Federal Drug Charges Tossed Out of California Court
By Alison Gonzalez
Published on August 13, 2007
Jairo Ivan Ortiz-Diaz and Jose Luis Ortiz-Diaz were arrested Valentine’s Day during a drug trafficking bust at an Anaheim that turned up more than $6 home million in heroin, methamphetamine, and marijuana.
The drugs could not be admitted in court as the government’s main evidence because a warrantless seizure violated the fourth amendment, Judge James Selna ruled.
The case started when Benny Bahena was stopped at the US-Mexico border while attempting to transport approximately 25 pounds of heroin. Bahena agreed to let customs agents follow him to Anaheim, where he was to deliver the drugs.
After arriving in Anaheim, Bahena met up with Luis Alcantar-Zepeda and Jose Casares-Macias before driving the drugs to a nearby house, where Jairo Ivan Ortiz-Diaz and Jose Luis Ortiz-Diaz were staying.
After Bahena pulled the car into the garage, authorities moved in, seizing 158 pounds of drugs and arresting 6 adults and 5 children — without a warrant.
Prosecutors argued there was no time to obtain a warrant because Bahena’s life was in jeopardy. But defense attorneys said the search and seizure violated the Fourth Amendment, a right that gave the brothers a reasonable expectation to privacy. They added that there was no threat to the drugs or to Bahena’s life. Selna concurred.
Bahena, Alcantar-Zepeda, and Casares-Macias all pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.
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