Anew decision by the Indiana Court of Appeals clarifies that police officers may need only minimum suspicion crime is afoot to deploy a drug-sniffing dog outside closed doors in a hotel hallway.
In a 3-0 ruling, the appellate court said hotel hallways are unlike the interior of individual hotel rooms, the outside and inside of private residences and even residential trash containers where Indiana courts previously have established police must have "reasonable suspicion" before conducting a drug dog sniff.
"Reasonable suspicion is not an absolute necessity for a dog sniff of a hotel room door. Instead, the degree of suspicion is just one factor to be considered under the general Litchfield balancing test," wrote Judge Nancy Vaidik, a Porter County native, for the appeals court.
Under the Supreme Court's 2005 Litchfield v. State precedent, the reasonableness of a search or seizure under the Indiana Constitution generally is determined by balancing three factors: the degree of concern, suspicion or knowledge a violation has occurred; the degree of intrusion the method of the search or seizure imposes on the citizen's ordinary activities; and the extent of law enforcement needs.
In this case, where the drug dog already alerted to an improperly plated vehicle in the hotel parking lot, and police officers linked the vehicle through investigation to individuals occupying a specific hotel room, police had at least a moderate degree of suspicion in the hotel room, the court said.
Coupled with the low degree of intrusion associated with a drug dog sniff of a hotel hallway — since hotel guests in their rooms likely won't even know it's happening — the appeals court concluded the dog sniff of a closed hotel room door did not violate the Indiana Constitution.
Appeals Judge Elizabeth Tavitas, a Lake County native, said in a concurring opinion that she would go even further and declare a dog sniff of a hotel hallway isn't a search at all, eliminating any concerns about infringing on constitutional rights.
She likened the space to a dog sniff of a car parked in a public place or luggage at an airport — neither of which generally is considered a "search" by Indiana or federal courts.
"Anyone can typically access a hotel common area. Hotel customers, their guests and hotel employees routinely travel hotel common areas. Accordingly, a dog sniff of a hotel hallway is a significantly less intrusive activity than a dog sniff of the front door of a private residence," Tavitas said.
The litigants still can ask the Indiana Supreme Court to consider overturning the appellate court ruling and suppressing the multiple types of narcotics and weapons allegedly found by police in the vehicle and hotel room.
Otherwise, the case will return to the Hendricks Superior Court in suburban Indianapolis for trial.
Records show oral arguments before the Court of Appeals were held Oct. 6 at Portage High School as part of the court's "Appeals on Wheels" program that aims to demystify the state's judiciary by bringing it directly to Hoosiers.
Vaidik said in a footnote to her ruling: "We thank Portage High School, social studies teacher Phil Mulroe, and the students for their hospitality, as well as counsel for their helpful advocacy."
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