Opinion ID: 626752
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Search Warrant for Home

Text: Lebowitz requested a Franks hearing to challenge the validity of Investigator Suber's affidavit supporting the warrant to search his home. Lebowitz claimed Investigator Suber intentionally or recklessly omitted from her affidavit that K.S. had provided a false age on his MySpace page. The district court refused to hold a hearing. We will review the district court's refusal to hold a Franks evidentiary hearing de novo. [1] We review de novo a probable cause determination. United States v. Gamory, 635 F.3d 480, 490 (11th Cir.2011). Affidavits supporting warrants are presumptively valid. Id. [I]ntentional or reckless omissions will invalidate a warrant only if inclusion of the omitted facts would have prevented a finding of probable cause. United States v. Kapordelis, 569 F.3d 1291, 1309 (11th Cir.2009) (citation omitted). The defendant bears the burden of demonstrating that the alleged omission would have prevented a finding of probable cause. See United States v. Novaton, 271 F.3d 968, 986-87 (11th Cir.2001). Probable cause to support a search warrant exists when the totality of the circumstances allows the conclusion that there is a fair probability that contraband or evidence of a crime will be found in a particular place. Kapordelis, 569 F.3d at 1310 (quotation omitted). When law enforcement seeks a warrant to search a residence, the affidavit must supply the authorizing magistrate with a reasonable basis for concluding that Defendant might keep evidence of his crimes at his home. Id. (quotation omitted). The affidavit need not allege illegal activity occurred at the home, id., but the affidavit should establish a connection between the defendant and the residence to be searched and a link between the residence and any criminal activity. Martin, 297 F.3d at 1314. Lebowitz argues that the timing of his knowledge of K.S.'s age creates an innocent explanation for his conduct, and therefore the inclusion of K.S.'s misleading statements about his age would have prevented a finding of probable cause. However, a post-hoc innocent explanation for incriminating behavior does not vitiate a finding of probable cause. See United States v. Gonzalez, 969 F.2d 999, 1003-04 (11th Cir.1992). Lebowitz engaged in graphic sexual conversations with K.S. Any ambiguity as to K.S.'s age is immaterial because Lebowitz admits he learned that K.S. was a 15-year-old boy prior to appearing at K.S.'s home possessing condoms and lubricants. These facts established probable cause to support Lebowitz's arrest for attempted child molestation. Lebowitz's use of his home computer to contact his intended sexual partner established the necessary connection between his residence and his suspected criminal activity. Those contacts need not have been illegal to provide a reasonable basis to believe that evidence of Lebowitz's attempted child molestation would be recovered from his home. Because inclusion of the alleged omission would not have prevented a finding of probable cause, a Franks hearing was unnecessary. Lebowitz also sought to suppress the VHS tape seized during the search of his home, contending that probable cause did not support inclusion of pornographic material and any items commonly found in child pornogrphic [sic] cases in the warrant as items to be seized. The district court refused to suppress the VHS tape. Even if we were to accept Lebowitz's argument that probable cause did not support inclusion of pornographic material and any items commonly found in child pornogrphic [sic] cases in the warrant, we find that the good-faith exception to the exclusionary rule would apply. [2] Generally, courts should not exclude evidence obtained by police officers acting in reasonable reliance on a search warrant. United States v. Leon, 468 U.S. 897, 922, 104 S.Ct. 3405, 3420, 82 L.Ed.2d 677 (1984). Only four limited sets of circumstances prevent use of the good-faith exception. Martin, 297 F.3d at 1313. None are applicable here. The district court correctly refused to suppress the VHS tape. [3]