ASSISTANT Public Defender Molly Dennert, who represents Glenn D. Palacios, has requested the Superior Court to suppress all evidence obtained after a search warrant was executed in her client’s home.
Dennert said, “The overbroad search warrant lacked sufficient probable cause and [involved] a search that exceeded the scope of said warrant.”
She said the “property seized as a result of this illegality, including one .22 rifle with Serial No. E759491, one .410-gauge rifle with Serial No. 9330795, multiple .410 ammunitions, various crystal-like and powder substances, various pills, and other paraphernalia must be suppressed as evidence in all future proceedings.”
“The search of his home was unlawful, unreasonable, and unconstitutional,” she added.
Palacios was charged with two counts of violations of storage of firearm, possession of firearm without ownership identification, unlawful possession of ammunition, trafficking of controlled substance, and illegal possession of controlled substance.
According to Dennert, George Grover confessed to stealing power tools after being caught on surveillance tape. He informed law enforcement that he sold the items to Palacios. Four days after the alleged theft by Grover, a search warrant was issued for Palacios’ Chalan Kanoa residence.
Dennert said nothing “in the affidavit in support of probable cause indicates that any firearms or ammunition were likely to be found in defendant’s residence. The affidavit mentions only a DeWalt brand grinder, a Milwaukee brand hammer drill, several drill bits, and a plastic chipping tool. Firearms and ammunition are not sufficiently related to the crimes of burglary and theft in this case, especially since the alleged burglary is caught on camera.”
“Additionally,” she said, “nothing in the affidavit indicates that defendant was not allowed to possess either firearms or ammunition. Failure to corroborate Grover’s information or explain how firearms are related to this particular burglary and theft are fatal to the search warrant’s constitutionality.”
Moreover, using “police dogs to sniff for controlled substances exceeds the scope of the warrant and is an unconstitutional intrusion into defendant’s residence,” Dennert said.
According to the search warrant issued against Palacios, Grover confessed to the police that he was the one who took the DeWalt brand grinder, a Milwaukee brand hammer drill, several drill bits, and a plastic chipping tool inside an aluminum toolbox out of a parked Joeten maintenance truck.
Grover told the police he sold the tools to Palacios, and provided them with the defendant’s address.
Dennert said there is “nothing in the affidavit or search warrant to suggest that the judge was aware of Grover’s past criminal convictions. While there is video evidence allegedly showing Grover taking the tools, he offers very little details regarding when he sold the tools, for how much he sold them, or who was with him when they were stolen and subsequently sold. Police did not do anything to corroborate Grover’s information — even though at least one other person was present when the tools were allegedly stolen. Grover also did not testify at the probable cause hearing.”
Dennert filed a separate motion to suppress statements made by her client “without proper Miranda warnings.”
Dennert likewise asked Associate Judge Lillian Tenorio to schedule a hearing on the defense motions.
