UPDATES & ANALYSIS

U.S. Supreme Court denies Iowa woman’s bid to overturn her drug conviction claiming K9 search violated Fourth Amendment

by Rox Laird | October 7, 2025

The U.S. Supreme Court issued an order Oct. 6 denying an Iowa woman’s petition for certiorari seeking to overturn her drug possession conviction in Madison County District Court, arguing that a police search of her vehicle based on a drug-detection dog’s sniff through an open window violated her Fourth Amendment protection against unreasonable searches and seizures.

Ashlee Mumford was convicted of possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia after the trial court denied her motion to suppress evidence obtained in a search conducted during a traffic stop. Mumford argued that the Iowa Supreme Court, in affirming the district court, was on the wrong side of a split among other state and the federal courts on the question of whether a drug-detection dog’s sniff inside a vehicle absent probable cause violates the Fourth Amendment.

See On Brief’s earlier post on this case here.

Tags: U.S Supreme Court