AR: Reference to drug statute in SW for semen on sheets was a mere scrivener’s error that could be ignored

A reference to the drug crimes statute in a search warrant was a mere scrivener’s error where the search warrant clearly was looking for semen on sheets. Magness v. State, 2012 Ark. App. 609, 2012 Ark. App. LEXIS 721 (October 31, 2012):

Appellant filed a motion to suppress the evidence seized during the search of his cabin based on his allegation that the warrant’s reference to section 5-64-401 in the description of the property to be seized rendered it defective. Highly technical attacks on search warrants are not favored because the success of such attacks could discourage law-enforcement officers from utilizing search warrants. [Moss v. State, 2011 Ark. App. 14, ___ S.W.3d ___.] Moreover, to uphold the validity of an affidavit made in support of a search warrant, it is not necessary that the affidavit be completely without inaccuracy as long as the inaccuracies are relatively minor when viewed in the context of the totality of the circumstances, including the affidavit taken as a whole and the weight of the testimony of the participants who procured and executed the search warrant. Moss, supra.