State v. Jones, No. 25188.
| Court | United States State Supreme Court of South Carolina |
| Writing for the Court | PLEICONES, Justice |
| Citation | 536 S.E.2d 675,342 S.C. 121 |
| Parties | The STATE, Petitioner, v. Lorenzo Labelle JONES and Melvin Patrick Riles, Respondents. |
| Docket Number | No. 25188. |
| Decision Date | 21 August 2000 |
342 S.C. 121
536 S.E.2d 675
v.
Lorenzo Labelle JONES and Melvin Patrick Riles, Respondents
No. 25188.
Supreme Court of South Carolina.
Heard June 6, 2000.
Decided August 21, 2000.
Frederick A. Hoefer, II, and Kevin M. Barth of Harwell, Ballenger, Barth & Hoefer, L.L.P., for respondents.
We granted certiorari to review the Court of Appeals' holding in State v. Jones, 331 S.C. 228, 500 S.E.2d 499 (Ct.App.1998) that probable cause did not exist to issue a search warrant when the affidavit contained a false statement. We affirm.
ISSUE
Did the Court of Appeals err in holding that a magistrate did not have a substantial basis for finding probable cause to issue a search warrant even when an affiant substituted truthful oral information for false information he had intentionally included in the affidavit?
FACTS
The Drug Unit of the Florence Police Department received a tip from a confidential informant that cocaine had been stored at a particular home in Florence and that a shipment would be arriving that weekend. The informant described the van that would be used to transport the drugs, and told the officers that the van would pull behind the house, to prevent it from being seen from the road.
The Drug Unit set up surveillance of the house. After the arrival of the van, an officer took an affidavit for a search warrant to a magistrate. The affidavit stated:
Over the past three weeks an agent of the Florence Combined Drug Unit has observed a quantity of cocaine being stored on the premises. That agent has been responsible for the seizure of illicit drugs and the arrest of illicit drug violators in the past. Information given by this agent has been corroborated by surveillance agents pertaining to this case. (emphasis added).
The affiant, a police officer, verbally advised the magistrate that he had intentionally used the term "agent" instead of "informant" in the affidavit in order to protect the identity of his informant. The affiant truthfully repeated the information his informant had given him and also told the magistrate about the surveillance by police agents.
Defendants moved during the trial to suppress the evidence obtained as a result of the search warrant, arguing that the informant was falsely identified as an "agent" in the affidavit. In an evidentiary hearing, the magistrate testified that even after the verbal information provided by the affiant, he was under the impression that the "agent/informant" was a police officer. And he would possibly have asked more questions had he known that such was not the case. The trial court denied Defendants' motion, holding that the magistrate had a substantial basis to find probable cause.
Defendants were convicted of trafficking cocaine, and sentenced to imprisonment of thirty years.
In State v. Jones, 331 S.C. 228, 500 S.E.2d 499 (Ct.App. 1998), the Court of Appeals reversed the trial court and remanded for a new trial. The Court of Appeals held that the evidence should be suppressed because the false affidavit circumvented the affidavit requirement of S.C.Code Ann. § 17-13-140 (1985) and State v. McKnight, 291 S.C. 110, 352 S.E.2d 471 (1987). The Court of Appeals then denied the State's petition for rehearing.
We granted certiorari, and now affirm.
DISCUSSION
When reviewing a magistrate's decision to issue a search warrant, we must consider the...
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State v. Dupree, 3657.
...This review, like the determination by the magistrate, is governed by the "totality of the circumstances" test. State v. Jones, 342 S.C. 121, 536 S.E.2d 675 (2000); King, 349 S.C. at 148, 561 S.E.2d at 643. The appellate court should give great deference to a magistrate's determination of p......
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State v. Fletcher, 3940.
...no more). This review, like the determination by the magistrate, is governed by the "totality of the circumstances" test. State v. Jones, 342 S.C. 121, 536 S.E.2d 675 (2000); King, 349 S.C. at 148, 561 S.E.2d at 643. The appellate court should give great deference to a magistrate's determin......
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State v. Bowie, 3835.
...review, like the determination by the magistrate, is governed by the "totality of the circumstances" test. 360 S.C. 217 State v. Jones, 342 S.C. 121, 536 S.E.2d 675 (2000); King, 349 S.C. at 148, 561 S.E.2d at 643. The appellate court should give great deference to a magistrate's determinat......
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State v. Covert, 4071.
...of the South Carolina Code actually imposes stricter warrant requirements than the constitutional provisions. See State v. Jones, 342 S.C. 121, 128, 536 S.E.2d 675, 678 (2000). Therefore, the Leon good faith exception is not applicable to this case and we must determine whether there is a g......
-
State v. Dupree, No. 3657.
...This review, like the determination by the magistrate, is governed by the "totality of the circumstances" test. State v. Jones, 342 S.C. 121, 536 S.E.2d 675 (2000); King, 349 S.C. at 148, 561 S.E.2d at 643. The appellate court should give great deference to a magistrate's determination of p......
-
State v. Bowie, No. 3835.
...review, like the determination by the magistrate, is governed by the "totality of the circumstances" test. 360 S.C. 217 State v. Jones, 342 S.C. 121, 536 S.E.2d 675 (2000); King, 349 S.C. at 148, 561 S.E.2d at 643. The appellate court should give great deference to a magistrate's determinat......
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State v. Fletcher, No. 3940.
...no more). This review, like the determination by the magistrate, is governed by the "totality of the circumstances" test. State v. Jones, 342 S.C. 121, 536 S.E.2d 675 (2000); King, 349 S.C. at 148, 561 S.E.2d at 643. The appellate court should give great deference to a magistrate's determin......
-
State v. Covert, No. 4071.
...of the South Carolina Code actually imposes stricter warrant requirements than the constitutional provisions. See State v. Jones, 342 S.C. 121, 128, 536 S.E.2d 675, 678 (2000). Therefore, the Leon good faith exception is not applicable to this case and we must determine whether there is a g......