State v. Mincher

The trial court properly granted the defendant's motion to suppress evidence garnered as a result of a traffic stop for making an illegal right turn, as the stop was unreasonable and not based on the observation of a traffic offense.

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Rachel Mincher was charged by accusation with DUI per se under 21, DUI less safe, and making an improper right turn. Mincher filed a motion to suppress, challenging the lawfulness of the traffic stop, which the trial court granted. The State now appeals, arguing that the trial court erred in finding that the arresting officer had no reasonable articulable suspicion to justify the traffic stop. For the reasons set forth infra , we affirm. Construing the evidence to uphold the trial court’s findings and judgment,1 the record shows that around 4:30 a.m. on December 19, 2010, Mincher and a friend were traveling in Mincher’s vehicle in the right lane of Highway 278 near Rockmart, when they approached the intersection with Highway 113.2 As Mincher’s vehicle arrived at the intersection, the traffic light facing her was red, and Mincher stopped her vehicle several feet before the actual stop line.

While waiting for the traffic light to turn green, Mincher realized that her vehicle was nearly out of gas; and noticing a gas station several hundred yards off to the right on Highway 113, she decided to turn right at the intersection despite not being in the dedicated turn lane. But before doing so, Mincher turned on her right turn signal, looked back over her right shoulder to make sure that no other vehicle was approaching in the right turn lane, and then turned right onto Highway 113. At that same moment, a Rockmart police officer, who had been traveling in the same direction on Highway 278 and who had also stopped at the same intersection, saw Mincher’s vehicle and decided to initiate a traffic stop for what he believed was an illegal right turn. Consequently, the officer turned right onto Highway 113 to follow Mincher and turned on his blue lights just as she was pulling into the gas station.

State v. Mincher

The trial court properly granted the defendant's motion to suppress evidence garnered as a result of a traffic stop for making an illegal right turn, as the stop was unreasonable and not based on the observation of a traffic offense.

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