Assume that a police officer properly made a routine traffic stop of a vehicle based on a reasonable suspicion that the vehicle operator was driving while intoxicated

Question

After the brief investigation failed to reveal any impairment, the officer engaged the subject in a lengthy discussion concerning drug dealing. The subject began to exhibit nervous signs of behavior related to the topic of the discussion. The police officer had seized the subject based on reasonable basis to suspect criminal activity [driving while intoxicated] for a lengthy period of time, which had exceeded the permissible limits of a Terry detention. The police officer then requested and received permission from the driver to search the automobile. Illegal drugs were found in the trunk of the vehicle. Complete with the best response consistent with the Fourth Amendment and the principles of Terry v. Ohio.
A) The search was lawful since the length of a Terry detention is not limited by the passage of time.
B) The search of the automobile should be considered illegal under the Fourth Amendment since the driver's detention after the lawful stop lasted too long to be reasonable under the Terry standard and rendered the subject's consent invalid.
C) The search was valid since the consent cures any illegality caused by the overly lengthy stop and subsequent detention.
D) The search of the vehicle's trunk was lawful since the procedure followed by the officer indirectly involved the Fourth Amendment.
E) None of the above is a correct response.

Answer 1

B