Defendant Prevails in DNA Suppression Challenge at Tenth Circuit

A New Mexico man charged with gun possession convinced the Tenth Circuit to affirm a decision suppressing DNA evidence over a false statement in a search warrant affidavit.

The lower court properly found that Shawn Norton’s Fourth Amendment rights were violated when an FBI agent included a false statement from an off-duty officer in a search warrant application for Norton’s DNA, the US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit said Wednesday.

The US Supreme Court precedent in Franks v. Delaware extends to off-duty officers who were part of the investigation, Judge Carolyn B. McHugh said. The high court ruling ...