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Name: United States v. Hernandez
Case #: 04-50286
Court: US Court of Appeals
District 9 Cir
Opinion Date: 09/14/2005
Summary

In the third of the border search cases on this calendar, the appellate court affirmed the district court’s denial of a motion to suppress evidence of marijuana found when border agents dismantled interior panels of the doors of the defendant’s vehicle. The court held that the initial search of the vehicle, which involved merely pulling back the interior panels of the doors in such a manner that they could be replaced without damage, was not especially destructive or otherwise carried out in an offensive manner, and that reasonable suspicion was therefore not required prior to conducting the search.