United States Ninth Circuit

Defendant was convicted of distributing child pornography and of possessing child pornography. Denial of defendant's motion to suppress is reversed and remanded, where: 1) Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) agents are bound by Posse Comitatus Act-like restrictions on direct assistance to civilian law enforcement, and the agent's broad investigation violated the regulations and policies proscribing direct military enforcement of civilian laws; and 2) there is abundant evidence that the violation-at-issue has occurred repeatedly and frequently, despite prior cautions by this court and others that military personnel may not enforce civilian laws.

Appellate Information

• Decided 09/12/2014
• Published 09/12/2014

Judges

• Berzon

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel