Pubdate: Tue, 16 Oct 2012
Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution (GA)
Copyright: 2012 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Website: http://www.ajc.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/28
Author: Bill Rankin

NO HEAT-SENSING SEARCHES FOR POT OPERATIONS, COURT SAYS

The Georgia Supreme Court ruled Monday that state law enforcement
cannot obtain search warrants to use thermal-imaging scans to detect
indoor marijuana-growing operations.

Georgia law allows for police to search for "tangible evidence," and
heat patterns inside a home or garage do not fit that definition, the
court said in a unanimous opinion.

"Giving the word 'tangible' full effect, it appears that the General
Assembly intended 'tangible evidence' to mean evidence that is
essentially an object with material form that could be touched by a
person," Justice Harris Hines wrote. "That meaning does not include
the remotely sensed heat at issue here."

If the General Assembly wishes to authorize warrants to capture heat
loss from structures, it has the power to do so, Hines wrote.

Steve Sadow, a criminal defense attorney, said the court correctly
applied the law. "As far as state law enforcement is concerned, there
will be no Georgia search warrants for the thermal imaging, unless the
Legislature changes the law," he said.

The court issued its ruling in a pending case against James Brundige
of Athens, who has pleaded not guilty to manufacturing marijuana. A
thermal-imaging scan conducted May 22, 2009, showed an abnormal amount
of heat emanating from Brundige's garage, court records say.

The ruling, however, did not help Brundige suppress items found in a
search of his home. The opinion noted that a separate warrant obtained
by police using information provided by an informant provided enough
probable cause to justify the search.

Defense attorney Don Samuel said Georgia law has not kept up with
evolving technologies, such as GPS devices that are used to track a
suspect's comings and goings - which, like heat, are not "tangible
evidence."

"Under Georgia law, it seems that a search warrant cannot be used for
this purpose," he said. "Georgia law needs to advance to the 21st century."
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