United States v. Peggy Ann Jacobs

The government met its burden of demonstrating the reliability of the descriptions of the bank robber and the escape vehicle dispatched over the police radio. The declarations of the victim teller and the other eyewitness reflected no uncertainty regarding the descriptions they gave to the investigating officer who made the radio dispatch. In these circumstances, the government was not required to make an independent showing of the eyewitnesses’ reliability. See United States v. Hammond, 666 F.2d 435, 439 (9th Cir.1982).

A law enforcement officer may make an investigative stop of a suspicious individual to maintain the status quo while obtaining more information even though the officer lacks probable cause to arrest the individual. See Adams v. Williams, 407 U.S. 143, 145-46 , 92 S.Ct. 1921, 1922-23 , 32 L.Ed.2d 612 (1972); Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 22 , 88 S.Ct. 1868, 1880 , 20 L.Ed.2d 889 (1968). Such a stop requires only “founded suspicion.” United States v. Bautista, 684 F.2d 1286, 1288 (9th Cir.1982); Wilson v. Porter, 361 F.2d 412, 415 (9th Cir.1966). Deputy Boyett had adequate grounds for stopping defendant: (1) defendant’s vehicle fit the radio dispatched description of…