knowledge gave him an “objectively reasonable belief’ Douglas was on PRCS. Since that belief also proved to be accurate, the detention was lawful and we affirm the judgment.

BACKGROUND

On May 19, 2013, Richmond Police Detective Miles Bailey was on duty with a special investigation division parole unit. One of Detective Bailey’s duties was to monitor individuals who…