United States v. Williams

Police responded to an anonymous 911 call reporting a group of 25 people acting loudly and displaying hand guns in a parking lot, but actually found a smaller group of individuals, none of whom appeared to be acting inappropriately. The officers approached the group, which had begun to disperse slowly. For no apparent reason, an officer singled out Williams and performed a frisk. Williams began to resist and tried to escape, but was ultimately restrained. Officers searched his body and found a handgun and several ‘ecstasy’ pills. The district judge denied a motion to suppress and Williams pled guilty to possession of a firearm as a convicted felon, reserving his right to appeal. The district judge applied two sentencing enhancements, which significantly increased William’s offense level and applicable range of imprisonment. The Seventh Circuit vacated the conviction, finding that the search was unlawful. View "United States v. Williams" on Justia Law