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ABA Journal Web 100, Best Law Blogs (2017); ABA Journal Blawg 100 (2015-16) (discontinued 2018)
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by John Wesley Hall
Criminal Defense Lawyer and
Search and seizure law consultant
Little Rock, Arkansas
Contact: forhall @ aol.com / The Book
www.johnwesleyhall.com -
© 2003-24,
online since Feb. 24, 2003 Approx. 425,000 visits (non-robot) since 2012 Approx. 45,000 posts since 2003 (26,730+ on WordPress as of 12/31/23) -
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--Electronic Communications Privacy Act (2012)
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"If it was easy, everybody would be doing it. It isn't, and they don't."
—Me -
"Life is not a matter of holding good cards, but of playing a poor hand well."
–Josh Billings (pseudonym of Henry Wheeler Shaw), Josh Billings on Ice, and Other Things (1868) (erroneously attributed to Robert Louis Stevenson, among others) -
“I am still learning.”
—Domenico Giuntalodi (but misattributed to Michelangelo Buonarroti (common phrase throughout 1500's)). -
"Love work; hate mastery over others; and avoid intimacy with the government."
—Shemaya, in the Thalmud -
"It is a pleasant world we live in, sir, a very pleasant world. There are bad people in it, Mr. Richard, but if there were no bad people, there would be no good lawyers."
—Charles Dickens, “The Old Curiosity Shop ... With a Frontispiece. From a Painting by Geo. Cattermole, Etc.” 255 (1848) -
"A system of law that not only makes certain conduct criminal, but also lays down rules for the conduct of the authorities, often becomes complex in its application to individual cases, and will from time to time produce imperfect results, especially if one's attention is confined to the particular case at bar. Some criminals do go free because of the necessity of keeping government and its servants in their place. That is one of the costs of having and enforcing a Bill of Rights. This country is built on the assumption that the cost is worth paying, and that in the long run we are all both freer and safer if the Constitution is strictly enforced."
—Williams v. Nix, 700 F. 2d 1164, 1173 (8th Cir. 1983) (Richard Sheppard Arnold, J.), rev'd Nix v. Williams, 467 US. 431 (1984). -
"The criminal goes free, if he must, but it is the law that sets him free. Nothing can destroy a government more quickly than its failure to observe its own laws, or worse, its disregard of the charter of its own existence."
—Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643, 659 (1961). -
"Any costs the exclusionary rule are costs imposed directly by the Fourth Amendment."
—Yale Kamisar, 86 Mich.L.Rev. 1, 36 n. 151 (1987). -
"There have been powerful hydraulic pressures throughout our history that bear heavily on the Court to water down constitutional guarantees and give the police the upper hand. That hydraulic pressure has probably never been greater than it is today."
— Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 39 (1968) (Douglas, J., dissenting). -
"The great end, for which men entered into society, was to secure their property."
—Entick v. Carrington, 19 How.St.Tr. 1029, 1066, 95 Eng. Rep. 807 (C.P. 1765) -
"It is a fair summary of history to say that the safeguards of liberty have frequently been forged in controversies involving not very nice people. And so, while we are concerned here with a shabby defrauder, we must deal with his case in the context of what are really the great themes expressed by the Fourth Amendment."
—United States v. Rabinowitz, 339 U.S. 56, 69 (1950) (Frankfurter, J., dissenting) -
"The course of true law pertaining to searches and seizures, as enunciated here, has not–to put it mildly–run smooth."
—Chapman v. United States, 365 U.S. 610, 618 (1961) (Frankfurter, J., concurring). -
"A search is a search, even if it happens to disclose nothing but the bottom of a turntable."
—Arizona v. Hicks, 480 U.S. 321, 325 (1987) -
"For the Fourth Amendment protects people, not places. What a person knowingly exposes to the public, even in his own home or office, is not a subject of Fourth Amendment protection. ... But what he seeks to preserve as private, even in an area accessible to the public, may be constitutionally protected."
