Frank Thomas v. United States

In September, 1956, appellant Frank Thomas was indicted in the western district of Washington on a charge of receiving and concealing illegally imported narcotics. Appellant retained counsel and pleaded not guilty. However, during the trial in February, 1957, appellant withdrew his plea of not guilty after one-half day of trial and entered a plea of guilty. He was sentenced to ten years in the penitentiary. More than three years thereafter appellant filed with the District Court for the Western District of Washington a Motion to Vacate and Set Aside Sentence pursuant to 28 U.S. C. § 2255. The basis of the motion is that appellant was illegally searched on his own private property by state police officers who had no warrant and no probable cause for such a search; the search resulted in the finding of heroin and led to appellant’s arrest and indictment. The motion was denied by the district court.

The trial court’s action in denying the motion was not erroneous. By his plea of guilty appellant foreclosed his right to raise objections to the manner in which evidence upon which he was indicted was obtained. This evidence, because of his guilty plea, was not used against him. Had he…