People v. Wadleigh
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The National Center on Missing and Exploited Children reported a tip that username “mrwadleigh@sbcglobal.net” had uploaded 23 images of child pornography to an Adobe account, associated with an AT&T account. Detective DeRespini prepared a warrant application, identifying four images as child pornography and describing the images and why he believed the subjects were children. DeRespini did not attach the images. With a warrant, DeRespini learned the address of Wadleigh’s likely residence and that the Adobe and AT&T accounts were his. The search yielded 41 more images. DeRespini conducted social media searches and surveillance, confirmed Wadleigh’s residence and vehicle, and prepared a second warrant application to search Wadleigh’s person, vehicle, and residence; to search for and seize his electronic devices and stored digital media; and to conduct a forensic examination of seized items. DeRespini restated his experience and training and repeated the description of the original four images but did not include actual images. With the second warrant, officers seized items that contained additional child pornography.
Wadleigh unsuccessfully moved to suppress the evidence. The court of appeal affirmed. The warrant applications contained sufficient factual detail to establish probable cause. DeRespini misdescribed one of the images and testified that he was taught not to include images of suspected child pornography in warrant applications; the court noted that the preferable course is to include the actual images purporting to establish probable cause.
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