Opinion ID: 752090
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Return of the Search Warrant

Text: 18 On the return of the search warrant for 862 Parham, the police listed three cellular phones, a pager, two Bell South phone cards, four bank transaction receipts, a driver's license, firearms, ammunition, and several other less significant items. The police admit that they seized some of the evidence from Charles's person and his cars rather than from 862 Parham. The police seized the phone cards, bank transaction receipts, and the driver's license from Charles's wallet during booking and inventory procedures. The pager was located in the white Buick that Charles was driving when he was arrested. The police also seized one of the cellular phones from the blue Buick station wagon parked in front of 862 Parham. The police did not have a warrant for either of the cars. While collecting the items, the police took notes detailing the location of each item. 19 Both the Supreme Court and the Sixth Circuit have held that absent a showing of prejudice, an error on the return of a warrant will not nullify the evidence gathered as a result of an otherwise valid warrant. Cady v. Dombrowski, 413 U.S. 433, 449, 93 S.Ct. 2523, 2532, 37 L.Ed.2d 706 (1973) (As these items were constitutionally seized, we do not deem it constitutionally significant that they were not listed in the return of the warrant.); United States v. Moore, 452 F.2d 569, 573 (6th Cir.1971) (holding that the defendant failed to show prejudice from the warrant return's omission of a seized item). 20 Charles claims that the marshals seized a black address book, a blue shaving bag with dog registration and vaccination records, a cell phone, case and batteries, and the title to a 1984 Buick from the station wagon parked in front of 862 Parham. Charles further asserts that the marshals had neither probable cause nor a warrant to search the station wagon, thus making the search unconstitutional. As a result of the faulty return, Charles claims that he is unable to distinguish between which items were seized lawfully and which were seized unlawfully. Consequently, he contends that the court must suppress all of the evidence seized that day. 21 The government contends that Charles was not prejudiced by the errors in the return of the search warrant. It argues that because the return listed all of the items seized, Charles was not surprised by any evidence introduced against him. The government also observes that Charles had the benefit of the officer's notes taken during the search. Moreover, the government argues that Charles had an opportunity to thoroughly question the police about the search and the original location of each seized item. Finally, the government claims that they seized only a cellular phone from the station wagon, and that the phone was not introduced into evidence at trial. In light of these assertions, the government argues that Charles was not prejudiced by the faulty return. 22 The district court found that the marshal's notes were particularly reliable because they were written contemporaneously with the search. These notes confirm and bolster the marshal's testimony that the cellular phone was the only item found in the station wagon. According to the marshal's notes, the rest of the items were seized from the front bedroom of the house. Furthermore, the district court found that Charles suffered no prejudice from the seizure of the phone because the government refrained from using the cellular phone at trial. 23 We conclude that the record supports the district court's findings about the location of the seized items. There is thus no basis to hold that the district court's ruling in this regard was clearly erroneous. While Charles might have been prejudiced if the return had been underinclusive, the opposite was true in this case. Charles had an opportunity to question the officers about the search and benefitted from access to the police officer's notes. Moreover, the record supports the district court's findings that the items seized were either seized as a result of a lawful search or were not introduced at trial. Thus, as a matter of law, the failure to accurately complete the return did not require the suppression of all the seized evidence.