United States v. Tomas Chavez-Miranda

We must determine if the trial court correctly denied defendant-appellant Tomas Chavez-Miranda’s motion to suppress evidence obtained from a search of his apartment during a narcotics investigation. The district court took evidence at a two-day suppression hearing and held that (1) there was probable cause in support of the search warrant; (2) a Franks hearing was not warranted; and (3) forcible entry after 20 to 30 seconds did not violate 18 U.S.C. § 3109 (the “Knock and Announce Rule”). Chavez-Miranda conditionally pled guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribution of heroin under 21 U.S.C. §§ 841 , 846, so he could appeal the denial of his motion to suppress. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . We affirm.

I

We examine the sufficiency of the evidence to establish probable cause for a search warrant issued for Chavez-Miranda’s apartment after an extensive narcotics trafficking investigation. On February 29, 2000, agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) established surveillance at the Santa Ana, California, home of co-defendant Jose Magana (the “Camille Residence”), where a confidential source (the “informant”)…