Samir Quarles v. State Delaware

WALSH, Justice (for the majority): In this appeal from the Superior Court, the appellant, Samir Quarles (""Quarles"") seeks a reversal of a ruling that denied his motion to suppress evidence of illegal drugs seized from his person during a street encounter with police. The Superior Court rejected Quarles' contention that the police lacked ""reasonable suspicion"" to detain him or, alternatively, that even if the stop was sustainable, the subsequent consent to search his person was not voluntary. We conclude that under a totality of circumstances test the conduct of the appellant, measured from the perspective of experienced police officers, provided a specific and articulable basis for a limited investigative stop. We further conclude that the Superior Court's factual determination that Quarles consented to a search of his person is supported by the record. Accordingly, the judgment of the Superior Court is affirmed.