Can the Police Use a Search Warrant to Look for Evidence of an Unrelated Crime?

It is well understood that the police need to obtain a warrant before searching any area where a suspect has a reasonable expectation of privacy. This includes digital spaces such as a person’s private cell phone data. An officer needs a warrant before looking through your text messages. And that warrant must specify the alleged crime under investigation and an explanation of why a search is likely to provide evidence of that crime.

Florida Appeals Court Overturns Manslaughter Conviction

So what if the police obtain a warrant seeking proof of one crime but later use it to look for evidence of a second, unrelated crime? Do the police need a second warrant? The Florida Fourth District Court of Appeal recently confronted these questions in a homicide case, Young v. Florida, where prosecutors introduced evidence obtained from the defendant’s private messages on Facebook.

This terrible case involved the shooting death of a young girl. The victim was hit by a stray bullet following an argument between two women: the defendant’s girlfriend and her aunt. The women had been arguing for some time, and at one point the defendant’s girlfriend said she would “have my baby daddy come and shoot you all.” A short time later, shots were fired, including the bullet that killed the girl.

The defendant denied any involvement in the shooting. He noted that his girlfriend had six children with six different men, any one of whom could have been the “baby daddy” she referred to just before the shooting. Nevertheless, prosecutors charged the defendant and his girlfriend with first-degree murder and various other charges arising from the shooting.

As part of the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s investigation into this case, a deputy obtained a warrant to search a Facebook account believed to be that of the defendant. A judge later granted a motion to suppress the results of that search, however, because the deputy failed to establish probable cause for the search.

Undeterred, the prosecution approached another deputy who had previously obtained a warrant to search the defendant’s Facebook account in a completely unrelated investigation involving allegations of retail theft. That warrant covered the defendant’s private messages up through the day after the shooting. These messages included evidence suggesting the defendant’s girlfriend called him just before the shooting. There was also a picture of the defendant holding a gun that matched the description of the one used in the shooting.

This time, the trial court allowed the prosecution to use the evidence obtained under the theft search warrant. A jury rejected the first-degree murder charge but still convicted the defendant of manslaughter and attempted manslaughter.

On appeal, the Fourth District held the state had no right to use the evidence from the theft warrant in its homicide case. There was no question the search was illegal, the appellate court held. And the state could not rely on the deputy’s “reasonable belief” that it was okay for him to search the defendant’s Facebook records for evidence related to a homicide. As such, the defendant was entitled to a new trial, one where the Facebook evidence could not be used against him.

Contact AsiliA Law Firm Today

When you are on trial for your life, you have every right to demand that police and prosecutors follow the law and respect your constitutional rights. A qualified Miami murder/homicide attorney can help ensure that is the case. Call AsiliA Law Firm today at 786-420-3014 or contact us online to schedule an initial consultation.

Source:

4dca.flcourts.gov/content/download/2441234/opinion/Opinion_2023-1056.pdf