Title: State v. Edwards

State: north-carolina

Issuer: North Carolina Supreme Court

Document:

209 S.E.2d 758 (1974)
286 N.C. 162
STATE of North Carolina
v.
Haywood EDWARDS.
No. 78.

Supreme Court of North Carolina.
November 26, 1974.
*759 Atty. Gen. James H. Carson, Jr. by Associate Atty. William A. Raney, Jr., Raleigh, for the State.
Turner & Harrison by Fred W. Harrison, Kinston, for defendant.
*760 BRANCH, Justice.
The Court of Appeals correctly decided that the trial judge properly considered a photostatic copy of the original search warrant for the purpose of passing upon the validity of the original. The State's evidence disclosed that the original search warrant was lost, and in our opinion the introduction of the photostatic copy of the original provided plenary evidence both of the contents of the original and of regularity on its face. See State v. Cobb, 250 N.C. 234, 108 S.E.2d 237; State v. McMilliam, 243 N.C. 771, 92 S.E.2d 202.
Defendant's argument that the evidence resulting from the search was inadmissible because the affidavit upon which the search warrant was issued was insufficient to establish probable cause to search poses a more serious question.
The affidavit upon which the search warrant was issued averred:
A search warrant will not be issued except upon a finding of probable cause. Both the state and federal decisions require that the issuing magistrate have before him circumstances which raise a reasonable ground to believe that the proposed search will reveal the presence of the objects sought upon the premises to be searched and that such objects will aid in the apprehension or conviction of the offender. State v. Campbell, 282 N.C. 125, 191 S.E.2d 752; State v. Vestal, 278 N.C. 561, 180 S.E.2d 755.
The United States Supreme Court considered the sufficiency of an affidavit to support issuance of a search warrant in the case of Aguilar v. Texas, 378 U.S. 108, 84 S. Ct. 1509, 12 L.E.2d 723. The affidavits upon which the search warrants were based in Aguilar and the affidavit in the case sub judice are strikingly similar. The affidavit in Aguilar, in pertinent part, recited:
In Aguilar the United States Supreme Court held that the affidavit did not provide a sufficient basis for a finding of probable cause to search and, inter alia, stated:
Aguilar was followed by Spinelli v. United States, 393 U.S. 410, 89 S. Ct. 584, 21 L. Ed. 2d 637, and in that case the Supreme Court approved the standards set forth in Aguilar and further refined the procedures mandated by the Constitution relating to the issuance of search warrants. We quote from that opinion:
In State v. Campbell, supra, a search warrant was issued upon an affidavit which in relevant part recited:
In Campbell, following the rule set forth in Aguilar, and citing Spinelli and Vestal, Justice Huskins, writing for a unanimous Court, stated:
The affidavit in instant case, as in Aguilar and Campbell, does not contain any semblance of a statement showing underlying circumstances from which the informant concluded that the articles sought were where he declared they were.
In reaching its decision, the Court of Appeals relied upon language taken from Spinelli v. United States, supra, and United States v. Harris, 403 U.S. 573, 91 S. Ct. 2075, 29 L. Ed. 2d 723. The language from Spinelli is as follows:
It should be borne in mind that this language is taken out of context and that Spinelli in fact approved the standards set forth in Aguilar and held that there was not sufficient probable cause for issuance of a search warrant.
The Court of Appeals quoted the following language from Harris:
We are in complete accord with the rationale of this language and heartily approve a rule based upon common sense and realism instead of one based upon technical requirements of great specificity. However, neither Harris nor Ventresca furnishes guidance for decision in this case since each of those cases arose upon facts radically different from those presently before us.
In Harris the affidavit upon which the search warrant authorizing search for illicit liquor was issued stated that the informant, whom the affiant had found to be a prudent person, gave affiant a sworn statement (1) that he had purchased illicit whiskey *763 from within accused's residence for a period of more than two years and had made purchases most recently within two weeks of the giving of the information, (2) that he had knowledge of another person who had purchased illicit whiskey within two days, and (3) that he had seen accused bring whiskey from outbuildings and deliver it to other persons. In addition the affiant recited facts concerning his knowledge of accused's bad reputation as a trafficker in illicit whiskey.
In Ventresca the affidavit which was executed to support issuance of a search warrant of premises suspected to house an illicit distillery contained statements by affiant based on his personal knowledge and based upon information obtained from other governmental investigators to the effect that within a month a Pontiac automobile had on four oocasions carried loads of bagged sugar to the house in question, had twice carried tin cans to the house, and had been loaded from the house with apparently full five-gallon cans. The investigators simultaneously smelled the odor of fermenting mash in front of the house and heard metallic noises and the sound of a motor or pump emanating from the house.
Unquestionably in Ventresca and Harris there were strong statements in the respective affidavits showing underlying circumstances upon which the informant based his belief of probable cause. Under these circumstances the Court very properly refused to invalidate the search warrants; however, we do not interpret these cases to hold that Aguilar, Spinelli, Vestal and Campbell are no longer the law. Neither has our research disclosed any other decision by the United States Supreme Court which overrules the holdings in these decisions.
We conclude that in instant case the search warrant was invalid because the affiant did not inform the magistrate of any underlying circumstances from which the informant concluded that non-tax-paid whiskey was where he said that it was. Neither does the record disclose that the magistrate was furnished any evidence of probable cause other than that contained in the affidavit. Since there was not sufficient basis for a finding of probable cause to issue the search warrant, the evidence obtained as a result of its issuance was erroneously admitted at trial.
The decision of the Court of Appeals is reversed, and this cause is remanded to that Court for entry of order remanding it to the Superior Court of Lenoir County for further proceedings not inconsistent with this opinion.
Reversed and remanded.
BOBBITT, C. J., not sitting.