STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLANT,
v.
BETTY JEAN ADAMS, APPELLEE
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Florida appeals a trial court's suppression of evidence, arguing that an affidavit supported probable cause for a search warrant of a residence for marijuana. The court holds that the affidavit was facially insufficient under Aguilar and Spinelli because it failed to establish the confidential informant's reliability and credibility through adequate underlying circumstances.
The affidavit was insufficient because it failed to recite sufficient underlying circumstances establishing the informant's reliability and credibility as required by Aguilar and Spinelli. An admission against penal interest alone, particularly when made by a confidential informant, does not establish sufficient reliability or carry adequate indicia of reliability to support probable cause.
[1] An affidavit for a search warrant must recite sufficient underlying circumstances from which a magistrate can independently determine the reliability of hearsay informati…
[2] An affidavit must establish the credibility of the informant to support a finding of probable cause.
Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“The affidavit is insufficient in that it fails to recite sufficient underlying circumstances from which the magistrate could independently determine that the hearsay information was reliable and that the informant was credible.”
Establishes the legal standard for evaluating affidavits supporting search warrants under Aguilar and Spinelli
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAn officer's affidavit stated that a confidential informant reported purchasing marijuana from inside the defendant's residence within the past 24 hou…
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[*195] PER CURIAM.
The trial court held that an affidavit was insufficient on its face to establish probable cause for issuance of a warrant for search of a dwelling. The State appeals.
The affidavit recites:
Your affiant has been a member of the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office for two (2) years. A confidential informant within the past twenty-four (24) hours told your affiant that within the past twenty-four (24) hours the informant had been inside the above-described residence. While inside the residence, the informant admits that he (informant) purchased a quantity of what was represented by the occupant to be Marijuana. After purchasing the substance, the informant brought it to your affiant who identified the substance as Cannabis, commonly known as Marijuana.
The informant can readily identify Marijuana. Your affiant has had police training and experience identifying Cannabis, commonly known as Marijuana.
Said informant further related at said time that there is an additional quantity of Cannabis, commonly known as Marijuana, in the above-described residence. Your affiant believes said informant because the said admission by said informant constituted an admission against penal interest.
The affidavit is insufficient in that it fails to recite sufficient underlying circumstances from which the magistrate could independently determine that the hearsay information was reliable and that the informant was credible. Aguilar v. Texas, 378 U.S. 108, 84 S.Ct. 1509, 12 L.Ed.2d 723 (1964); Spinelli v. United States, 393 U.S. 410, 89 S.Ct. 584, 21 L.Ed.2d 637 (1969). Specifically, the affidavit fails to recite facts to establish the credibility of the informant. Davis v. State, 346 So. 2d 141 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977).
A statement against an informant’s penal interest may contribute to his reliability. Davis v. State, supra; State v. Patterson, 309 So. 2d 555 (Fla. 2d DCA 1975); State v. Henderson, 318 So. 2d 524 (Fla. 2d DCA 1975); State v. Jacobs, 320 So. 2d 45 (Fla. 2d DCA 1975). However, the facts recited in this affidavit did not establish an admission against the penal interests of the informant. We do not believe that such a statement made by a “confidential informant” would constitute an admission against his penal interest or that such admission would carry its own indicia of reliability.
Therefore, the order granting the motion to suppress is AFFIRMED.
McCORD, C. J., and BOYER and SMITH, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Wooten v. State, 385 So. 2d 146 (Fla. 1st DCA 1980)…rrest was constitutionally valid depends, in turn, upon whether, at the moment the arrest was made, the officers had probable cause to make it . . .” 9 Fla. Jur., Criminal Law, § 178 [See also 15 Fla.Jur.2d, Criminal Law, § 510.] In State v. Adams, 355 So. 2d 194 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978), cert. denied, Fla., 359 So. 2d 1220, this Court, in reviewing the sufficiency of an affidavit for a warrant, held that probable cause must be supported by sufficient underlying facts to allow the judge to determine that the hear…
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LaCHANCE v. State, 376 So. 2d 932 (Fla. 4th DCA 1979)…idavit and clearly show how the confidential informant had proved his past reliability. Aguilar v. Texas, supra; Spinelli v. United States, supra; Weisberg v. State, supra; Davis v. State, 346 So. 2d 141 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977); see also State v. Adams, 355 So. 2d 194 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978). As can readily be seen from a reading of the affidavit set out herein there was nothing to support the bare statement of reliability. The appellant’s trial counsel properly analyzed the affidavit, in this latter respect, when he…
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Fabia Blue and Theresa Blue v. State, 441 So. 2d 165 (Fla. 3d DCA 1983)…, 103 S.Ct. at 2334, 76 L.Ed.2d at 550. Yet here the only fact that was corroborated is that the substance given to the detective by the informant was marijuana, a fact which proves nothing about the reliability of the informant. See State v. Adams, 355 So. 2d 194 (Fla. 1st DCA), cert. denied, 359 So. 2d 1220 (1978) (affirming trial court finding of no probable cause where affidavit for warrant set forth that informant purchased marijuana in defendant’s residence and brought it to police, who identified subst…
Authorities Cited
- Aguilar v. Texas, 378 U.S. 108 (U.S. 1964)
- Spinelli v. United States, 393 U.S. 410 (U.S. 1969)
- Davis v. State, 346 So. 2d 141 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977)
- State v. Eligaah Ardalle Jacobs, 320 So. 2d 45 (Fla. 2d DCA 1975)
- State v. Patterson, 309 So. 2d 555 (Fla. 2d DCA 1975)
- State v. Henderson, 318 So. 2d 524 (Fla. 2d DCA 1975)