Court Finds Expansion of Traffic Stop Improper

Defendant's vehicle was stopped for an obstructed license plate and the Trooper eventually asked direct questions about drugs and sought to obtain consent to search the vehicle, which consent was not given. The Trooper suspected a drug offense and got a canine to sniff around the vehicle. The canine alerted to drugs at a portion of the vehicle leading to the discovery of a bag containing 12 pounds of marijuana. The Coutt here affirms the District Court's finding that the officer improperly expanded the scope of the stop and had no reasonable suspicion of a drug offense. The suppression is affirmed. State v. Prochnow (Ct. App. Unpubl., 04/08/19).