United States v. Richard Samuel Huffhines

This is an appeal by the United States from an order of the district court requiring the United States government to produce property of the appellee, Richard Huffhines, which was seized during the course of a search by the Beverly Hills Police. What makes the case one of first impression is that, at the time of the district court’s order, the property at issue was not and never had been in the possession or under the control of the United States government; nor had the search been conducted with the knowledge, approval or cooperation of the United States government. At the time of the order, the property was apparently still in the hands of the Beverly Hills Police.

The motion to produce the property was filed pursuant to Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 41(e) in federal court because the United States had prosecuted the appellee in federal district court for being a felon in possession of a firearm in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922 (g)(1). That prosecution was instituted after the Beverly Hills Police had furnished the United States with a gun that was found during the course of the search of Huffhines’ hotel room. In the Search of the room, as well as in the search of…