Opinion ID: 4536868
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Initial Search of the Inside of Grey’s

Text: House Around 10:00 that morning, “before executing the warrant and as part of [their] orders to provide security for the inspection, LASD deputies entered the house to look around and determine whether there were other individuals or any dangerous conditions inside the house that could harm City of Lancaster inspectors when they executed the warrant.” Before entering the house, Wolanski turned on his body camera. The deputies drew their weapons and approached the house. Using Grey’s keys, they entered the house with their weapons drawn. The body camera captured an officer using a flashlight attached to his gun to search behind and next to the couch in the living room. The body camera turned off as the officers started to move into the other rooms of the house. Sergeant Wolanski and Deputy Lopez stated that they viewed firearms and ammunition in plain view during their survey of Grey’s house. At the evidentiary hearing, Wolanski testified that this “walk-through” took a “[v]ery short time” 16 UNITED STATES V. GREY – “a couple of minutes,” but Lopez stated that it took 15 to 20 minutes to complete. Both Wolanski and Lopez testified that they did not touch any items in the house during this survey. After determining that the house was safe, the officers went outside to await a criminal search warrant to search Grey’s residence. Deputy Lopez drafted the affidavit for the criminal search warrant. In his affidavit, Lopez stated that “while assisting the City of Lancaster with an abatement warrant . . . [he] saw in plain view, multiple handguns (one of which was clearly loaded), rifles, firearm parts, and ammunition while inside.” Lopez also stated that he observed drug paraphernalia and a large amount of an off-white crystalline substance resembling methamphetamine in plain view. Lopez added that the controlled substance was “in plain view on the coffee table of the living room,” that “ammunition and firearm accessories were seen on multiple tables throughout the location in plain view,” and that “multiple firearms were seen on the floor and on a desk inside of one of the bedrooms.” Based on these observations and Grey’s status as a convicted felon, Lopez sought a search warrant for Grey’s house. Id.