Court Opinion

ID: 9473030
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-05 04:17:23.896264+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:43:16.834010
License: Public Domain

PELL, Circuit Judge,
dissenting.
Notwithstanding OSHA’s speculative assertions that it would have made a plant-wide inspection of the Cerro facility in any event, the fact remains that the inspection procedure was triggered by an employee’s specific complaint directed basically against a crane operation. Because it appears to me that the district court reached a correct result in heading off this particular fishing expedition sought by OSHA, I am in disagreement with the majority and respectfully dissent.
One fact, it seems to me, stands out in this record more than all others, and that is in the inspection that was actually made OSHA found some 32 cranes which by similarity of design and operation were potential hazards. There also was, of course, a *284general reference to other serious health hazards including overexposure to noise and oil mist. There is no showing, however, that any of these hazards were associated with any part of the facility other than those pertaining to the operation of the cranes.
This court in Donovan v. Fall Rivers Foundry Co., Inc., 712 F.2d 1103 (7th Cir.1983), stated a principle which I think should be applicable to bridle the uncontrolled searching discretion which OSHA inspectors apparently would prefer to exercise. That statement of principle is simply stated and is as follows:
If a general warrant is sought, there should be some evidence presented to the magistrate supporting the belief by OSHA that the deleterious conditions may also be present in other portions of the facilities.”
Id. at 1108.
That having not been done here, we have resort only to the asserted claim of OSHA that this industry was in an extra-hazardous category which was on the basis of certain claimed statistical data. Again there is no showing, however, that the incidence of injuries reflected by the particular statistics of this plant are not all confined to the area in which the cranes operated.
We, of course, must concede that when an inspection team has gone into a plant it is an economical use of government personnel while they are there to make a sweeping, ferreting inspection of the entire establishment, irrespective of any probable cause. It is also true that a dragnet operation may prove to find a wanted criminal even though no probable cause exists for the particular search. Someplace along the line, efficient, as well as possible result production, must give away to individual constitutional rights.
The magistrate who heard this, matter originally and whose recommendation was adopted by the district court expressed concern that in this particular case there existed the possibility that the specific employee complaint was pretextually utilized to conduct a plant-wide investigation. I concur in that analysis and would affirm the district court which sought to prevent a plant-wide sweep without sufficient justification.
SUPPLEMENTAL OPINION
Per Curiam: On January 2, 1985, this court filed its opinion reversing the decision of the district court and remanding the action with directions to approve full scope wall-to-wall safety and health inspection warrants on the appellee’s workplace. Two days later, the court received a letter from the appellee’s counsel, dated December 26, 1984, with an attached decision of the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission declining to review the opinion of an administrative law judge holding that OSHA’s search of the Cerro Copper workplace had violated appellee’s Fourth Amendment rights and ordering that all evidence pertaining to any alleged violation other than the two initial employee complaint items be suppressed. Treating these materials as a Circuit Rule 11 communication, the court directed the parties to submit simultaneous responses setting forth their contentions regarding the significance of this administrative order. The parties have filed their respective briefs, and the matter is now ripe for ruling.
The question which the court must consider is whether the decision of OSHRC should in any way affect this court’s opinion reversing the district court’s decision quashing the administrative warrants. Upon review of the parties’ memoranda and the relevant case law, we conclude that it should not. An unreviewed AU decision does not bind the OSHRC or the courts as precedent. See Faultless Division v. Secretary of Labor, 674 F.2d 1177, 1188 n.20 (7th Cir.1982); Fred Wilson Drilling Company, Inc. v. Marshall, 624 F.2d 38, 40 (5th Cir.1980); Willamette Iron and Steel Company v. Secretary of Labor, 604 F.2d 1177, 1180 (9th Cir.1979), cert. denied, 445 U.S. 942 (1980), cf., Leone Construction Company, 1975-76 OSHA (CCH) ¶ 20,387 (No. 4090, 1976). Furthermore, upon review of the AU’s decision, we remain convinced that the warrants for full-scope wall-to-wall searches should be issued. Accordingly, we decline to reconsider our opinion reversing the decision of the district court.
Judge PELL has informed us that for the reasons set out in his dissent to the original majority opinion, he dissents from this order.
It is
SO ORDERED.