USA vs. Salazar
Often clients desire to have the evidence in a case suppressed because of alleged misconduct by the law enforcement involved in their case. This is what is usually referred to as the fruit of the poisonous tree doctrine. However, it takes experienced and tenacious defense attorneys to fight the inherent credibility that law enforcement officers hold. In this case, Mr. Colette was able to prove to the United States District Court Judge that the officers involved had exceeded the scope of the traffic stop of our client, and further that the stop was not based on probable cause or reasonable suspicion, but rather based solely on the fact that our client was of Spanish descent! Profiling stops are per se unconstitutional. Because of Mr. Colette’ successful arguments, the judge suppressed the five (5) Kilos of Cocaine that were found electronically sealed in the bumper of the car driven by our client!