85 results for 'cat:"Firearms" AND cat:"Search"'.
J. Seymour finds that the lower court properly granted defendant's motion to suppress his name after he was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm. The lower court granted the motion to suppress after finding that the name was given as "fruit of an unlawful investigative detention," given that the officers did not have proper suspicion to detain him. The simple facts that defendant was standing alone in a "high crime area" were not enough to justify the detention that led to the arrest. Affirmed.
Court: 10th Circuit, Judge: Seymour, Filed On: May 8, 2024, Case #: 22-1378, Categories: firearms, search
J. Corrigan finds that the trial court should have suppressed the methamphetamine and revolver police found in defendant's car as the products of an unlawful search. His presence in a high crime area at night, ducking out of sight, fiddling with his shoes and refusing to acknowledge police officers are factors that police are not required to ignore. But they were not acts of outright evasion and did not combine to support an articulable and reasonable suspicion that he was involved in illegal conduct. Reversed.
Court: California Supreme Court, Judge: Corrigan, Filed On: May 2, 2024, Case #: S267522, Categories: Drug Offender, firearms, search
J. Forrest finds that the district court improperly denied a motion to suppress a firearm found during a warrantless search of defendant’s truck in a case that presented the question of whether an officer’s failure to comply with governing administrative procedures is relevant in assessing the officer’s motivation for conducting an inventory search. The deputies who searched defendant’s truck acted solely for investigatory reasons and the warrantless search therefore violated the Fourth Amendment. Reversed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Forrest, Filed On: May 2, 2024, Case #: 20-50345, Categories: Constitution, firearms, search
J. Pillard upholds the trial court's refusal to suppress evidence retrieved from defendant's cell phone during his trial on unlawfully trafficking and transporting firearms. The search warrant for the phone, which was found near a different suspect, relied on its association with that suspect and its evidentiary value, rather than ownership of the phone. Affirmed.
Court: DC Circuit, Judge: Pillard, Filed On: April 30, 2024, Case #: 22-3069 , Categories: Evidence, firearms, search
J. Deahl finds it is unclear whether defendant, who was convicted of firearm possession, consented to a search of his pocket after he was stopped by officers because he matched the description of an armed robber in that location. Upon remand, the trial court must determine whether defendant "freely and voluntarily" consented to the search.
Court: DC Court of Appeals, Judge: Deahl, Filed On: April 18, 2024, Case #: 22-CF-0520 , Categories: Evidence, firearms, search
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J. Ruiz upholds the trial court's suppression of a firearm seized from defendant's backpack. The government failed to show defendant had abandoned the backpack when the officers retrieved it, without probable cause or a warrant, from a hidden spot within a home with which defendant had a connection. Affirmed.
Court: DC Court of Appeals, Judge: Ruiz, Filed On: April 18, 2024, Case #: 19-CO-1094 , Categories: Evidence, firearms, search
J. Thyer finds the trial court properly convicted defendant for trafficking fentanyl, theft, and other drug and firearms charges. Following a traffic stop, dashcam video shows defendant was acting nervously when asked about potential illegal items that might be in the vehicle. Sufficient evidence shows that though defendant was not seen in actual or constructive possession of drugs found in her daughter’s shorts, she admitted to constructive possession. Affirmed.
Court: Arkansas Court Of Appeals, Judge: Thyer , Filed On: April 17, 2024, Case #: CR-23-562, Categories: Drug Offender, firearms, search
J. Zachary finds that the trial court properly declined to suppress evidence discovered in defendant's vehicle based on a tip that a handgun had been observed in plain view of a Dodge Charger parked near various nightclubs because the fact that industrial hemp has been legalized did not diminish the significance of the contention that police detected the odor of marijuana while approaching the vehicle. Affirmed.
Court: North Carolina Court of Appeals, Judge: Zachary, Filed On: April 16, 2024, Case #: COA23-568, Categories: Drug Offender, firearms, search
J. Ginsburg upholds defendant's conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Contrary to defendant's argument, the trial court was not required to suppress evidence, as the officers' protective pat-down search was justified. Affirmed.
Court: DC Circuit, Judge: Ginsburg, Filed On: April 16, 2024, Case #: 22-3024 , Categories: Evidence, firearms, search
J. Easterbrook finds that the lower court properly convicted defendant of being a felon in possession of a firearm after a search of his motel room found bullets that went along with a gun he dropped while fleeing from police. Defendant was on parole at the time he was found in possession of a weapon, and so he did not have an expectation of privacy in his motel room, so the bullets were properly admitted into evidence. Affirmed.
Court: 7th Circuit, Judge: Easterbrook, Filed On: April 12, 2024, Case #: 23-2097, Categories: firearms, Parole, search
J. Kafker affirms defendant’s murder conviction after he shot a man four times, killing him, after they argued at a barbershop. Although the warrant to search defendant’s apartment was not signed by a judge, the judge did sign the search warrant affidavit and submitted a sworn affidavit that indicated she planned to sign the warrant, so the lack of signature on the warrant itself was a clerical error, and not one that would make the warrant invalid. Affirmed.
