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Blanks v. State

The officer had articulable suspicion to conduct a traffic stop of the defendant's vehicle after an anonymous 911 caller indicated that the driver was driving erratically, even though the officer did not personally witness any traffic violation.

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After a dispatcher informed an officer that a black Chevrolet Sonoma pickup truck had been seen speeding southbound on Peachtree Parkway but failed to relate other details from the 911 call, the officer performed a traffic stop without personally witnessing any traffic violations; the traffic stop ultimately led to Christopher Blanks’s arrest for driving under the influence. Following a bench trial based on stipulated evidence, Blanks was convicted of driving under the influence. On appeal, he contends the trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress evidence obtained during his traffic stop. We affirm.

On review of a ruling on a motion to suppress, the trial judge’s findings of fact should not be disturbed if there is any evidence to support them; determinations of fact and credibility must be accepted unless clearly erroneous; and the evidence must be construed in favor of the trial court’s findings and judgment. Tate v. State, 264 Ga. 53, 54 1 440 SE2d 646 1994; Jackson v. State, 258 Ga. App. 806, 807-808 2 575 SE2d 713 2002. In all cases, appellate courts independently apply the law to the facts. Drake v. State, 296 Ga. 286, 288 2 766 SE2d 447 2014 citation omitted.

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