UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, APPELLEE,
v.
RALPH SHUE, APPELLANT
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
The court held that the search was not unreasonable, as agents had probable cause and exigent circumstances justified the entry.
Agents observed suspicious activity, smelled illicit whisky, and saw the defendant loading a case of whisky into an automobile on the porch. The defen…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Curtilage cases and more on FLexlaw
PER CURIAM:
We find no unreasonable search of this defendant convicted of a whisky offense.
On the night in question, agents, from afar, observed highly suspicious activity at the house' of a eodefendant. Later, they smelled the odor of illicit whisky, which, with what they observed by sight and hearing, clearly gave them probable cause to believe an illicit still was being operated and its product packaged. As one agent approached the home, he saw the defendant on the porch loading a ease of whisky into an automobile. The defendant dropped the ease of whisky and attempted to flee, but was captured.
There was no unlawful entry upon the curtilage. The earlier observations of the agents gave them ample cause to believe a felony was being committed. Had they departed to seek a search warrant, it was not unlikely that the participants and the contraband would be gone when the agents returned.
When they entered upon the curtilage, the defendant was in plain view on the porch. There was no search of him.
Affirmed.