CA5: Alleged illegal gov’t-induced private search of doctor’s records was not referred to in SW affidavit, so warrant not suppressed

A doctor was convicted of health care fraud. His patient records were first removed by a nurse who was “acting as a whistleblower of sorts,” but later he was found to be acting as a government agent. Removal of records from a mobile lab likely was not a Fourth Amendment violation because the doctor had no reasonable expectation of privacy in the mobile lab shared with others because he made no effort to keep others from the lab. He kept records there three days a week. Nevertheless, that information did not make it into the search warrant application, and there was probable cause from before so there was an independent source from the alleged illegal entry. United States v. Patel, 485 Fed. Appx. 702 (5th Cir. 2012).*

Defendant’s IAC claim against defense counsel on the probable cause question is insufficient as a matter of law because it was preserved for appeal. In any event, defendant never said he’d go to trial instead. United States v. Cox, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 113190 (D. N.J. July 30, 2012).*