In an interesting decision handed down by the Illinois Appellate Court in the summer of 2015, police are once again held to a high standard when executing anticipatory search warrants.   In executing these warrants, and specifically when police have installed a “breakaway filament” to alert them to the opening of a package, the Appellate Court held in People v. Harris, that when using such a device the police must in fact confirm that the filament is broken and the package has actually been opened before executing the search warrant and arresting the party in possession of the package.  The breaking of the filament was determined to be the triggering event that authorizes police execution of a search warrant in these types of cases.  A violation of this procedure would result in the exclusion of subsequent evidence and statements gathered as a result of the execution of the warrant. See 2015 IL App (1st) 132162 for a detailed review of the case.

If you find yourself a defendant in a search warrant case involving cannabis, cocaine, ecstacy, or other drugs in Chicago, Cook County, Will County, DuPage County, or surrounding counties, call the drug attorneys at the D&O Law Group, LLC for a review of your case and protection of your constitutional rights.