Author: Anonymous

Officer Able received a text message from a person who ident…

Officer Able received a text message from a person who identified herself as Bella.  She communicated to Officer Able that Ben was operating a retail heroin operation out of his home located at 1066 Hasting Avenue. Bella described the house as a brown stucco single story residence   She indicated that in the early hours of every Sunday morning a black van would arrive at Ben’s home and unload two large crates, which would immediately be taken into Ben’s kitchen.  She further stated that Ben would unpack the crates which were filled with small brown paper bags which contained heroin.  Bella further explained that throughout the remainder of the week, late at night, Ben would sell the brown bags of heroin to customers who would enter the house from the front door and leave out of a side door with little brown bags.  Although Officer Able had no previous contact with Bella, she described herself as Ben’s ex-girlfriend. So, the following Sunday, Officer Able and Officer Conner parked their car down the street from Ben’s house.  And sure enough, at 1AM a black van arrived at Ben’s home, pulled into the driveway and two men carried two crates through a side door into Ben’s house. Furthermore, they witnessed throughout the following week men driving up to Ben’s home and leaving with little brown paper bags.  On the basis of this information Officer Able sought a warrant.  The warrant was approved by a superior court judge and executed by Officers Able and Conner.  When they arrived at Ben’s house they announced their presence and used a battering ram to crash through the front door.  In the kitchen Officer Able seized several brown bags containing heroin. After Officer Able announced his discovery, Officer Connor arrested Ben in the living room and immediately searched him and found a small packet of cocaine in Ben’s wallet. In the meantime, Officer Able conducted a sweep of the house and found cocaine in a baggie in a medicine cabinet in a bathroom located in a back room of Ben’s house. Please discuss all legal issues relating to: (a) the validity of the warrant; (b) the effect of the entry of the residence on the excludability of the heroin seized by Officer Able; (c) the seizure of the cocaine from Ben’s wallet; (d) the seizure of the cocaine from the medicine cabinet.