§ 7-3-707 — Procedure for interception of wire, oral or electronic communications

Wyoming § 7-3-707

• Jurisdiction: Wyoming
• Title 07: Criminal Procedure
• Ch. 3: FUGITIVES AND PREVENTION OF CRIME
• Art. 7: COMMUNICATION INTERCEPTION

Text

(a) Each application for an order authorizing the
interception of wire, oral or electronic communications shall be
made in writing upon oath or affirmation to a judge of competent
jurisdiction and shall state the applicant's authority under
W.S. 7-3-705(a) to make the application. Each application shall
include the following information:
(i) The identity of the peace officer making the
application and of the officer authorizing the application;
(ii) A full and complete statement of the facts and
circumstances relied upon by the applicant to justify his belief
that an order should be issued, including:
(A) Specific facts concerning the particular
offense that is being investigated;
(B) Except as provided in subsection (t) of this
section, a particular description of the nature and location of
the facilities from which, or the place where, the communication
is to be intercepted;
(C) A particular description of the type of
communication sought to be intercepted;
(D) The identity of the person or persons, if
known, who are suspected of committing the offense and whose
communications are to be intercepted.
(iii) A full and complete statement as to whether or
not other investigative procedures have been tried and have
failed, or why they reasonably appear to be unlikely to succeed
or would be too dangerous;
(iv) A statement of the required duration of the
interception. If the nature of the investigation will require
that the interception not automatically terminate when the
described type of communication has been first obtained, the
application shall state a particular description of facts
sufficient to establish probable cause to believe that
additional communications of the same type will occur after the
initial interception;
(v) A full and complete statement by the applicant
concerning all previous applications known to the individual
authorizing and making the application to have been made to any
judge:
(A) For permission to intercept wire, oral or
electronic communications involving any of the same persons,
facilities or places specified in the application; and
(B) Action taken by the judge on each previous
application.
(vi) If the application is for extension of an order,
a complete statement shall be made setting forth the results
thus far obtained from the interception or a reasonable
explanation of the failure to obtain any results.
(b) The judge may require the applicant to furnish
additional testimony or documentary evidence in support of the
application.
(c) Upon an application, the judge may issue an ex parte
order, as requested or modified, authorizing interception of
wire, oral or electronic communications within the territorial
jurisdiction of the court in which the judge is sitting, and
outside that jurisdiction but within the state of Wyoming in the
case of a mobile interception device authorized by a district
court within such district, if the judge determines on the basis
of the facts submitted by the applicant that:
(i) There is probable cause for belief that the named
person is committing or has committed any of the offenses
enumerated in W.S. 7-3-705;
(ii) There is probable cause for belief that
particular communications concerning those offenses will be
intercepted;
(iii) Normal investigative procedures have been tried
and have failed, or reasonably appear to be unlikely to succeed
or would be too dangerous;
(iv) Except as provided in subsection (u) of this
section, there is probable cause for belief that the facilities
from which, or the place where, the wire, oral or electronic
communications are to be intercepted is or is about to be used
in connection with any of the offenses enumerated in W.S.
7-3-705 or is leased to, listed in the name of or used by the
person suspected in the commission of any enumerated offense.
(d) Each order authorizing interception of wire, oral or
electronic communications shall specify:
(i) The identity of the person or persons, if known,
whose communications are to be intercepted;
(ii) The nature and location of the communications
facilities as to which, or place where the authority to
intercept is granted;
(iii) A particular description of the type of
communication sought to be intercepted and a statement of the
particular offense or offenses to which it relates;
(iv) The period of time during which an interception
is authorized including a statement as to whether or not the
interception shall automatically terminate when the described
communication is first obtained;
(v) The identity of the agency authorized to
intercept the communications and of the person authorizing the
application.
(e) No order entered under this section may authorize the
interception of any wire, oral or electronic communication for
any period longer than is necessary to achieve the objective of
the authorization, or in any event no longer than thirty (30)
days unless extended under subsection (f) of this section. The
thirty (30) day period provided by this subsection begins on the
earlier of the day on which the peace officer first begins to
conduct an interception under the order or ten (10) days after
the order is entered.
(f) Extensions of an order may be granted upon an
application for extension made in accordance with subsection (a)
of this section and upon the findings required by subsection (c)
of this section. The period of the extension shall be no longer
than the authorizing judge deems necessary to achieve the
purposes for which it was granted and in any event no longer
than thirty (30) days.
(g) Every order and extension thereof shall contain a
provision that the authorization to intercept shall be executed
as soon as practicable, and that the execution of the permission
shall be conducted in such a way as to minimize the interception
of communications not otherwise subject to interception under
this act. Every order or extension thereof shall also provide
that the interception terminate upon attainment of the
objective, or in any event in thirty (30) days.
(h) Whenever an order authorizing interception is entered
pursuant to this act, the order may require reports to be made
to the judge issuing the order, stating the progress which has
been made toward achievement of the authorized objective and the
need for continued interception. The reports shall be made at
intervals as the judge may require.
(j) The contents of any wire, oral or electronic
communication intercepted shall, if possible, be recorded on
tape, electronic, wire, computer storage media or other
comparable device. The recording shall be performed to protect
it from editing or other alterations. Immediately upon
expiration of the period of the order, or extension thereof, the
recording shall be submitted to the judge issuing the order and
shall be sealed under his directions. Custody of the recordings
