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McNeil v. State

Defendant's consent to a weapons search included a search of the insides of his pants pockets.

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A judge, sitting without a jury, found Marcus McNeil guilty of possession of cocaine. He appeals, arguing that the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress cocaine discovered in his pants pocket during a search of his person for weapons. He admits that he consented to a search, but urges that the invasive search of his pocket exceeded his limited consent to a search for weapons. We disagree and affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Viewing the evidence in a light favorable to the trial court’s ruling, the record shows the following: In executing a warrant to search Robert McNeil’s home for drugs, police officers entered the home at about 9:30 p.m. and found six men, including the appellant, inside. The area in which the men were congregated was small and crowded. In order to protect themselves and to prevent the destruction of evidence, the officers handcuffed the men, told them they were not under arrest, and escorted them outside so that the house could be secured and searched. Two of the officers testified that, in their experience, where there is drug activity, there are also weapons.

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