A search warrant to search all persons at a rave party was unreasonable without probable cause as to any specific person swept up in it. State v. Light, 2013-NMCA-075, 306 P.3d 534 (2013):<\/p>\n
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We need not decide whether “all persons” warrants are per se invalid because, even applying the majority rule that recognizes the validity of such warrants in some situations, the circumstances in this case do not justify a warrant authorizing the search of all persons found at the theater or, specifically, the search of Defendant. Instead, the “all persons” warrant was not supported by probable cause because there is nothing in the affidavit tying every person found in the theater to the criminal behavior taking place there. See id. at 276 (holding that the affidavit did not supply sufficient information to establish probable cause when the justification was the officer’s statement that, based on his experience in drug enforcement, people present at the scene when illegal drugs are being distributed are usually in possession of drugs); State v. Garcia, 166 P.3d 848, 855-56 (Wash. Ct. App. 2007) (holding that the language in the warrant authorizing the search of “any and all persons present” did not authorize the search of all of the occupants found in a motel room because there was “nothing to establish individualized probable cause for ‘any and all’ of the persons who may have been present in the motel room where drug activity was suspected to occur”). To the contrary, Holguin never identified or described most of the occupants, and he never reported even seeing Defendant. Cf. People v. Nieves, 330 N.E.2d 26, 34 (N.Y. 1975) (holding that an “all persons” warrant “must establish probable cause to believe that the premises are confined to ongoing illegal activity” and that all persons subject to the warrant possess the articles sought and if “this probability is not present, then each person subject to search must be identified in the warrant … by name or sufficient personal description”).<\/p>\n
In claiming that the affidavit established probable cause to believe that any person present at the rave was likely to be involved in criminal activity, the State relies on the evidence concerning the distribution and use of drugs and the consumption of alcohol by underage persons throughout the theater, all of which Holguin observed. It then argues that any person present would be aware of these illegal activities and that it was “highly probable” any person present would be participating in at least some of the illegal activities.<\/p>\n
We disagree because Holguin’s general observations of criminal activity taking place in the theater are only sufficient to establish “[a] generalized belief that all persons present in a location are involved in criminal activity.” Garcia, 166 P.3d at 855. This belief “is insufficient to establish the required nexus” between Defendant and the criminal activity. Id. (holding that “[a] sufficient nexus is not established merely through evidence that some of the persons gathered in a particular location are engaged in criminal activity”).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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