Terry Stops
ICT 710 – Dr. Tharp
CBT
Seth Lovitz
History of the Terry
Stop
The Terry Stop originates from the 1968 Supreme Court case of Terry V. Ohio.
Terry appealed his conviction, stating the stop from the officer was
unconstitutional since it had no probable cause (Terry was found with a firearm
where the officer suspected a possible crime was in progress).
The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the officer and thus started the precedent
that a temporary stop and frisk is not considered a search and seizure under the
4th Amendment.
Definition of a Terry
Stop
A lawful and temporary stop where the police officer believes
a crime is about to be committed or has been committed.
No probable cause is needed – just reasonable suspicion (acquired
from said police officer’s training and experience).
Officer may only investigate the area of direct control of the suspect.
Immediate Area
The police officer initiating the Terry stop may only perform a search of the
immediate area of the suspect.
These areas include, but are not limited to, the outer layer of clothing, the
glove box of a stopped vehicle, or the ground nearby the suspect.
The police officer may not manipulate the outer layer of clothing on a suspect
to further determine the contents of a pocket.
More Information
The Terry v. Ohio case was a landmark case and while it was pretty cut and
dry in the decision it left some room for interpretation. In the following years the
U.S. struggled to make certain decisions as far as if certain Terry stops were
legal or not. To do this the courts turned to the actual transcripts of the court
case, found below.
Terry v. Ohio Transcripts
Quiz Time
1) What is the one element a police officer needs to perform a Terry Stop?
A) Probable Cause
B) Reasonable Suspicion
C) Due Process
D) Obvious Concern
Quiz Time
2) Where may a police officer, initiating a Terry Stop, search?
A) The immediate area of the suspect
B) The glove box of the stopped vehicle
C) The outer layer of clothing on the suspect
D) All of the Above
Quiz Time Answers
1) What is the one element a police officer needs to perform a Terry Stop?
B) Reasonable Suspicion.
2) Where may a police officer, initiating a Terry Stop, search?
D) All of the Above