Com. v. Payton
| Court | Superior Court of Pennsylvania |
| Writing for the Court | SPAULDING |
| Citation | 212 Pa.Super. 254,243 A.2d 202 |
| Decision Date | 14 June 1968 |
| Parties | COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Appellant, v. Mattie Velma PAYTON. |
Page 202
v.
Mattie Velma PAYTON.
[212 Pa.Super. 255]
Page 203
Michael M. Baylson, Asst. Dist. Atty., Philadelphia, Michael J. Rotko, Asst. dist. Atty., Chief, Appeals Div., Arlen Specter, Dist. Atty., for appellant.Melvin Dildine, Chief, Appeals Div., Philadelphia, Herman I. Pollock, Defender, for appellee.
Before WRIGHT, P.J., and WATKINS, MONTGOMERY, JACOBS, HOFFMAN, SPAULDING and HANNUM, JJ.
[212 Pa.Super. 256] SPAULDING, Judge.
This is an appeal by the Commonwealth from an order of the court of Quarter Sessions of Philadelphia County suppressing evidence seized from the residence of Mattie Velma Payton, appellee. 1 The residence, 1726 West Oxford Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was searched on April 18, 1967 pursuant to a warrant, one copy book and 20 slips of paper containing approximately 3,185 plays being seized. 2
The sole issue raised on this appeal is whether the affidavit on which the search warrant was based established probable cause.
In passing on the validity of a search warrant we may consider only information brought to the magistrate's attention. Giordenello v. United States, 357 U.S. 480, 78 S.Ct. 1245, 2 L.Ed.2d 1503 (1958). 'It is fundamental that facts or circumstances must be presented to the magistrate under oath or affirmation from which he may make an independent and detached appraisal that probable cause for the search exists * * *.' Commonwealth v. Rose, 211 Pa.Super. 295, 235 A.2d 462, 464 (1967); Aguilar v. State of Texas, 378 U.S. 108, 84 S.Ct. 1509, 12 L.Ed.2d 723 (1964). In making such an appraisal, the affidavit must be read in a commonsense and nontechnical manner. Rose, supra; United States v. Ventresca, 380 U.S. 102, 85 S.Ct. 741, 13 L.Ed.2d 684 (1965).
The leading case of Aguilar v. State of Texas, supra, establishes the following two-pronged constitutional test to be used when assessing the validity of search warrants: 'Although an affidavit may be based on hearsay information and need not reflect the direct personal observations[212 Pa.Super. 257] of the affiant * * * the magistrate must be informed of some of the underlying circumstances from which the informant concluded that (the paraphernalia) was where he claimed (it was), and some of the underlying circumstances from which the officer concluded that the informant, whose identity need not be disclosed * * * was 'credible' or his information 'reliable'.' (378 U.S. at 114, 84 S.Ct. at 1514)
In the instant case the warrant was based on the following: 'Information has been received from a source which has resulted in numerous arrests and convictions in...
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Com. v. Lapia
...so as not to be substantially handicapped. In these cases, as well as in others, e.g., Commonwealth v. Payton, 212 Pa.Superior Ct. 254, 243 A.2d 202 (1968); Commonwealth v. Hernley, 216 Pa.Superior Ct. 177, 263 A.2d 904 (1970), cert. denied, 401 U.S. 914, 91 S.Ct. 886, 27 L.Ed.2d 813 (1971)......
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Commonwealth v. Lapia
...so as not to be substantially handicapped. In these cases, as well as in others, e.g., Commonwealth v. Payton, 212 Pa.Superior Ct. 254, 243 A.2d 202 (1968); Commonwealth v. Hernley, 216 Pa.Superior Ct. 177, 263 A.2d 904 (1970), cert. denied, 401 U.S. 914, 91 S.Ct. 886, 27 L.Ed.2d 813 (1971)......
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Com. v. Matthews
...reading of the entire affidavit. United States v. Ventresca, 380 U.S. 102, 85 S.Ct. 741, 13 L.Ed.2d 684 (1965); Commonwealth v. Payton, 212 Pa.Super. 254, 243 A.2d 202 (1968). Thus [446 Pa. 70] the long standing principle, that probable cause will be determined by a 'neutral and detached ma......
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Commonwealth v. Matthews
...reading of the entire affidavit. United States v. Ventresca, 380 U.S. 102, 85 S.Ct. 741, 13 L.Ed.2d 684 (1965); Commonwealth v. Payton, 212 Pa.Super. 254, 243 A.2d 202 (1968). Thus [446 Pa. 70] the long standing principle, that probable cause will be determined by a 'neutral and detached ma......
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Com. v. Lapia
...so as not to be substantially handicapped. In these cases, as well as in others, e.g., Commonwealth v. Payton, 212 Pa.Superior Ct. 254, 243 A.2d 202 (1968); Commonwealth v. Hernley, 216 Pa.Superior Ct. 177, 263 A.2d 904 (1970), cert. denied, 401 U.S. 914, 91 S.Ct. 886, 27 L.Ed.2d 813 (1971)......
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Commonwealth v. Lapia
...so as not to be substantially handicapped. In these cases, as well as in others, e.g., Commonwealth v. Payton, 212 Pa.Superior Ct. 254, 243 A.2d 202 (1968); Commonwealth v. Hernley, 216 Pa.Superior Ct. 177, 263 A.2d 904 (1970), cert. denied, 401 U.S. 914, 91 S.Ct. 886, 27 L.Ed.2d 813 (1971)......
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Com. v. Matthews
...reading of the entire affidavit. United States v. Ventresca, 380 U.S. 102, 85 S.Ct. 741, 13 L.Ed.2d 684 (1965); Commonwealth v. Payton, 212 Pa.Super. 254, 243 A.2d 202 (1968). Thus [446 Pa. 70] the long standing principle, that probable cause will be determined by a 'neutral and detached ma......
-
Commonwealth v. Matthews
...reading of the entire affidavit. United States v. Ventresca, 380 U.S. 102, 85 S.Ct. 741, 13 L.Ed.2d 684 (1965); Commonwealth v. Payton, 212 Pa.Super. 254, 243 A.2d 202 (1968). Thus [446 Pa. 70] the long standing principle, that probable cause will be determined by a 'neutral and detached ma......