Court: Massachusetts Supreme Court, Judge: Kafker, Filed On: April 12, 2024, Case #: SJC-09903, Categories: firearms, Murder, search
J. Montgomery finds the lower court properly denied defendant’s motion to suppress evidence collected during the search of a vehicle. Defendant pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a weapon and theft of property, and received an effective 12-year sentence to confinement. During the course of a traffic stop, a stolen handgun was found under the driver’s seat of a vehicle the defendant was driving. Defendant argues officers did not have probable cause to search the vehicle, but the lower court determined that since one of the responding officers smelled marijuana coming from the vehicle, the odor established probable cause for the warrantless search. Affirmed.
Court: Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals, Judge: Montgomery, Filed On: April 11, 2024, Case #: W2023-00713-CCA-R3-CD, Categories: Evidence, firearms, search
J. Stone finds that defendant was properly convicted of possession of marijuana, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and illegal carrying of weapons while in possession of a controlled dangerous substance. In this case, the police properly stopped defendant as he was walking into a gas station convenience store because the officers observed him with an assault rifle in his pant leg. Further, there were recent robberies in the area and a concern that defendant was committing a robbery. Affirmed.
Court: Louisiana Court Of Appeal, Judge: Stone, Filed On: April 10, 2024, Case #: 55,581-KA, Categories: Drug Offender, firearms, search
[Consolidated.] J. Nalbandian finds the trial court properly denied defendant's motion to suppress evidence of drugs and a loaded gun found during the search of his girlfriend's car. He failed to establish an expectation of privacy when he was detained in the passenger seat of her car. Defendant did not own and was not driving the vehicle at the time of his arrest, and actually told the officers several times he was not driving prior to the search, all of which prevented him from proving he had control over the vehicle. Affirmed.
Court: 6th Circuit, Judge: Nalbandian, Filed On: April 10, 2024, Case #: 22-1432, Categories: Drug Offender, firearms, search
J. Renner finds that the trial court should have suppressed the machine gun police found on defendant's person after a warrantless search of his car turned up a loaded magazine. Police lacked probable cause to search his car under the automobile exception to the warrant requirement. The probable cause required to arrest someone differs from the probable cause for a search. Police cited defendant's known association with a gang but failed to provide reasons they believed evidence of a crime would be found in his car. Defendant was also subjected to an unreasonably long investigatory detention after police found a gun on the party whose description matched the one given in the original police call. Vacated.
Court: California Courts Of Appeal, Judge: Renner, Filed On: April 5, 2024, Case #: C099530, Categories: firearms, search
J. Swan finds the superior court properly entered a judgment and commitment order against defendant after he was found guilty at trial of unauthorized firearm possession and other charges. The evidence was sufficient to convict defendant of all the charges he faced, and his arguments that the search of the residence where he was on house arrest violated the Fourth Amendment fail in part because his uncle who lived with him gave police consent to search the residence, because officers smelled marijuana while they searching, and because the officers were lawfully at the residence in the first place to perform a compliance check related to defendant's house arrest. Affirmed.
Court: Virgin Islands Supreme Court, Judge: Swan, Filed On: April 3, 2024, Case #: 2024 VI 17, Categories: firearms, search
J. Kobes finds a lower court properly convicted a defendant for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The defendant argued that the lower court erred in denying his motion to suppress evidence of a rifle located in his vehicle under a towel after his girlfriend gave a police officer permission to search his car. However, the government sufficiently showed in court that the defendant's girlfriend was authorized to give consent after realizing that the police were not after her, and that the interactions were "cordial and polite." Affirmed.
Court: 8th Circuit, Judge: Kobes, Filed On: April 1, 2024, Case #: 23-1505, Categories: Evidence, firearms, search
J. Hyman finds that the lower court improperly convicted defendant of constructive possession of a handgun by a felon. Defendant was pulled over for "driving while black," having done nothing to warrant a stop, let alone being placed in handcuffs and having his car fully searched. The record contains "nothing" that would allow a trier of fact to find that defendant knew a handgun was embedded into the bottom of the driver's seat of a borrowed car. Reversed.
Court: Illinois Appellate Court, Judge: Hyman, Filed On: March 29, 2024, Case #: 220970, Categories: firearms, search
J. Hoffman finds the trial court properly denied defendant's motion to suppress the results of a search of his home during his weapons and drug possession trial. Although he was experiencing symptoms of a medical emergency, there was no coercion on the part of the police officer who asked to come inside, while defendant also took no medication once inside the property and consented to the search after being asked twice. Affirmed.
Court: Ohio Court Of Appeals, Judge: Hoffman, Filed On: March 22, 2024, Case #: 2024-Ohio-1094, Categories: firearms, search
J. Wiley finds that the trial court should have suppressed the gun police found in defendant's possession during an unlawful detention. A reasonable person would not have felt free to leave after police pulled their car so close to defendant's that he could only maybe squeeze out the door, and then shined their flashlights into the car from both sides. Reversed.