—Katz v. United States, 389 U.S. 347, 351 (1967) -
“Experience should teach us to be most on guard to protect liberty when the Government’s purposes are beneficent. Men born to freedom are naturally alert to repel invasion of their liberty by evil-minded rulers. The greatest dangers to liberty lurk in insidious encroachment by men of zeal, well-meaning but without understanding.”
—United States v. Olmstead, 277 U.S. 438, 479 (1925) (Brandeis, J., dissenting) -
“Liberty—the freedom from unwarranted intrusion by government—is as easily lost through insistent nibbles by government officials who seek to do their jobs too well as by those whose purpose it is to oppress; the piranha can be as deadly as the shark.”
—United States v. $124,570, 873 F.2d 1240, 1246 (9th Cir. 1989) -
"You can't always get what you want / But if you try sometimes / You just might find / You get what you need."
—Mick Jagger & Keith Richards -
"In Germany, they first came for the communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Catholic. Then they came for me–and by that time there was nobody left to speak up."
—Martin Niemöller (1945) [he served seven years in a concentration camp] -
“You know, most men would get discouraged by now. Fortunately for you, I am not most men!”
---Pepé Le Pew "The point of the Fourth Amendment, which often is not grasped by zealous officers, is not that it denies law enforcement the support of the usual inferences which reasonable men draw from evidence. Its protection consists in requiring that those inferences be drawn by a neutral and detached magistrate instead of being judged by the officer engaged in the often competitive enterprise of ferreting out crime."
—Johnson v. United States, 333 U.S. 10, 13-14 (1948)
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Category Archives: Suppression hearings
OH5: Failure to put SW affidavit into evidence denies review of PC determination
Appellant failed to put the affidavit for search warrant into evidence at the suppression hearing, so it is unavailable for review on whether it showed probable cause. State v. Hill, 2019-Ohio-3432, 2019 Ohio App. LEXIS 3524 (5th Dist. Aug. 27, … Continue reading
D.Kan.: Recusal motion can’t be used as subterfuge just to get rehearing of denied motion to suppress
This second recusal motion looks like defendant is just trying to get rehearing of the denial of his motion to suppress in front of a different judge, and it’s denied. United States v. Williamson, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 133111 (D. … Continue reading
OH9: Citizen informant’s 911 call properly admitted at suppression hearing even though hearsay
A 911 call from a citizen informant was properly admitted into evidence becuase hearsay is admissible in suppression hearings. There was a factual basis for defendant’s stop on reasonable suspicion for DUI. The CI’s report was that he was too … Continue reading
Two reversed for lack of findings on suppression issues
The findings of the district court don’t support the conclusion, so the case is remanded for more findings. The police followed the alleged drunk driving defendant into his house. They had probable cause independent of the illegal entry. People v. … Continue reading
W.D.Wash.: A potential claim of excessive force during a search doesn’t justify discovery of other alleged incidents of excessive force during searches
Defendant plans a suppression motion claiming that the search was invalid for use of excessive force during the search. He seeks discovery of other allegations of excessive force during searches by the officers, and it’s denied as speculative. United States … Continue reading
NY3: Judge who signs SW doesn’t have to recuse from suppression hearing
“Initially, defendant failed to preserve his contention that the trial judge should have recused himself because he signed the search warrant authorizing the search of defendant’s person and residence …. In any event, were this argument preserved for our review, … Continue reading
NY2: Judge issuing SW had discretion to recuse from suppression hearing
The judge issuing the Facebook warrant in this case was within her discretion in recusing from determining the merits. Besides, there was probable cause, and the search warrant was particular. People v. Grose, 2019 NY Slip Op 03808, 2019 N.Y. … Continue reading
C.D.Cal.: Probation search def wins motion in limine to keep probation records out of jury trial
Defendant was arrested as a result of a probation search. The government succeeds in a motion in limine that the probation records aren’t admissible in the hearing in the prosecution. United States v. Flores, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 74506 (C.D. … Continue reading
