A statute immunized the defendant from prosecution for possession of contraband substances when such possession was found “as a result of” a call for medical assistance. “As a result” of meant “because.” The defendant called for medical assistance but refused treatment and asked the responding law enforcement officer for ride to a gas station. The officer conditioned that favor on a search of the defendant for the officer’s safety. Defendant consented, the officer searched the defendant’s backpack, and the officer found contraband. That discovery happened because the defendant consented to a search, not because of the call for medical assistance. The call’s “but for” presence in a sequence of events did not make the call into the cause of the discovery. The Missouri Court of Appeals affirmed the conviction.
STATE OF MISSOURI, Respondent v. TIMOTHY LOUIS SMITH, Appellant
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