Aurora, Colo. police run tags on car with broken tail light, discover the car was seized three weeks earlier in weapons-possession case and a man (a known gang member) associated with the car was arrested. They pull it over; the man is in it; they frisk him and find a gun. He’s charged with being a felon in possession. Suppress the evidence? No need, says the Tenth Circuit. Though he was calm and compliant, officers were justified in patting him down to ensure their safety. Dissent: The gov’t is going to use this decision to justify frisks in a much broader variety of circumstances than the ones here.
