United States v. Garnett

951 F. Supp. 657, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 19059, 1996 WL 737414
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Michigan
DecidedDecember 19, 1996
DocketCivil Action 96-50021
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 951 F. Supp. 657 (United States v. Garnett) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Michigan primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Garnett, 951 F. Supp. 657, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 19059, 1996 WL 737414 (E.D. Mich. 1996).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER DENYING DEFENDANT’S MOTION TO SUPPRESS EVIDENCE

GADOLA, District Judge.

The defendant was charged on October 4, 1996 by a superseding indictment with five counts, including felon in possession of a firearm, aiding and abetting another felon to possess a firearm, and the making of a false statement in connection with the acquisition of a firearm, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 922(g), 924(e), 2, and 922(a)(6). On November 12,1996, the defendant filed a motion to suppress evidence seized pursuant to a search warrant executed at 6080 E. Grand River Avenue in Brighton, Michigan. For the following reasons, this court will deny the defendant’s motion.

FACTS

On February 9, 1996, Michigan State Police Trooper Steven D. Rau 1 prepared an affidavit for a search warrant, which he presented to an Assistant Prosecutor, who reviewed and approved the affidavit. That same day, the affidavit was submitted to Judge Michael K. Hegarty of the 53rd District Court of Michigan in Livingston County and a search warrant was issued. The principal basis for seeking the search warrant was information supplied in January and February, 1996, by a confidential informant (“C/I”) to Trooper Rau that in a building rented by the defendant at 6080 East Grand River Avenue, the defendant was selling alcohol to minors and was also engaged in narcotics trafficking. The warrant authorized the sheriff or any peace officer of the county “to seize, secure, tabulate and make return according to law” the following items:

[ajlcoholic beverages, receipts or records pertaining to the possession, ownership, and or sales of alcoholic beverages, [m]ari-juana, controlled substances, narcotic paraphernalia, [m'jaterials for diluting controlled substances, scales and weighing equipment for controlled substances, lists and records pertaining to the possession, ownership and/or ownership and/or resi *659 dency of the above place to be searched, guns and ammunition, officially recorded police currency, currency and coins, paging devices, telephone answering machines, [e]omputer and computer files, records pertaining to controlled substance trafficking and the sales of alcoholic beverages.

The warrant was “anticipatory,” in that it could only be executed upon the occurrence of triggering events, to wit: Trooper Rau’s admittance into the building located at 6080 East Grand River Avenue on the evening of February 9, 1996, Trooper Rau’s observance of under aged subjects purchasing alcoholic beverages and his witnessing of these illegal purchases being facilitated by the defendant.

Trooper Rau’s affidavit to establish probable cause for the search may be fairly summarized as follows: 2 First, Trooper Rau averred that a C/I told him that the defendant and Mark Neal (“Neal”) were operating an underground nightclub at the 6080 E. Grand River Avenue address, charging admission and selling alcoholic beverages to all paying persons, irrespective of their age. Trooper Rau asserted that the C/I had supplied accurate and truthful information on three prior occasions, and that Trooper Rau was able to confirm the veracity of the C/I’s information through discussions with Sergeants Robert Swackhamer and David Bergsma. 3 Second, Trooper Rau stated in his affidavit that within 96 hours of February 9, 1996 (the date the search warrant was issued and executed), Trooper Rau was contacted by the same C/T “who stated a purchase of marijuana from the 6080 E. Grand river [sic] address had occurred and would be possible again” and that Trooper Rau thereafter was successful in sending the C/I to complete a controlled purchase of marijuana from the defendant at that location. According to the affidavit, during the controlled sale, the defendant informed the C/I that “he would be getting more marijuana in the near future.” Third, Trooper Rau avowed in the affidavit that he was informed by the same C/I that the defendant and Neal owned and possessed firearms.

The defendant filed a motion on November 4, 1996, to suppress evidence seized pursuant to the search warrant. In his motion, the defendant argues that the search warrant contained false information, was overbroad and lacked probable cause. Each one of these arguments will be addressed in turn.

ANALYSIS

1. Whether the Defendant Is Entitled To An Evidentiary Hearing To Show the Affidavit Contained False Information

The defendant’s first contention is that the search warrant was false in the following three respects: (1) the affidavit reflected that the defendant rented the entire premises at 6080 East Grand River Avenue, but in truth the defendant rented only the second floor and basement while the business, R U Safe, rented the main floor;' (2) the affidavit’s reference to information received from a C/I that marijuana was being sold from the main floor at 6080 East Grand River Avenue was fallacious; and (3) the affiant’s assertion regarding statements made by the C/I that the defendant owned or possessed firearms was untrue. 4 The defendant requests an eviden-tiary hearing to demonstrate that the affidavit contained false information.

The test to determine if the defendant is entitled to an evidentiary hearing to show the affidavit contained false statements is two-pronged: first, the defendant must make a substantial preliminary showing that the affi-ant has intentionally or recklessly included a

*660 false statement in the warrant affidavit, and second, the defendant must make a substantial preliminary showing that the false statement is material, in the sense that it is necessary to find probable cause. Franks v. Delaware, 438 U.S. 154, 155-56, 98 S.Ct. 2674, 2676-77, 57 L.Ed.2d 667 (1978). See also United States v. Skinner, 972 F.2d 171, 175 (7th Cir.1992). In Franks, 438 U.S. at 171, 98 S.Ct. at 2684, the Supreme Court expounded on how the defendant satisfies this two-pronged test:

[t]o mandate an evidentiary hearing, the challenger’s attack must be more than con-clusory and must be supported by more than a mere desire to cross-examine; There must be allegations of deliberate falsehood or reckless disregard for the truth, and those allegations must be accompanied by an offer of proof. They should point out specifically the portion of the warrant affidavit that is claimed to be false; and they should be accompanied by a statement of supporting reasons.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
951 F. Supp. 657, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 19059, 1996 WL 737414, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-garnett-mied-1996.