North Dakota v. Odum
Annotate this CaseNorth Dakota appealed an order suppressing evidence and dismissing all charges against Perry Odum. 2018, drug task force officers searched the garbage can in front of Odum’s residence based on an anonymous tip that Odum had been out of town and came back “with a quantity of marijuana.” The garbage can was “located in a manner where it would be regularly retrieved by the garbage truck” on the residence’s regularly scheduled garbage pickup day. During the garbage search, officers found two garbage bags containing rolling papers, several empty, labeled plastic packages and tubes, and green, leafy flakes. The packages and tubes were commercially labeled as containing either marijuana or THC and indicated that they appeared to have been legally sold in another state. The State charged Odum with possession of a controlled substance with intent to manufacture or deliver and with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Odum moved to suppress the evidence gathered during the search of his residence and to dismiss all charges against him, arguing probable cause did not exist to issue the search warrant. A district judge found no probable cause for the search warrant and granted Odum’s motions to suppress and dismiss. Under the totality of the circumstances, the North Dakota Supreme Court found sufficient probable cause existed to support a search warrant for Odum’s residence. Because sufficient probable cause to support the search warrant existed, the district court erred in granting Odum’s motions to suppress evidence and dismiss all charges. The Court therefore reversed the suppression order and the dismissal of all charges, and remanded for further proceedings.
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