Information gained during the investigatory stop cannot be used to justify the initial detention.

• A. True
• B. False
• C. Only in some jurisdictions
• D. Only with consent

Answer: (A)

Detentions must be supported by facts known at the moment the stop begins. Information discovered during the stop cannot be used to justify starting the stop in the first place. In other words, what you learn while you’re detaining someone cannot retroactively validate that detention; the initial seizure has to be grounded in reasonable suspicion based on pre-stop observations or information.

Information gathered during the stop can, however, justify extending the detention if it continues to show reasonable suspicion, or create probable cause to arrest or search, but it cannot retroactively justify the initial detention itself. This protects against using the stop to uncover evidence that then validates the very seizure that retrieved it.