United States v. Elliott

210 F. Supp. 357, 1962 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3437
CourtDistrict Court, D. Massachusetts
DecidedOctober 24, 1962
DocketCrim. 62-154-J
StatusPublished
Cited by31 cases

This text of 210 F. Supp. 357 (United States v. Elliott) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Massachusetts primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Elliott, 210 F. Supp. 357, 1962 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3437 (D. Mass. 1962).

Opinion

JULIAN, District Judge.

The defendant is charged with the offense o-f having made, without lawful authority, a mold for coining half-dollars, and with the additional offense of counterfeiting several coins.

He filed a motion to suppress for use as evidence certain molds, coins, admissions, a letter, and a statement on the ground that they were obtained from him illegally.

On the basis of the evidence presented at the hearing on the motion, I find the following facts:

An anonymous person turned over a letter to the Post Office Department stating that it had been opened by mistake and that a counterfeit coin had been found in it. The letter and the coin had been mailed by the defendant to a woman in Yuma, Arizona. After examining its contents a Post Office inspector resealed the letter and delivered it to the addressee. On February 18, 1962, the Boston office of the Secret Service received a report, together with the letter and counterfeit coin, from a Secret Service agent in Phoenix, Arizona.

The case was assigned to special agent Daigle for investigation. On checking the master index maintained by the Secret Service, Daigle found a reference to the defendant indicating that he might “possibly” be the same person as one Clinton Heinrich, a federal fugitive from justice who had been investigated a month previous. Daigle discussed the evidence with an assistant United States Attorney but was not counseled on whether he should apply for a search warrant.

On February 20, 1962, he went to Springfield, where he intended to call at the defendant’s home for the purpose of finding additional evidence.

Upon arriving in Springfield he informed the local police that he was investigating a counterfeiting case in that city, that arrests might be involved, and that he would welcome assistance. He discussed the case with Sergeant Ligarski and stated that he had no search warrant. Ligarski told him that the regulations of his own department required police officers to take “every prior step.” He further stated that on the basis of the information given him by Daigle he felt that grounds existed for the issuance of a search warrant. At Ligarski’s re *359 quest, Daigle accompanied him to the Clerk of the District Court of Springfield. A complaint on behalf of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts was subscribed and sworn to by Ligarski before the Clerk in which he stated only that he believed that counterfeit coins and the tools, machines and materials for making them were concealed on the premises occupied by the defendant at 114 Wilcox Street, Springfield. No grounds were stated for Ligarski’s belief. The complaint concluded with a prayer for a warrant to search the premises for the items mentioned. A search warrant was issued authorizing Springfield police and certain other municipal, county, and state officers to enter and search the described premises “in the day time, or night time.”

On the evening of the same day, Agent Daigle, Sergeant Ligarski, and two detectives went to the defendant’s home at 114 Wilcox Street. They arrived there at about 7 p. m., after dark. Daigle and Ligarski went to the front door while the two detectives covered the rear door.

A younger brother of the defendant opened the front door, and after Agent Daigle and Sergeant Ligarski identified themselves as members of their respective agencies, the defendant’s brother invited them in.

The defendant stepped forward from the bedroom and said, “What is this all about?” Agent Daigle replied, “It is about the coins.” Thereupon Sergeant Ligarski stated, “We have a warrant.” The defendant replied, “You don’t need any warrant. I made the coins. I have got them right here in my stand in the bedroom.”

The defendant led them into the bedroom and there gave them eleven counterfeit coins. He then took them down to the cellar and showed them two molds and told Agent Daigle that he could take them. The agent took them.

After gaining possession of the coins and the molds, Agent Daigle informed the defendant that the manufacturing of coins was illegal and thereupon placed him under arrest. Daigle then told the defendant that he would be taken to police headquarters, that he would be requested to make a statement, that he had a right to remain silent, and that he was entitled to notify anyone he wished.

They arrived at police headquarters at approximately 8 p. m. There the defendant was booked, fingerprinted, and photographed. This procedure lasted about a half hour. The defendant was then taken to a separate room where he was questioned by Agent Daigle until' about 10 p. m. No other person was present. In the course of the interrogation Daigle prepared a statement which was later signed by the defendant in the presence of Ligarski.

There was a United States Commissioner in Springfield but Agent Daigle made no attempt to contact him until after he had finished interrogating the defendant and the statement was signed. The reason he gave for not attempting to get in touch with the Commissioner sooner was that he “wanted to take a statement and prepare the thing in an orderly fashion.”

At about 10 p. m. he made a telephone call to the Commissioner’s home. Receiving no answer, he made no further attempt until the following morning.

The defendant was brought before the Commissioner about 10 a. m. on the following day after being questioned by a Post Office inspector.

Sergeant Ligarski endorsed the following return on the search warrant: “Search of the within premises by virtue of this warrant became unnecessary in view of the occupants [sic] permission to enter and search. Special Agent Andrew Daigle of U. S. Treasury Dept. was in attendance.”

It is obvious that the local police went into action in response to Agent Daigle’s request for assistance, and that Agent Daigle used the local police to aid him in accomplishing the purpose for which he went to Springfield, namely, to obtain evidence of the violation of federal laws by the defendant. *360 The activity directed at the defendant on February 20 was essentially activity of the federal government. A federal law-enforcement officer will not be permitted to by-pass the requirements of federal law by utilizing a warrant issued for his convenience to local officers under less exacting rules of state procedure. Therefore, federal and not state standards will be applied to determine the validity of the search warrant, the legality of the search and of the arrest, and whether the evidence sought to be suppressed was lawfully obtained.

The Court finds no basis for the government’s claim that, by stipulation of the parties, the validity of the warrant was not to be an issue.

The warrant issued by state authority is clearly bad when tested by the Fourth Amendment and Rule 41(c) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. No facts were set out in Ligarski’s affidavit which could reasonably satisfy a judge or a United States Commissioner that grounds for the issuance of a search warrant existed or that there was probable cause to believe that they existed. An affidavit for a search warrant must recite facts and may not be based solely upon the affiant’s belief. United States v.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
210 F. Supp. 357, 1962 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3437, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-elliott-mad-1962.