942
Stevens, J., dissenting
preme Court within three days of each other. See 544 Pa. 439, 677 A. 2d 311 (1995); Commonwealth v. White, 543 Pa. 45, 669 A. 2d 896 (1995); 543 Pa. 86, 669 A. 2d 917 (1995).1 In each case, that court concluded that citizens of Pennsylvania are protected from warrantless searches and seizures of their automobiles absent exigent circumstances. But a fair reading of both White (the holding of which the Commonwealth has not challenged in this Court) and Labron (which the Court reverses today) demonstrates that their judgments almost certainly rested upon the Pennsylvania court's independent consideration of its own Constitution. For that reason, I do not believe that we have jurisdiction over the decision in Labron, just as we would not have jurisdiction in White. See 28 U. S. C. § 1257(a).2 Furthermore, when considered in light of those two more carefully reasoned decisions, there is no reason for this Court to disturb the state court's finding in Kilgore, since the result will almost certainly be affirmed on remand.
In its per curiam decision, this Court concludes that because the decision in Labron cited state decisions which in turn referred to two 25-year-old cases of this Court, any reference to state law is " 'interwoven with the federal law.' " Ante, at 941 (quoting Michigan v. Long, 463 U. S. 1032, 1040 (1983)). These references, however, seem to me a rather short thread with which to weave—let alone upon which to hang—our jurisdiction.
1 Each decision was issued by a different division of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
2 Even if, as the Court concludes, ante, at 941, some element of residual doubt suggests that Pennsylvania's Supreme Court drew inspiration from our interpretations of the Federal Constitution, I do not think that reliance sufficient to justify expending this Court's time—or that of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court—simply to scour the state decisions of all references to the Federal Constitution. See infra, at 943-950.
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