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MA: "Immediately apparent" means related to the ongoing investigation

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

In a homicide investigation, officers also got a search warrant. They found Post-It Notes around the house which they seized because they related to the divorce proceedings between defendant and the victim. The plain view doctrine permitted their seizure, and “immediately apparent” means logically related to the subject of the investigation. Commonwealth v. Sliech-Brodeur, 2010 Mass. LEXIS 405 (July 19, 2010): Although the warrant for the defendant’s home did not authorize the officers to search for or seize documents or writings, it would be unrealistic to require officers to ignore what is immediately in front of them. See, e.g., United States v. Crouch, 648 F.2d 932, 933 (4th Cir.), cert. denied, 454 U.S. 952 (1981) (during search pursuant to warrant that did not authorize search for documents or writings, officers discovered incriminating letters; court attached no significance to “the fact that some cursory reading of the letters was necessary in order to establish their nature”); United States v...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on July 20, 2010 (boomark / email).