United States v. Michael Bynum

Michael Bynum appeals his conviction and 77 month sentence following a conditional guilty plea to one count of being a felon in possession of firearms in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 922 (g)(1) and 924(a)(2). Bynum contends that the district court erred by denying his motion to suppress the pistol and the semi-automatic shotgun that North Las Vegas Police Department (“NLVPD”) officers discovered in his apartment during the execution of a search warrant. Bynum first asserts that NLVPD officers failed to comply with the “knock and announce” requirement when executing the search warrant. Second, he contends that the seizure of the firearms was unlawful under the “plain view” doctrine. However, because the record establishes the existence of exigent circumstances threatening officer safety, the officers’ no-knock entry violated neither the Fourth Amendment nor 18 U.S.C. § 3109 . We lack jurisdiction to reach the merits of Bynum’s “plain view” argument because he did not properly raise the issue before the district court nor preserve it in his plea agreement. We affirm.

I

A confidential informant (“Cl”) who had previously provided law enforcement with reliable information told NLVPD…