Maryland v. Buie, 494 U.S.325 (1990)
On February 3, 1986 Jerome E. Buie and his accomplice Lloyd Allen committed armed robbery to a pizza restaurant named Godfather’s in Prince’s George County in Maryland. Buie was wearing a red running suit, which is the key to this case. On that same day the police obtained a warrant for Buie and his accomplice. First they called Buie to check if he was home, a women answered and after that Buie himself. After verifying Buie was at his house, police proceeded to the arrest. Corporal James Rozar was the one who officially arrested Buie. He checked the basement and did the announce that the police was there, afterwards he saw a pair of hands and Buie emerge from the basement. After the arrest was made, Detective Joseph Frolich entered the basement “in case there was someone else” down there, he notice the same red running suit Buie was wearing at the time of the robbery in plain view and seize it. Buie argue that the suit could not be use in court as evidence because it was seized with out a warrant, but the Court said that it was legal and used it in the trial. Buie was convicted of a felony for armed robbery with deadly weapon.
However the Court of Appeals stated the denial to suppressed the motion, in other words they were the ones who said “no, using the red running suit is legal” to support this they said that Detective Frolich did not go into the basement in search of weapons, but for his security and the others, he looked into the basement to search for any other persons who might be hiding, and could be dangerous or pose a threat to the officers, it was casualty that he found the red running suit in plain view, or what I think “stupid Buie he should of thrown away any evidence or at least hid it, but not leave it in plain view”.
The Court also stated that the government or the police must show that there is probable cause to believe there is a serious and demonstrable danger, in order to justify a protective sweep...