{"id":2261,"date":"2008-07-29T06:12:55","date_gmt":"2008-07-16T06:43:36","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2008-07-16T06:43:36","slug":"en-US","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/fourthamendment.com\/?p=2261","title":{"rendered":"E.D. Mich.: Merely stating drug dealers keep drugs at home is insufficient nexus to search his home; but GFE saves it"},"content":{"rendered":"

The mere fact that drug traffickers commonly keep drugs at home was not a sufficient nexus to defendant’s house to justify its search. Defendant was a Detroit police officer accused of taking $120k in cocaine from the property room and replacing it with a non-drug substitute. The good faith exception, however, saves this search. The purpose of the good faith exception is to cause the police to seek search warrants. United States v. Crockett<\/a>, 548 F. Supp. 2d 434 (E.D. Mich. 2008):<\/p>\n

Similarly, in this case, the affidavit provides probable cause that the defendant stole narcotics and was selling the stolen cocaine. The affidavit is silent to the connection between the defendant and the defendant’s residence, except that the officer stated his “belief, based on … experience” that drugs or proceeds would be in the home. Although the affidavit is insufficient, it is not so facially defective that the agents’ reliance on it and the search warrant is rendered objectively unreasonable. As a consequence, the exception to the exclusionary rule established by United States v. Leon<\/em> applies to this case.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Comments:<\/em> <\/p>\n

First, this opinion to me proves too much. The court does a complete job of demolishing the government’s argument that just stating an officer’s conclusion that drug dealers often keep drugs at home provides no nexus. So, if the law is so clear, how can the officer who obtained the warrant possibly conclude that he had a reasonable basis for a finding of probable cause?<\/p>\n

Second, now that yet another opinion states that there is no justification for an officer’s mere assertion that drug dealers keep drugs at home, where does any court draw the line on application of the good faith exception? With this case, after the next case? Next week? Does it ever apply to this officer or this department? This has been one of my continuing complaints about the GFE since Leon<\/em>. When does application of the GFE actually have application to the substantive law of the Fourth Amendment? Ever? <\/p>\n

(This opinion took nearly three months to make it to Lexis, and it is posted on the District Court’s website.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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