Riley v. California & United States v. Wurie

Facts

Riley Facts:

Riley was stopped by police for driving with expired registration tags. During the stop, police learned that Riley’s license was suspended. Riley’s car was impounded and searched uncovering two loaded handguns under the car’s hood. Riley was also searched and the officer found items associated with the “Bloods” street gang as well as a “smart phone.” The officer accessed the phone and noticed information and slang associated with the Bloods gang. A detective that specialized in gangs further examined the phone’s contents and discovered photos and videos. Among them were photos of Riley standing in front of a car suspected of being involved in a shooting a few weeks earlier.

Wurie Facts:

During a routine surveillance, an officer observed Wurie making an apparent drug sale from a car. Wurie was arrested and taken to the police station. Following the arrest, officers seized two cell phones from Wurie’s person. One was a “flip phone” that was repeatedly receiving calls from a contact labeled “my house.” The police opened the phone and saw a photo of a woman and baby set as the phone’s wallpaper, they then accessed the call log and found the phone number associated with the contact labeled “my house.” Using a phone directory, police traced the number to an apartment building. Police then went to the building, observing that Wurie’s name was present on a mailbox and a woman resembling the woman in the photo on the flip phone. Police then obtained a search warrant and found 215 grams of crack cocaine, marijuana, drug paraphernalia, a firearm and ammunition, as well as cash.