Court: California Courts Of Appeal, Judge: Wiley, Filed On: March 15, 2024, Case #: B328954, Categories: Evidence, firearms, search
J. Pipkin finds that the trial court properly denied defendant's motion for a new trial on his convictions for firearm offenses, theft by receiving stolen property, dog fighting and possession of marijuana with intent to distribute. Sufficient evidence was presented to support defendant's drug and theft convictions. The trial court correctly denied defendant's motion to suppress evidence discovered during a search of his home. A trash pull performed by law enforcement was not improper. The seizure of firearms, body armor and bullets during the search of defendant's home was authorized because those items were found while police were searching for drugs and items used in the sale of marijuana. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Court of Appeals, Judge: Pipkin, Filed On: March 15, 2024, Case #: A23A1412, Categories: Drug Offender, firearms, search
J. Joyce finds the trial court erred by failing to suppress evidence. “The officers’ reasonable suspicion of kidnapping had dissipated before the officers developed reasonable suspicion that defendant was a felon in possession of body armor.” Reversed.
Court: Oregon Court of Appeals, Judge: Joyce, Filed On: March 13, 2024, Case #: A177524, Categories: Evidence, firearms, search
J. Welch finds the trial court properly convicted defendant for firearm possession. During defendant's probation sentence for convictions on charges of domestic violence, disturbing the peace and criminal trespass, he failed to report for drug testing. The ensuing inquiry yielded information regarding defendant's illegally being in possession of firearms, and a search of his apartment turned up firearms. The search was properly made under conditions of defendant's probation and his motion to suppress was correctly denied. Affirmed.
Court: Nebraska Court Of Appeals, Judge: Welch , Filed On: March 12, 2024, Case #: A-23-312, Categories: firearms, Probation, search
[Modified.] J. Moor alters one sentence and denies a rehearing with no change in judgment. The trial court should have suppressed the gun police found in a parole search of defendant's car. Before police knew he was on parole, they had unlawfully detained him by positioning their bodies where he could not drive away or open the car doors to walk away. Also, they shined flashlights into the car in a demonstration of authority and required him to stop a phone conversation he was having while legally parked. Reversed.
Court: California Courts Of Appeal, Judge: Moor, Filed On: March 7, 2024, Case #: B320488, Categories: firearms, Parole, search
J. Pritzker finds that the lower court properly declined to suppress pills and a handgun discovered during a traffic stop in defendant's trial for drug and weapon possession. Officers possessed reasonable suspicion to ask defendant to empty his pockets because both the driver of the vehicle and defendant inconsistently answered police inquiries about their activities, and each of them had known connections to narcotics. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Pritzker, Filed On: February 29, 2024, Case #: 112813, Categories: Drug Offender, firearms, search
J. Thompson finds that the trial court properly denied defendant's motion to suppress drug evidence found during a search of his residence by a parole officer while he was living with a parolee. In this case, the parole officer had the authority to conduct a visit with her parolee and observed the marijuana candy when she entered the home. However, the officer did not have the authority to search the entire home without a warrant, including defendant's bedroom and other areas, and the officer did not testify to having observed the firearms in plain view. Therefore, defendant's motion to suppress gun evidence should have been granted. Affirmed in part.
Court: Louisiana Court Of Appeal, Judge: Thompson, Filed On: February 28, 2024, Case #: 55,427-KW, Categories: Drug Offender, firearms, search
J. Marcotte finds that defendant was properly convicted of attempted possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. In this case, a gun was found during a traffic stop with defendant as the only occupant in the car, and the gun was under the driver's seat and easily accessible. Further, the traffic stop for a broken taillight was valid, and defendant admitted to the officer that there was a gun in the car. Affirmed.
Court: Louisiana Court Of Appeal, Judge: Marcotte, Filed On: February 28, 2024, Case #: 55,442-KA, Categories: Evidence, firearms, search
J. Kirsch finds that the lower court properly convicted defendant of being a felon in possession of a firearm after his car was searched because his friend was standing next to the sedan drinking from a red solo cup. His friend willingly told police that the drink contained alcohol, and officers legitimately searched the car after noticing an open bottle of alcohol in the back seat. The search was valid because the initial encounter with the officers was consensual, and defendant's incriminating statements were attenuated from the allegedly unlawful seizure. Affirmed.
Court: 7th Circuit, Judge: Kirsch, Filed On: February 26, 2024, Case #: 23-1001, Categories: firearms, search
J. Smith finds a lower court properly denied a defendant's motion to suppress evidence in court. The defendant, who was charged for being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm, argued that authorities searched his vehicle without probable cause. However, the government sufficiently showed in court that a police officer peered through the window of the defendant's vehicle, which smelled of marijuana, and saw the grip of a firearm protruding from the center console. Affirmed.
Court: 8th Circuit, Judge: Smith, Filed On: February 16, 2024, Case #: 23-1676, Categories: Evidence, firearms, search
J. Moor holds that the trial court should have suppressed the gun police found in a parole search of defendant's car. Before police knew he was on parole, they had unlawfully detained him by positioning their bodies where he could not drive away or open the car doors to walk away. Also, they shined flashlights into the car in a demonstration of authority and required him to stop a phone conversation he was having while legally parked. Reversed.
Court: California Courts Of Appeal, Judge: Moor, Filed On: February 14, 2024, Case #: B320488, Categories: firearms, Parole, search