Opinion ID: 1971932
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: issuance of the search warrant

Text: The first two claims of error focus on the search warrant issued by a complaint justice that authorized the search of the defendant's residence located in Hampden. The defendant asserts that the search warrant was invalid because the complaint justice was not a justice of the peace as required by 4 M.R.S.A. § 161 (1964). We disagree. Section 161 provides that any licensed attorney who is also a justice of the peace may be authorized to issue search warrants. In 1981, the Legislature enacted a statute governing the appointment of notaries public and justices of the peace, phasing out the office of justice of the peace. 5 M.R.S.A. § 82 (Supp.1985-1986). The revision clause of the 1981 statute provides that whenever the words justice of the peace appear in the Revised Statutes, they shall be amended to read notary public, except when those words are used to refer only to actions taken prior to the effective date of the Act. P.L. 1981, ch. 456, § 128 (effective July 1, 1981). The action challenged here, the issuance of the search warrant, was taken on December 11, 1984. Accordingly, the complaint justice, who as an attorney, had all of the powers of a notary public, [1] was authorized to issue a valid search warrant for the defendant's residence. The defendant also challenges the probable cause determination made by the complaint justice. Because the defendant at the suppression hearing limited his attack to the execution of the search warrant and did not challenge the sufficiency of the probable cause, we decline to review the issue, raised for the first time, whether probable cause existed for the issuance of the search warrant. Cf. State v. Thornton, 485 A.2d 952, 953 (Me.1984); State v. House, 481 A.2d 1129, 1134 (Me.1984).