United States v. Thurmond, No. 14-1944 (8th Cir. 2015)
Annotate this CasePolice received a tip that people were selling crack cocaine from a specified address, that they drove a "new car," and identifying the license plate number. The number provided was registered to a 1994 GMC. Days later, an officer went to the address and collected trash bags next to the alley behind the residence. One contained "2 suspected marijuana roaches with green plant material inside that look[ed] and smell[ed] like marijuana, blunt material, blunt paper, 2 baggie knots, cigarillos wrappers, and a mail document from the State of Iowa … to Shaquandis Thurmond" at the same address. A field test of the suspected marijuana tested positive for THC. During surveillance, the officer saw a van parked behind the residence with the license plate number previously provided by the informant. Police records revealed that Thurmond was arrested a month earlier for possession of a controlled substance and had a juvenile criminal history including an assault and possession of a controlled substance. A search warrant issued. Upon execution, officers seized a sawed-off shotgun, marijuana and paraphernalia, and documents associated with Thurmond. After Thurmond entered a conditional guilty plea to possession of an unregistered firearm (26 U.S.C. 5845(a), 5861(d), and 5871), the Eighth Circuit affirmed denial of Thurmond’s motion to suppress.
Court Description: Criminal case - Criminal law. Search warrant was supported by probable cause based on a trash pull and defendant's history with controlled substance; two-day delay in seeking the warrant after the trash pull did not negate the existence of probable cause. [ April 10, 2015
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