PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A woman’s purse can be seen as a threat subject to search and seizure if a police officer suspects it contains a weapon.
The Oregon Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a Medford woman’s appeal of a heroin possession conviction by ruling the search was legal.
Carolyn Morgan was a passenger in a car during a routine traffic stop. When an officer asked to search the car, she agreed, and stepped outside with a large purse.
The officer told Morgan she could leave it in the car or he would have to search it for weapons, and she became agitated and began to reach into it. Police seized the purse and found the heroin in their search for a weapon.
The ruling upheld a lower court, so her heroin conviction stands.
