Pubdate: Thu, 12 Feb 2004
Source: News & Observer (NC)
Copyright: 2004 The News and Observer Publishing Company
Contact:  http://www.news-observer.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/304
Author: Andrea Weigl

IT REALLY HAPPENED

It's a doggone shame that Wake Superior Court Judge Evelyn Hill didn't buy 
a lawyer's argument Tuesday that a drug dog's sniff cannot be the basis for 
a police officer's probable cause for a drug search. Hill opted not to 
suppress the half gram of cocaine that Holly Springs police found on the 
ground next to Huey Holden's car during a traffic stop in July. But it was 
not for lack of effort by Holden's attorney, John H. McWilliam.

The Garner lawyer argued that if the Czech German Shepherd named 'Ranger' 
could not take the witness stand, the drugs could not come in as evidence.

How do the courts know the dog isn't just responding to cues from his 
trainer, McWilliam asks. "This dog -- any dog -- ... is beyond the scrutiny 
of cross-examination," McWilliam states in his motion.

McWilliam argues: Why are a dog's actions alone enough for probable cause 
but a tip from an anonymous person requires further investigation. "Why do 
we give a dog greater reliability than a human?

Bring on the dog, says Wake District Attorney Colon Willoughby. "Mr. 
McWilliam is a very skilled lawyer," he said. "If anyone could 
cross-examine a dog, he could do it."
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