police did not need a warrant to enter a vacant house
How later courts described this case
- police did not need a warrant to enter a vacant house
Written by the judges who cited it.
The opinion
SPAETH, Judge,
dissenting:
Two search warrants are involved. Because the first warrant was issued without probable cause, the order of the lower court adjudicating appellants delinquent should be reversed and a new hearing directed.
The first warrant described the premises to be searched as “Three (3) story red brick building located at and known as 141 Penn. Street, Reading, Berks Co. Penna.” The lower *168 court, in holding that the warrant issued on probable cause, stated that
it [the affidavit in support of the issuance of the warrant] stated that officers observed empty .22 caliber shell casings on the roof of 141 Penn Street which was the only occupied building in the row of houses in the 100 block. Slip Opinion of lower court at 9.
This statement must have been an inadvertence. The affidavit described the items to be searched for as follows:
.22 Cal. Rifle (Make unknown) and any .22 Cal. bullets. Also any Spent (empty, or used) .22 cal. cartridges, which may be in the building or on the roof of this building. Any sneakers which have tred [sic] design similar to the sneaker, prints seen by officers near spent cartridges found on the roof of 139 Penn St, Reading, Berks, Pa. (Emphasis added.)
The affidavit also included the following in the statement of probable cause:
Officers observed empty .22 Cal. shell casings on the roof of the only occupied building in the row of homes where the shots are believed to have originated from.
However, nowhere in the affidavit is “the only occupied building in the row of homes” identified as being 141 Penn Street.
It may be assumed — appellants contest the point — that the affidavit stated probable cause to search 139 Penn Street. “139”, however, could not have been a typographical error for “141”. A magistrate given reason to believe that bullets may be found at “139” has no reason to believe that they may be found at “141”. As I understand the majority opinion, it says “[t]he magistrate must . . . have realized” he was being asked to issue a warrant for “141”. Majority slip opinion at-. I should be surprised if he did; I wouldn’t have.
The order of the lower court adjudicating appellants delinquent should be reversed and a new hearing directed.