Youngstown Daily Legal News

Court finds traffic stop was not racial profiling

JESSICA SHAMBAUGH
Special to the Legal News
Published: April 30, 2014

The 3rd District Court of Appeals recently rejected a man’s claims that his traffic stop was a product of racial profiling.

In the opinion released recently, the three-judge appellate panel affirmed a Hancock County Court of Common Pleas finding that an Ohio State Highway Patrol sergeant had proper cause for stopping Marcus Coleman on U.S. Interstate 75.

The stop occurred in the early morning hours of Oct. 13, 2012, after Sgt. Kurt Beidelschies saw Coleman pass a vehicle without using a turn signal and then pull in front of that vehicle, again without a turn signal, forcing the vehicle to engage its brakes.

When Beidelschies told Coleman why he stopped him, he said Coleman responded “Sorry about that” while appearing “overly nervous.”

Beidelschies also described Coleman’s vehicle has having “an absolutely overwhelming odor of deodorizer.”

Coleman provided Beidelschies with a Tennessee ID card with his photo but the name Timothy Phelps and a rental agreement for the car in the name of Rodney Summers.

The rental agreement stated that the car was rented the day prior to the stop and Summers was the only authorized operator.

Coleman admitted that the Tennessee ID was invalid and accompanied Beidelschies to his cruiser to determine if he had a valid driver’s license.

A search showed that “Timothy Phelps” did not have a valid driver’s license and Beidelschies explained that he was going to tow the vehicle and issue a citation for driving without a license.

When he conducted an administrative search of the vehicle prior to towing, Beidelschies recovered 10 plastic bags containing yellow ecstasy pills.

He then arrested Coleman for possession of drugs.

Prior to trial, Coleman filed a motion to suppress.

The motion asserted that the traffic stop was based on racial profiling and the trooper lacked a warrant to search his car or proper justification for the stop.

The trial court held a suppression hearing and denied the motion.

Coleman pleaded no contest and was found guilty of aggravated possession of drugs.

The court sentenced him to nine years in prison and he appealed, again asserting that evidence against him should be suppressed because it was obtained during a traffic stop that was conducted based on racial profiling.

“Although Coleman acknowledges that ‘the trial court’s findings of fact regarding the stop ... mirrored Sgt. Beidelschies’ testimony,’ Coleman asserts that had the trial court more carefully reviewed the testimony, it would have discovered inconsistencies in Beidelschies’ testimony,” case summary states.

Upon review, the appellate judges determined that the trial court’s findings of fact tracked Beidelschies’ testimony and were therefore supported by proper evidence.

Coleman, however, argued that all of the trooper’s actions would have been shown by video footage but the trooper claimed he “had difficulty with his video camera.”

The 3rd District judges found that Beidelschies testified that the video system was down at the time of the traffic stop and they ruled that it was within the trial court’s discretion to determine credibility on the matter.

“Regardless, it is speculative to say that the video, even if created, would have caught the traffic violation, because Beidelschies testified that it occurred after Coleman passed his cruiser,” Judge Vernon Preston wrote for the court.

Coleman also contended that Beidelschies’ testimony in which he said he abruptly changed lanes and cut off another motorist was not plausible because he “would not have been foolish enough to commit a traffic offense in Beidelschies’ presence.”

The judges also rejected that line of argument.

“If this court were to catalogue the various foolish missteps of the convicted criminals appearing before it, much ink would be wasted,” Preston stated.

Coleman finally argued that he was stopped because he is black and the traffic violation was simply pretext.

The appellate judges ruled that the argument was without merit because the trooper involved gave a proper reason to conduct a traffic stop.

After overruling all assignments of error, the appellate judges affirmed the lower court’s ruling.

Presiding Judge John Willamowski and Judge Stephen Shaw concurred.

The case is cited State v. Coleman, 2014-Ohio-1483.

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