Opinion ID: 2786028
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Probable-Cause Determination

Text: Sewell argues that the warrant to search Sawmill Woods Court was issued without probable cause. His argument boils down to an attack on Agent Keszei’s affidavit, the sole evidence upon which the magistrate judge based his proba- ble-cause determination. Specifically, Sewell argues that the affidavit was deficient because it failed to show that he was involved in any criminal activity. And even if it did, then the affidavit failed to establish a connection between that criminal activity and Sawmill Woods Court. We disagree. To begin, we afford great deference to the decision of the magistrate judge who issued the warrant. United States v. Alijabari, 626 F.3d 940, 944 (7th Cir. 2010). Although we review the sufficiency of the officer’s affidavit de novo (insofar as it presents questions of law under the Fourth Amendment), Alijabari, 626 F.3d at 944, we remain mindful that the magistrate judge must “make a practical, common- sense decision whether, given all the circumstances set forth No. 14-1384 9 in the affidavit before him, including the veracity and basis of knowledge of persons supplying hearsay information, there is a fair probability that contraband or evidence of a crime will be found in a particular place.” Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. 213, 238 (1983) (internal quotation marks omitted). Probable cause exists “where the known facts and circumstances are sufficient to warrant a man of reasonable prudence in the belief that contraband or evidence of a crime will be found[.]” Ornelas v. United States, 517 U.S. 690, 696 (1996). A “fluid concept,” its determination rests on “the factual and practical considerations of everyday life on which reasonable and prudent men, not legal technicians, act.” United States v. Carroll, 750 F.3d 700, 703 (7th Cir. 2014) (citations omitted). As a result, we will not disturb a finding of probable cause so long as the issuing judge had a substantial basis for concluding that the proposed search would uncover evidence of wrongdoing. United States v. Dismuke, 593 F.3d 582, 586 (7th Cir. 2010) (citations omitted). Our independent review of Agent Keszei’s affidavit convinces us that the magistrate judge had a substantial basis for his probable-cause finding. Three primary factors produce this result: (1) the recorded conversations; (2) the corroborating evidence; and (3) the reasonable inferences drawn therefrom. These factors weave together a stout fabric of probable cause, rightly resulting in the magistrate judge’s issuance of the warrant. We start with the recorded conversations. Sewell argues that they contain nothing more than “neutral words.” (Appellant’s Br. 16.) But neutral words, used in the right context, can harbor sinister meaning. Cf. United States v. Harris, 271 F.3d 690, 702 (7th Cir. 2001) (“It is well known that drug 10 No. 14-1384 dealers commonly use code language out of fear that their conversations will be intercepted.”). Here, the frequency and timing of the so-called “neutral words,” juxtaposed against real-time events (recall the drug busts and cash seizures), produced a reasonable inference that something criminal was afoot. Agent Keszei’s experience in law enforcement and narcotics, moreover, added much weight to the affidavit. He offered opinions and inferences upon which the magistrate judge was entitled to rely. See United States v. Elst, 579 F.3d 740, 746 (7th Cir. 2009) (“Experienced law enforcement officers (as well as experienced magistrates) are permitted to draw reasonable inferences from the facts based on their training and experience.”). He deciphered that “stuff” meant “drugs,” and “the one” meant “one kilogram” of cocaine. Castaneda confirmed the latter translation during trial. Adding an element of common sense, Agent Keszei also noted that Sewell’s desire to wait to meet Castaneda until it “gets a little … dark” was a deliberate effort to avoid surveillance or detection. When viewed in a vacuum, scheduling a nighttime meeting may not mean anything at all. But in reviewing a probable cause determination, our scope has never been so limited. We employ a totality-of-the- circumstances approach that reviews all the evidence, taken together, in the context of the case at hand. See United States v. Glover, 755 F.3d 811, 816 (7th Cir. 2014) (citing Gates, 462 U.S. at 238). The nighttime meeting, therefore, cannot be divorced from the repeated use of coded language, spanning a large period of time, and spoken over numerous telephones. These facts, given the totality of the circumstances, evince a No. 14-1384 11 guilty mind’s effort to escape police detection—an effort that lends further support to the finding of probable cause. Other evidence supports our independent finding of probable cause. In his sixty-five page affidavit, Agent Keszei also recounted the numerous calls and texts exchanged between Castaneda and Sewell and other associates—persons all associated with the drug trade and positively identified through voice recognition techniques and subscriber information. Agent Keszei recounted the drug and cash seizures throughout the course of the investigation, seizures precipitated by (and consistent with) these recorded conversations. And he connected Sewell as Castaneda’s associate based on their in-person meetings and their uncanny ability to maintain a steady line of communication, despite swapping out numerous telephones. Even if we discount the drug and cash seizures as mere coincidences, at some point the “succession of superficially innocent events had proceeded to the point where a prudent man could say to himself that an innocent course of conduct was substantially less likely than a criminal one.” United States v. Bernard, 623 F.2d 551, 560 (9th Cir. 1979) (citations omitted). Sewell’s backup argument that the affidavit failed to connect him to Sawmill Woods Court fares no better. “Warrants may be issued even in the absence of direct evidence linking criminal objects to a particular site.” United States v. Orozco, 576 F.3d 745, 749 (7th Cir. 2009). Additionally, “courts are ‘entitled to draw reasonable inferences about where evidence is likely to be kept, based on the nature of the evidence and the type of offense, and specifically, in the case of drug dealers, evidence is likely to be found where the dealers live.’” United States v. Kelly, 772 F.3d 1072, 1080 (7th Cir. 2014) 12 No. 14-1384 (quoting Orozco, 576 F.3d at 749) (emphasis added). Here, it was entirely reasonable to infer that Sewell lived with his wife, even if only her name appeared on the lease. Many married couples live together, after all. And if he lived with his wife, then it was also entirely reasonable to believe that he operated his drug business from the home, as other drug dealers do. See Kelly, 772 F.3d at 1080; see also United States v. Anderson, 618 F.3d 873, 881 (8th Cir. 2010) (“Drug dealers commonly put their property in someone else’s name to avoid detection.”) (citation omitted). But if more is needed, Sewell had been seen at Sawmill Woods Court on at least three occasions, including one occasion after his wife secured the protective order against him. So even if the two had a falling out, it was reasonable to infer that by that point the two had reconciled—a fact that increases the odds that Sewell could be found there. Critically, the identified drug supplier, Castaneda, had also been seen at Sawmill Woods Court. For all these reasons, Sewell’s arguments regarding probable cause are unavailing. Agent Keszei’s comprehensive affidavit established probable cause, and the magistrate judge made the correct call in issuing the warrant. We will not disturb it on appeal.