Exclusionary Rule—Suppression of Identity-Related Evidence

Evidence related to a defendant’s identity is not subject to suppression under the Fourth Amendment’s exclusionary rule, the New York Court of Appeals decided March 30. (People v. Tolentino)

In this case, police officers stopped the defendant’s car on the ground that he was playing music too loudly, and they learned that he was driving while his license was suspended. He maintained that the stop violated his Fourth Amendment rights and that the evidence of his driving record should be suppressed as the fruit of the illegal stop.

Courts are divided as to whether the Fourth Amendment’s exclusionary ...