Opinion ID: 1989447
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Object of the Search

Text: Turner argues that the object of the search  a handgun reportedly seen in the possession of one of the victims at the time of the murders  was neither contraband nor evidence of a crime and, therefore, did not fall within one of the statutory categories of items for which a search warrant may be properly issued. [1] Turner's argument is contrary to subsection (5) of Section 2305. Pursuant to Section 2305(5), a warrant may issue for anything of an evidentiary nature pertaining to the commission of a crime or crimes. A search warrant may not issue except upon a determination of probable cause. There is no requirement, however, that the owner or possessor of the property to be seized be viewed as a suspect. [2] The Fourth Amendment does not foreclose the issuance of a search warrant directed to a third party not `implicated in misconduct.' [3] As long as the search is reasonable under the Fourth Amendment, the State interest in enforcing the criminal law and recovering the evidence remains the same, whether the third party is a suspect or not. [4] In this case, at the time the search warrant was issued for Turner's residence, he was an innocent third party. The requirement of probable cause in that context is directed to the relationship between the crime under investigation and the evidence sought to be seized. [5] A handgun seen in the possession of one of the victims was not, under the circumstances of the homicide investigation, the probable murder weapon. Nevertheless, evidence that one of the victims had a gun was relevant to establishing the nature and degree of the homicides. The Superior Court properly ruled that the victim's weapon constituted Brady [6] material that the police were required, under established law, to gather and preserve for the defendants charged with the homicides. [7] Consequently, the victim's gun would be an item of an evidentiary nature pertaining to the commission of a crime. [8]