Ninth Circuit Affirms Denial of Motion to Suppress Evidence Related to Conviction for Embezzlement

In U.S. v. Weaver, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the District Court's denial of defendant's motion to suppress evidence related to her conviction for embezzlement of mail matter by a postal employee. The Ninth Circuit held that the warrantless search of defendant's vehicle was a contemporaneous incident of the custodial arrest of one of defendant's two passengers, and therefore valid under New York v. Belton 453 U.S. 454, 460 (1981).  See the full text of the decision here (PDF on FindLaw).