United States v. James David Bosse

A jury convicted Bosse of unlawfully possessing a sawed-off shotgun in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 5861 (d). Bosse moved for a new trial and to suppress the shotgun after newly discovered evidence revealed an earlier illegal entry may have tainted the warrant that authorized the search that disclosed the shotgun. The district court agreed and set aside the judgment, granted the motion for a new trial and granted the motion to suppress. We vacate the suppression order and remand for further findings.

I.

Bosse was licensed as a semiautomatic firearms dealer and had an application pending for a state license to buy and sell automatic machine guns. On September 25, 1987, Robert Dunkin, an agent of the California Department of Justice, inspected Bosse’s home and surrounding premises with Bosse’s consent as part of the license application process. Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) Agent Mark Rusin accompanied Dunkin on the search without identifying himself as an ATF agent. On October 3, 1985, ATF agent Robert Griego sought and obtained a search warrant for Bosse’s home. After a hearing, the district court found the purpose of Rusin’s initial entry was to observe things of interest to…