shall be wherever the judge orders. A recording shall not be
destroyed except upon an order of the judge, and in any event
shall be kept for ten (10) years. Duplicate recordings may be
made for use or disclosure pursuant to the provisions of this
section. The presence of the seal provided for by this
subsection, or a satisfactory explanation for its absence, is a
prerequisite for the use or disclosure of the contents of any
wire or oral communication or evidence derived therefrom.
(k) Applications made and orders granted under this act
shall be sealed by the judge. Custody of the sealed applications
and orders shall be maintained at the direction of the judge.
The applications and orders shall be disclosed only upon a
showing of good cause before a judge and shall not be destroyed
except upon order of the judge to whom the application was
presented, and in any event shall be kept for ten (10) years.
Any information obtained pursuant to a court order permitting
interception of wire, oral or electronic communications shall
not be used, published or divulged except in accordance with the
provisions of this act. Any violations of the provisions of this
subsection or subsection (j) of this section may be punished as
contempt of the issuing or denying judge.
(m) Within a reasonable time, but not later than ninety
(90) days after the denial of an application or the termination
of the period of an order authorizing interception or extension
thereof, the judge shall cause to be served upon each person
named in the order or application and any other person the judge
determines as in the interest of justice, notice of the
following:
(i) That an order or application has been entered
under this section;
(ii) The date of the entry and the period of
permitted interception or the denial of the application; and
(iii) Whether wire, oral or electronic communications
were or were not intercepted.
(n) The judge, upon the filing of a motion, may, in his
discretion, make available to the person or his counsel for
inspection any portion of the intercepted communications,
applications and orders as the judge determines to be in the
interest of justice. On an ex parte showing of good cause to a
judge of competent jurisdiction, the service of the matter
required by subsection (m) of this section may be postponed.
(o) The contents of any wire, oral or electronic
communication intercepted pursuant to this section or evidence
derived from that communication shall not be received in
evidence or otherwise disclosed in any trial, hearing or other
proceeding unless the party offering the evidence, not less than
twenty (20) days before the trial, hearing or proceeding, gives
notice to the court or hearing officer and all other parties.
The court may then order disclosure of the court order and
accompanying application. If the order of interception and
accompanying application has previously been disclosed, the
offering party may furnish all other parties with the order of
interception and accompanying application without further order
of the court or hearing officer upon proper notice. This twenty
(20) day period may be waived by the court or hearing officer if
it finds that it was not possible to furnish the party with the
information twenty (20) days before the trial, hearing or
proceeding and that no party will be prejudiced by the delay in
receiving the information.
(p) The contents of any intercepted wire, oral or
electronic communication or evidence derived therefrom shall not
be admitted as evidence in any trial, hearing or other
proceeding in this state unless the interception was performed
in accordance with this act.
(q) No otherwise privileged wire, oral or electronic
communication intercepted in accordance with or in violation of
this act shall lose its privileged character, unless the
communications are in furtherance of a criminal act in violation
of the laws of the United States or this state.
(r) When a peace officer, while engaged in intercepting
wire, oral or electronic communications relating to an offense
specified in the order permitting interception, intercepts wire,
oral or electronic communications relating to an offense other
than those specified in the order, the contents thereof, and
evidence derived therefrom, may be disclosed or used only if the
offense constitutes a felony under the laws of the United States
or this state. If the communication concerns an enumerated
offense listed in W.S. 7-3-705, the agency executing the order
of interception shall apply to the issuing court for an
expansion of the order of interception pursuant to paragraph
(a)(ii) of this section. The application shall be made as soon
as practicable.
(s) In the event an intercepted communication is in a code
or a foreign language, and an expert in that code or foreign
language is not reasonably available during the interception
period, any minimization required under this section shall be
accomplished as soon as practicable after the interception.
(t) The requirements of subparagraph (a)(ii)(B) and
paragraph (c)(iv) of this section relating to the specification
of the facilities from which, or the place where, the
communication is to be intercepted do not apply if:
(i) In the case of an application with respect to the
interception of an oral communication:
(A) The application contains a full and complete
statement as to why such specification is not practical and
identifies the person committing the offense and whose
communications are to be intercepted; and
(B) The judge finds that such specification is
not practical.
(ii) In the case of an application with respect to a
wire or electronic communication:
(A) The application identifies the person
believed to be committing the offense and whose communications
are to be intercepted and the applicant makes a showing that
there is probable cause to believe that the person's actions
could have the effect of thwarting interception from a specified
facility;
(B) The judge finds that such showing has been
adequately made; and
(C) The order authorizing the interception is
limited to interception only for such time as it is reasonable
to presume that the person identified in the application is or
was reasonably proximate to the instrument through which such
communication will be or was transmitted.
(u) An interception of a communication under an order with
respect to which the requirements of subparagraph (a)(ii)(B) and
paragraph (c)(iv) of this section do not apply by reason of
paragraph (t)(i) of this section shall not begin until the place
where the communication is to be intercepted is ascertained by
the person implementing the interception order. A provider of
wire or electronic communications service that has received an
order as provided for in paragraph (t)(ii) of this section may
move the court to modify or quash the order on the ground that
its assistance with respect to the interception cannot be
performed in a timely or reasonable fashion. The court, upon
notice to the prosecuting authority, shall decide such a motion
expeditiously.