Daily Archives: September 2, 2019

CA9: Seven hour arrest and detention of decedent’s wife as witness to a police shooting was unreasonable under clearly established law

Plaintiff’s husband was shot by sheriff’s deputies and killed and she was arrested as a material witness, taken away, and held for seven hours–four before any questioning. This was unreasonable under Maxwell v. County of San Diego, 708 F.3d 1075, … Continue reading

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W.D.N.C.: Omitted facts for Franks purposes are intentional in one sense, but not presumably intentionally misleading

Omitted facts for Franks purposes are intentional in one sense, but not presumably intentionally misleading. Not every thing the affiant knows makes it in there. Also, citizen informant’s statement defendant was seen with a gun five weeks before the search … Continue reading

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OH5: Trial court erred in holding def couldn’t be ordered out of car without RS

The trial court erred in holding that the state trooper had no reason to order defendant out of her car, and the inquiry stopped there. Under Mimms, however, it’s entirely under the officer’s discretion. When he stopped her, her pants … Continue reading

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The Atlantic: The Supreme Court Is Not Well. And the People Know It.

The Atlantic: The Supreme Court Is Not Well. And the People Know It. by Garrett Epps (“A new guns case reveals that the once-noble institution has died, and we’re left working with its corpse.”)

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WaPo: Pollen ‘nerds’: U.S. government enlists scientists to track drug loads, crack cold cases

WaPo: Pollen ‘nerds’: U.S. government enlists scientists to track drug loads, crack cold cases by Nick Miroff:

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E.D.Va.: While the “four corners” rule is the standard for evaluating probable cause, the court may go outside the four corners in applying GFE

While the “four corners” rule is the standard for evaluating probable cause, the court may go outside the four corners in applying the good faith exception. Here, the officer had additional information he didn’t include because he’d reasonably thought he’d … Continue reading

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NJ: Consent two hours later was attenuated from initial unlawful entry

Defendant was subjected to an entry and sweep. Consent two hours later was voluntary as attenuated. What was found didn’t come from the initial entry. State v. Williams, 2019 N.J. Super. LEXIS 138 (Aug. 29, 2019):

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D.Mass.: Police had no affirmative duty to allow def to call for help to remove car to avoid inventory

Police had no duty to let defendant call somebody to come and get his car rather than it be inventoried. “But WPD’s policy and practice plainly do not dictate that officers affirmatively inquire about the availability of a third-party driver. … Continue reading

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CA6: Officers acted reasonably in entering house based on dispatcher’s call of young man threatening mother with knife or gun or both

“The facts here indicate that a reasonable person in the officers’ position would indeed believe that entry was necessary to prevent physical harm. The reasonableness standard of the Fourth Amendment requires us to examine the officers’ actions in response to … Continue reading

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Two on qualified immunity

EMTs who assessed plaintiff for mental issues and took her away were entitled to qualified immunity. No case could be cited that they violated the Fourth Amendment. Ellison v. Hobbs, 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 26263 (11th Cir. Aug. 29, 2019).* … Continue reading

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CA5: Assuming def’s suppressed search led to custody and his incriminating jail call, the call was attenuated under Strieff

The district court suppressed one of defendant’s searches that led to his arrest. While in jail, he made incriminating phone calls about the location of drugs. Assuming that the call from the jail was a fruit of the unreasonable search, … Continue reading

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