UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT ____________

No. 22-3014 ___________

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

v.

GILROY ST. PATRICK STEWART, Appellant

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On Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania (D.C. No. 3-18-cr-00310-001) District Judge: Honorable Robert D. Mariani ____________

Argued on September 6, 2023

Before: CHAGARES, Chief Judge, HARDIMAN, and FREEMAN, Circuit Judges.

(Filed: February 2, 2024) Randy S. Zelin [Argued] 641 Lexington Avenue, 29th Floor New York, NY 10022 Counsel for Appellant Gerard M. Karam Christian T. Haugsby [Argued] United States Attorney’s Office Middle District of Pennsylvania 228 Walnut Street, Suite 220 Harrisburg, PA 17101 Counsel for Appellee

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OPINION OF THE COURT ____________

HARDIMAN, Circuit Judge.

This dispute arises under the Fourth Amendment and requires us to apply Rodriguez v. United States, 575 U.S. 348 (2015). Gilroy St. Patrick Stewart appeals the District Court’s order denying his motion to suppress evidence from a traffic stop. Stewart argues that the officer unconstitutionally prolonged the traffic stop. We disagree. The officer had reasonable suspicion of criminal activity when he extended the length of the stop. We will therefore affirm.

I

Around 6:30 p.m. on August 28, 2018, Trooper George Tessitore was monitoring westbound traffic on Interstate 80 in

2 Carbon County, Pennsylvania, when he noticed a minivan driving more slowly than the cars around it. The vehicle had heavily tinted windows and a partially obstructed license plate—both violations of the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code, 75 Pa. Cons. Stat. Ann. §§ 4524(e)(1), 1332(b)(3). Tessitore pulled the car over.

Tessitore approached the vehicle and asked the driver— Appellant Gilroy Stewart—for his driver’s license and the vehicle’s registration. Stewart produced an Ohio driver’s license with a Cleveland address, though the vehicle was registered to a Hazel Sparkes of Baldwin, New York. Tessitore asked Stewart if the vehicle was his, and Stewart answered that it belonged to his aunt. Tessitore then explained the reasons for the stop: the dark window tint and the partially obstructed license plate, both of which violated state traffic laws. Tessitore also noticed an air freshener hanging from Stewart’s rear-view mirror.

Tessitore inquired if Stewart was driving back to Cleveland, and Stewart said he was. Tessitore then asked about the address on the vehicle registration: “Where’s Baldwin at? I’ve heard of it. I can’t place it on a map, though.” Mobile Video Recorder (MVR) 2:19–22. Laughing, Stewart replied without answering the question: “You know where Baldwin is.” MVR 2:23–27. Tessitore countered that he did not know where Baldwin was. In response to other questions, Stewart explained that he was traveling back from New York—where he had dropped his daughter off at school—and was using the vehicle temporarily. Tessitore then returned to his police car to input information into the system and to run a search on Stewart’s criminal history.

A few minutes later, Stewart exited his vehicle, and

3 Tessitore told him he wasn’t supposed to do that. Tessitore then had Stewart stand on the side of the road next to his police car, away from traffic. While Stewart stood there, Tessitore asked why Stewart, who lived in Cleveland, borrowed the New York- registered vehicle for his trip to New York. Stewart replied: “My aunt, she lives in Cleveland, too. She has that car. I took my d