Sapp

Defendant Ramon Sapp stands charged with multiple federal firearms violations, 18 U.S.C. §§ 922 (g)(1), 924(c)(1)(A), as well as two counts of attempting to kill persons assisting federal officers in the performance of their duties, 18 U.S.C. § 1114 , after a gun battle allegedly erupted when local police officers attempted to apprehend Sapp under the auspices of a federal warrant. Sapp first moves to dismiss the charges under 18 U.S.C. section 1114 , maintaining that the protections of that statute do not extend to the present case, in which local officers sought to execute a federal warrant without direct involvement of federal officials. Sapp also moves to exclude evidence seized during the arrest on grounds that the arrest was unlawful because the local officers were not properly authorized to execute the federal warrant. Having considered the arguments and submissions of the parties, and for the reasons set forth below, the court rules as follows.

BACKGROUND

Ramon Sapp became the focus of a federal criminal investigation in January 2002. On January 10, 2002, the U.S. Attorney’s office in San Francisco held a meeting with state and local law enforcement officers to…