United States v. Theodore R. Nance

I. Background

On June 28, 1990, Theodore Nance agreed to buy cocaine from an undercover officer working with a drug task force composed of state and local police and United States Customs Service agents. The officer then accompanied Nance to his pickup truck in a motel parking lot. Nance was arrested as he stood by his truck after he showed the officer the money for the cocaine purchase. The truck was then seized and driven to an impound lot.

Agent Lawson of the Customs Service, who was present during the arrest, telephoned another detective and gave him an account of the events of the evening. The second detective called a state judge at about 3 a.m. to apply for a search warrant on the basis of an oral affidavit, in accordance with Oregon Revised Statute section 133.545(5). The judge approved a warrant to search Nance’s home and vehicles, including the pickup, for money, weapons, drugs, drug records and other drug related paraphernalia. He authorized execution of the warrant at “any time of the day or night.”

Search of a zippered overnight bag in the truck yielded a pistol, cocaine, and drug equipment. The search of Nance’s home disclosed more firearms, cocaine, and drug…