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NM: Game officer invited to sex offense search warrant unconstitutionally expanded search

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

While officers were investigating a sex crime, they saw wild animal parts, and they called a game officer to join in the search, and he questioned the defendant, too. That entry was outside the scope of the warrant, and the evidentiary value was not "immediately apparent" to the officers. He could object to the game officer as an extention of the search. State v. Moran, 2008 NMCA 160, 2008 N.M. App. LEXIS 138 (October 30, 2008): [*13] Although Officer Jackson ultimately may have acquired information establishing probable cause to believe that some of the game animal parts were possessed unlawfully, the investigation during which Officer Jackson questioned Defendant and during which Defendant was unable to produce documentation of lawful possession occurred while Officer Jackson was present within Defendant's home without a warrant and over Defendant's objection...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on December 31, 2008 (boomark / email).