United States v. Devin C. Wilson

Police officers Tony Jones and Tina Cook responded to a 911 call from a 16-year-old female who said she had been kidnapped. The female identified Devin Wilson (defendant) as her kidnapper. The female said Wilson kept drugs in his house and her bags and clothing were still there. The officers arrested Wilson. The female told Cook that Wilson had recorded her engaging in sexual acts using a video camera and cellular phone and kept the video camera on the floor of the front room of his house. A warrant was issued authorizing the officers to search Wilson’s house and car for controlled substances and the female’s belongings. Cook found a video camera in the front room and removed the videotape. Jones seized the cellular phone found in Wilson’s car. Subsequently, a federal agent who was aware of the female’s allegations and had seen photographs of the prior search went to Wilson’s house to arrest Wilson for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The agent recognized the video camera and seized it. Agents later obtained a warrant to search the phone and videotape. Wilson was indicted for transporting a minor across state lines for prostitution, producing child pornography, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. The district court denied Wilson’s motion to suppress the videotape, camera, and phone, finding that the items were admissible under the plain-view doctrine. Wilson was convicted and argued on appeal that the items were unlawfully seized under the plain-view exception to the warrant requirement because the incriminating character of the items was not immediately apparent.