Opinion ID: 2078310
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Adequacy of the Search Warrant

Text: Guajardo also claims that the court improperly admitted evidence seized under the search warrant. He claims the warrant was defective and, therefore, any evidence seized under its authority should have been excluded. Nash v. State (1982), Ind. App., 433 N.E.2d 807. Guajardo alleges that the probable cause affidavit could not support a warrant because it was defective in two respects. First, Guajardo alleges the affidavit did not identify his vehicle as the one used by the rapist. He notes that the affidavit did not describe the exterior of the vehicle. The affidavit quotes T.K. as describing the seats as black when they were a combination of brown and black. Guajardo also notes that the affidavit failed to state that he does not fit T.K.'s original description of her attacker. Therefore, Guajardo claims that the officer's statement in the affidavit that we located the herein described vehicle was merely his conclusion because the other information within the affidavit does not support the proposition that Guajardo's vehicle was used for the rape. Attestations contained in a probable cause affidavit for a search warrant must be based upon fact and not merely be conclusions of the affiant or a witness. Short v. State (1982), Ind., 443 N.E.2d 298. While the affidavit did not recount T.K.'s description of the outside of the assailant's vehicle, it did include T.K.'s detailed portrayal of the vehicle's interior: a black bench-type front seat; the front seat was split so that the driver's side portion was smaller than the passenger side; that a multi-colored blanket, with red the prominent color, covered the portion of the front seat where one would seat (sic); there was no back seat in the vehicle; there was some type of bed made up in the back, possibly made of folded blankets, and covered by a blue covering; an uncovered spare tire was located in the rear of the vehicle on the driver's side; and there was an automatic selector on the front floorboard. The affidavit later notes that this description matched Guajardo's identically. The affidavit adequately described Guajardo's vehicle as that of the rapist. Furthermore, T.K.'s description of her attacker matched Guajardo except as to height and weight. Failure to note this discrepancy in the affidavit did not render it invalid. Guajardo also alleges the probable cause affidavit was defective because it was based on stale information. He suggests that the items sought had last been observed eight days prior to the request for the warrant. He argues that there would be a substantial probability that such items would be removed and otherwise utilized during an eight (8) day period. Appellant ignores the fact that the search warrant was obtained and executed on the same day that T.K. examined and identified the vehicle. She identified the specific items seized during the search by looking through the window of the vehicle. An affidavit based on information only hours old is not defective for staleness. See, e.g., Sowers v. State (1981), Ind. App., 416 N.E.2d 466 (probable cause affidavit containing two-day-old information relating to drugs was not stale).