United States v. Gregory Martin Matthews

Appellant Gregory Matthews appeals from his conviction of a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1542 , making false statements in an application for a passport.

Matthews contends that the district court erred in denying his motion to suppress evidence found pursuant to a search warrant. He claims that the affidavit in support of the warrant was insufficient on its face because the information contained therein was stale.

The search warrant issued on July 9, 1976 included an affidavit describing, among other things, surveillance of the defendant and of his home which was sufficient to establish probable cause linking him to a narcotics transaction. Matthews argues, however, that this information was stale because, through a clerical error, the warrant stated that the surveillance took place on June 8, 1976 although it actually occurred on July 8, 1976. In determining the sufficiency of an affidavit supporting a warrant the courts do not inquire beyond what is on the face of the document, Aguilar v. Texas, 378 U.S. 108 , 109 n. 1, 84 S.Ct. 1509 , 12 L.Ed.2d 723 (1964). In this case, however, even if the surveillance had actually taken place on June 8 as stated in the warrant, the information…