People v. Bigelow, 66 N.Y.2d 417 (1985)
Under the New York State Constitution, the good-faith exception to the exclusionary rule does not apply; evidence seized pursuant to a warrant issued without probable cause must be suppressed, even if police acted in good faith reliance on the warrant.
Summary
Bigelow was arrested and his car seized without a warrant based on information from an informant and a police investigation. A subsequent search warrant was issued, and a search revealed contraband. The New York Court of Appeals affirmed the Appellate Division’s suppression of the evidence. The Court held that neither the arrest nor the search warrant were supported by probable cause under either the Aguilar-Spinelli test or the totality of the circumstances test of Illinois v. Gates. Further, the court declined to adopt the good-faith exception to the exclusionary rule under the New York State Constitution, finding that allowing the evidence would frustrate the exclusionary rule’s purpose of deterring unlawful police conduct. Therefore, the evidence was suppressed.
Facts
Police suspected Bigelow of drug trafficking based on the following facts: he telegraphed almost $25,000 to a Florida resident over four months; the address was near an area known for drug activity; he rented post office boxes in two New York towns; he received two packages from Florida at one post office box in August and September 1981 and another at another post office box in December 1981; and he frequented the apartment of a known drug user and dealer.
On December 24, 1981, police observed Bigelow attempt to pick up a package from Florida, but the post office was closed. On December 26, they saw him pick up a package and drive to the drug user’s apartment. Police interviewed an informant who stated that Bigelow was a “drugger” dealing cocaine shipped from Florida and had conducted drug transactions as recently as “Christmas week of 1981.” However, the informant had not seen Bigelow sell or possess drugs at any time.
Bigelow was later stopped, frisked, and taken to the police station. A search warrant was obtained, and a search of his person and vehicle revealed amphetamines, hypodermic needles, and over $4,500 in cash, but no cocaine.
Procedural History
Bigelow was charged with and convicted of criminal possession of a controlled substance and hypodermic needles. He moved to suppress the evidence, which was denied by the suppression court, which found probable cause for the arrest and search. The Appellate Division reversed, granted the motion to suppress, and remitted the matter, finding a lack of probable cause. The People appealed to the New York Court of Appeals.
Issue(s)
1. Whether the arrest of Bigelow was supported by probable cause.
2. Whether the search warrant was supported by probable cause under either the Aguilar-Spinelli test or the totality of the circumstances test.
3. Whether the evidence seized pursuant to the warrant should be admissible under the good-faith exception to the exclusionary rule.
Holding
1. No, because the police lacked sufficient information to support a reasonable belief that Bigelow had committed or was committing a crime.
2. No, because the informant’s basis of knowledge was not established, and the police investigation did not sufficiently corroborate the hearsay information to establish probable cause under either test.
3. No, because the New York State Constitution does not recognize a good-faith exception to the exclusionary rule in this context.
Court’s Reasoning
The Court reasoned that probable cause requires information sufficient to support a reasonable belief that an offense has been or is being committed, or that evidence of a crime may be found in a certain place. The Court reiterated New York’s adherence to the Aguilar-Spinelli rule for evaluating hearsay information, requiring the establishment of both the informant’s basis of knowledge and reliability.
The Court found that the informant’s statement lacked any indication of personal observation and did not describe Bigelow’s activities with sufficient particularity to infer personal knowledge. The informant’s conclusory assertion that Bigelow was a “drugger” was insufficient. The police investigation, while corroborating some details, was susceptible to innocent interpretation and did not establish probable cause. The Court then considered the totality of circumstances test articulated in Illinois v. Gates but determined that even under that more relaxed standard, probable cause was lacking, because the informant’s basis of knowledge was not established, nor was the informant’s reliability demonstrated given the prior acquittal of charges resulting from his tips.
Finally, the Court declined to adopt the good-faith exception to the exclusionary rule, reasoning that allowing the seized evidence would frustrate the exclusionary rule’s purpose of deterring unlawful police conduct. The Court emphasized that permitting the use of illegally seized evidence would place a premium on illegal police action and provide a positive incentive for similar lawless acts in the future, which is unacceptable under the New York State Constitution.
The court stated, “[I]f the People are permitted to use the seized evidence, the exclusionary rule’s purpose is completely frustrated, a premium is placed on the illegal police action and a positive incentive is provided to others to engage in similar lawless acts in the future.”