United States v. Sokolow

Andrew Sokolow (defendant) paid cash for expensive Honolulu-to-Miami plane tickets under his mother's last name, gave a phone number listed to his roommate, checked no luggage, and spent only 48 hours in Miami after a 20-hour round trip. He was young, dressed in a black jumpsuit and gold jewelry, and appeared nervous. DEA agents stopped him at the Honolulu airport on his return. A drug dog alerted on one bag; a search warrant turned up suspicious documents but no drugs. The dog then alerted on a second bag, and a warrant for that bag turned up over 1,000 grams of cocaine. Sokolow moved to suppress the evidence. The district court found reasonable suspicion and denied the motion, but the Ninth Circuit reversed.