IN: Cell phone linked to murder by TM sent before; PC for search

Defendant’s cell phone was linked to the murder by a witness saying that the meet was set up by text messages and more. Banks v. State, 2024 Ind. App. LEXIS 66 (Mar. 15, 2024):

P23 When a search warrant is sought for a cell phone, the affidavit must allege more than just the fact that the person who is suspected of criminal activity has a cell phone. As other courts have explained, affidavits that rely on the ubiquitous presence of cell phones and text messaging in daily life are insufficient to establish the required nexus. See Commonwealth v. Henley, 171 N.E.3d 1085, 1109 (Mass. 2021). Instead, “there must be specific, not speculative, evidence linking the device in question to the criminal conduct.” Id. (quotation omitted).

P24 Cameron asserts that “Detective Miller’s affidavit makes no effort to demonstrate a nexus between the offenses [he] had been arrested for and his cell phone” and that he just listed “the scope and variety of information that cell phones contain generally.” Appellant’s Br. pp. 23-24. It is true that Detective Miller’s affidavit contains several pages of boilerplate language about the categories of information that are generally found on cell phones, such as the following:

. . .

But it alleges much more.