MARC JACOBS
Hutch Post
TOPEKA, Kan. — The Kansas Supreme Court has upheld the drug conviction of a woman arrested after firefighters found her asleep under a bridge in Reno County.
In 2021, three firefighters found Nicole Willard sleeping beneath the bridge and woke her to check on her welfare. Willard refused medical care or treatment, but the firefighters remained at the scene.
When a police officer arrived, he learned Willard's name from the firefighters. The officer discovered she had an outstanding warrant and placed her under arrest.
During a search at the jail, officers found a plastic wrapper containing methamphetamine. Prosecutors subsequently charged Willard with one count of possession of methamphetamine and one count of possession of drug paraphernalia.
Willard filed a motion to suppress the evidence discovered during the search. She argued that the firefighters and police officer violated her Fourth Amendment protection against unreasonable searches and seizures by remaining with her after she declined medical assistance.
The Reno County District Court denied the motion to suppress, and Willard was convicted on both charges.
The Kansas Court of Appeals later reversed the district court's decision, but the Kansas Supreme Court has now sided with the district court.
In an opinion written by Chief Justice Eric Rosen, the Supreme Court agreed that Fourth Amendment protections applied to the firefighters' interaction with Willard. However, the court determined Willard had not been legally "seized" before the officer discovered the outstanding warrant.
The majority concluded that a reasonable person in Willard's circumstances would have believed they were free to end the encounter with the firefighters.
Justice Melissa Standridge dissented. She concluded Willard had been seized because the three firefighters encircled her beneath the bridge while the police officer stood closely behind them, effectively occupying what she considered Willard's only route to leave.
The Supreme Court's decision affirms the Reno County District Court's denial of Willard's motion to suppress the evidence.