United States v. Seerden, No. 18-4124 (4th Cir. 2019)
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The Fourth Circuit affirmed Appellant’s conviction of production of child pornography, holding that the good faith exception to the exclusionary rule applies to evidence obtained through a military warrant and that evidence subsequently obtained through a federal warrant supported by the military warrant evidence is likewise admissible.
Appellant, a member of the United States Navy, was accused of sexual assault and suspected of possession of child pornography. Investigators with the Naval Criminal Investigation Service obtained a military warrant to search Appellant’s cell phone for evidence of sexual assault. During the search, the investigators found child pornography. The investigators then obtained a federal warrant to search Appellant’s phone a second time and again found child pornography. Appellant moved to suppress the evidence obtained from the two searches of the phone, arguing that the Military Rules of Evidence applied in his case and required suppression. The district court denied the motion. The Fourth Circuit affirmed, holding (1) the Fourth Amendment governs whether evidence is admissible in federal criminal proceedings, and the Military Rules of Evidence cannot supplant the Fourth Amendment; and (2) even assuming the initial warrant violated the Fourth Amendment, the good faith exception saved the evidence obtained from both searches.
The court issued a subsequent related opinion or order on February 21, 2019.
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