Illinois v. Caballes
In 1998, Caballes was pulled over for speeding by an Illinois State Trooper. As the officer issued Caballes a warning, another officer arrived and led a drug-sniffing dog around Caballes’ car. The dog alerted the officers to the trunk of Caballes’ car, in which they found over $250,000 worth of marijuana. Caballes claims that using a “canine sniff” in the absence of a reasonable suspicion of illegal activity violated his Fourth Amendment right against unreasonable search. The state trial court held the search reasonable and denied Caballes’ motion to suppress the drug evidence. The appellate court affirmed. The Illinois Supreme Court reversed, stating that “specific and articulable facts” are necessary to justify the use of a drug-sniffing dog.
Question Presented:
Whether the Fourth Amendment requires reasonable, articulable suspicion to justify using a drug-detection dog to sniff a vehicle during a legitimate
traffic stop.
