Tag: APPEAL Team Six

4/20 Conviction for Drug Paraphernalia Reversed on Appeal

The drug crime attorneys at GRL were in the news again recently after a successful appeal ruling. We persuaded the district court that a Benton County magistrate judge made a mistake in finding a container with marijuana residue constituted drug paraphernalia as that term is defined in Iowa Code section 124.414. We proved that substantial evidence did not support the interpretation of the paraphernalia statute as it applied to this container. Had the county instead charged it under the local municipal ordinance, which is much broader than the statute, then things might have turned out differently. It pays to know […]

Warning! Warrantless Searches of Curbside Garbage Resume July 1, 2022

Readers of the GRL Law blog are no doubt familiar with the firm’s efforts to protect the privacy rights of Iowans in State v. Wright. That’s the 2021 ruling from the Iowa Supreme Court that banned police from trespassing on your curbside garbage and searching it without a warrant. Predictably, the law enforcement community threw a tantrum after the ruling. And they ran kicking and screaming to some legislators at the statehouse who obviously can’t appreciate the difference between the Iowa Bill of Rights and the Communist Manifesto. The result? Effective tomorrow, July 1, 2022, anyone can scavenge your garbage. […]

Posted on October 18, 2021December 29, 2021
Colin Murphy
Testimonials

Murphy Earns Five Star Review for Illegal Search and Seizure WIN

“In a society where privacy is in a perpetual state of decay, Colin has gone above and beyond what most lawyers have dreamt of accomplishing. He has changed the state’s law in a way that benefits anyone that recognizes and appreciates the protections the 4th amendment gives us. His proven superior understanding and passion for defending the erosion of expectation of privacy sets him far ahead of all others. If you find yourself in a situation where your right to unreasonable search and seizure has been violated, look no further. You won’t find anyone better than Colin Murphy.”

Charges Dismissed Following Trash Rip Suppression

Maybe the timing is coincidental, but GRL Law secured a dismissal of all charges in State v. Wright on the same day the Iowa Supreme Court reaffirmed the constitutional underpinning of trash rips in State v. Kuuttila. One might think that this line of cases would be the last word on the issue. But if you read the dissent, then you’ll see that the minority clearly wants to overrule a precedent that is barely four months old. In fact, they go as far as to encourage city councils and even the Iowa General Assembly to revive the now illegal police […]

GRL Law Wins Landmark Search and Seizure Case Before Iowa Supreme Court

In State v. Wright, the Iowa Supreme Court recently banned warrantless searches of curbside trash. This landmark ruling puts an end to an investigative technique used by police for decades. The issues before the Iowa Supreme Court were matters of first impression. The drug defense attorneys at GRL Law are the first to ever raise the issue of trespass onto a constitutionally-protected “effect” in Iowa. We are also the first to persuade an Iowa appellate court to find an expectation of privacy in uncollected garbage. Prior to Wright, police wantonly searched household garbage set out for collection. This was often […]