In the case of Reid v. Georgia, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1980 that law enforcement officers had violated a man's Fourth Amendment rights by stopping him at an airport without reasonable suspicion of criminal activity. The defendant, Reid, was stopped and questioned by DEA agents because he fit their drug courier profile - he arrived early in the morning from Fort Lauderdale (a known source city for drugs), carried little luggage and seemed nervous. After being asked to consent to a search of his bag, cocaine was found inside it leading to his arrest on federal drug charges. However, the court held that these factors were not enough to justify stopping Reid under the Fourth Amendment as they described a very large category of presumably innocent travelers who would be subjectively viewed as suspicious.

In the dissenting opinion for Reid v. Georgia, Justice Powell disagreed with the majority's view that law enforcement officers had no reasonable suspicion to stop and search Reid at an airport based on a drug courier profile. He argued that the use of such profiles was not inherently unconstitutional or unreasonable under Fourth Amendment protections against unlawful searches and seizures. In his view, these profiles were useful tools in identifying potential criminals, particularly in cases involving drug trafficking where direct evidence is often difficult to obtain. Furthermore, he believed that Reid’s behavior matched several aspects of this profile closely enough to justify further investigation by police officers without violating his constitutional rights.