U.S. v. Gibson

In prosecution on drug conspiracy charge arising out of scheme in which defendants used cell-phones to obtain orders for heroin, Dist. Ct. did not err in denying defendant's motion to suppress real-time GPS location data for cell-phone, where police had applied to state court for said cell-phone's tracking data, and where state court entered order that: (1) found existence of probable cause to believe that user of cell-phone had engaged in illegal drug possession and trafficking, and that precise tracking of cell-phone location would facilitate user's apprehension; and (2) cited to Rule 41, as well as Stored Communications Act and federal statutes governing mobile tracking devices. While defendants argued that police could not track cell-phone without search warrant, and that instant state-court orders authorizing cell-phone tracking were not valid warrants because they cited to Stored Communications Act that required lesser showing than probable cause, instant orders satisfied warrant requirement, where orders cited to Rule 41 and found existence of probable cause to obtain cell-phone tracking data. Fact that orders also cited to Stored Communications Act did not require different result. Moreover, state court properly found existence of probable cause, where affidavit cited to several controlled purchases of drugs that used cell-phone to facilitate said purchases. Also, Dist. Ct. could properly calculate drug quantities for purposes of sentencing that were based on number of phone calls received by cell-phone and on conservative estimates as to how many phone calls would result in drug sale at specified quantity of drugs per sale.