MT: An improperly certified police officer was still competent as a witness at a suppression hearing under Rule of Evid. 601, 602
An improperly certified police officer was still competent as a witness at a suppression hearing because all witnesses are generally competent to testify to what they saw. Rule of Evid. 601, 602. Under the totality of circumstances, there was probable … Continue reading
CA11: Failure to object to USMJ’s R&R on search claim is waiver for appeal
Defendant waived his suppression motion by not seeking review of the USMJ’s R&R. United States v. Pugh, 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 9254 (11th Cir. Mar. 28, 2019). “The Court need not determine whether any of these facts alone would be … Continue reading
If the SW or other exhibits are a potential issue for appeal, they needs to be in the record
Defendant’s ineffective assistance of counsel claim about defense counsel’s handling of an alleged defective search warrant claim couldn’t be considered on appeal where nobody put the search warrant in the appellate record. Holland v. State, 2019 Tenn. Crim. App. LEXIS … Continue reading
D.Mont.: After removing tainted information from the SW affidavit, it’s the job of reviewing court to independently evaluate the PC
When removing tainted evidence from the affidavit for the search warrant and retesting it, the issuing judge is not to be a witness. It’s the court’s duty to reevaluate the application for the search warrant on its own. United States … Continue reading
E.D.Va.: Child sex offense revealed during FISA warrant doesn’t entitle defense to see the papers to attempt to suppress
Defendant is accused of a coercion of a minor for sex that was revealed during a FISA warrant. The AG having certified that revealing the source would harm national security, the defense doesn’t get to see the papers submitted in … Continue reading
S.D.Fla.: There is no constitutional right of a defendant to testify at a suppression hearing
The right to testify at a trial doesn’t also mean that a defendant has a constitutional right to testify at a suppression hearing. Here, defendant wasn’t even present at the suppression hearing. The court finds that defense counsel wasn’t ineffective … Continue reading
CA6: No showing insurance company’s investigative report was cause of his arrest; also didn’t plead state action
Plaintiff sued his insurance company for participating in his false arrest because they submitted their own investigative file to law enforcement. There is no evidence that law enforcement didn’t conduct its own independent analysis of what they received. In addition, … Continue reading
CA10: District court was within its discretion to limit cross as to extraneous matters in SW affidavit at suppression hearing in light of issues
In light of the controlled buy that formed the basis for the search warrant here, the district court acted within its discretion in limiting broad cross-examination of the officer about what it found were extraneous matters in the affidavit. The … Continue reading
CT: When challenging a SW affidavit’s PC, it needs to be in the record for appellate review
“The record was inadequate to review the defendant’s unpreserved claim that the search warrant for M’s cell phone records and the warrant for his arrest were obtained without probable cause because the police included false information in the affidavits in … Continue reading
OH6: Not having a full suppression hearing and limiting issues was sound strategy
Defense counsel’s strategy was to attack probable cause, and a full suppression hearing was to be avoided, because that would surely lose. That was sound strategy at the time. State v. Nettles, 2018-Ohio-4908, 2018 Ohio App. LEXIS 5237 (6th Dist. … Continue reading
OH5: Suppression motion cannot be denied solely for def’s nonappearance at hearing
Defendant failed to appear for his suppression hearing, and the trial court denied the motion based on that. He has a constitutional right to be present, and the court could not deny the motion solely on that ground. Reversed. If … Continue reading
N.D.Fla.: Rehearing denied; interruptions of counsel during suppression hearing were because counsel was wasting time asking repetitive questions; she lost on merits, not because of interruptions
Defendant’s motion for rehearing of the motion to suppress is denied. Defense counsel was interrupted during the witness examination, but it was because the questioning was repetitive and beating a dead horse. She lost on the merits and lack of … Continue reading