Deputy Sheriff

In OCCA case No. S-2003-445, the State appealed the decision regarding Joey Dean Taylor's conviction for possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine) and unlawful possession of paraphernalia. In a published decision, the court decided to affirm the lower court's ruling. One judge dissented. The case began when Joey Dean Taylor was a passenger in a pickup truck that was stopped by a deputy for speeding. During the stop, the deputy asked both the driver and Taylor if he could search them. The driver consented, but Taylor said yes to a pat-down search. After the search, the deputy found knives and a syringe in Taylor's pocket. Taylor was later arrested when methamphetamine was discovered in his hand at the jail. The lower court found that Taylor did not truly consent to the search, and the higher court agreed that the State did not provide enough evidence to show the consent was voluntary. They ruled that the earlier decisions were correct, and thus, they affirmed the lower court's ruling.