Defendant was found guilty of driving under the influence of alcohol after a stipulated bench trial. On appeal, defendant argued that the trial court erred when it denied her motion to suppress evidence because the officer lacked a reasonable suspicion to stop her vehicle where a citizen’s tip that defendant was driving while intoxicated was not sufficiently detailed to be reliable and where the arresting officer's own observations of defendant’s driving did not give rise to a reasonable suspicion that defendant had committed a traffic violation. The appellate court disagreed and affirmed, finding that under the facts of the case the tip was sufficient because it was based on contemporaneous eyewitness observations of ongoing traffic violations and that the eyewitness reports were corroborated by the officer’s own observations of the defendant driving in an “odd” manner. (HARRIS and DOHERTY, concurring)
Illinois Appellate Court
Criminal Court
Motion to Suppress