Man Dodges Child Porn Charges After Cops Search Computer At Best Buy Without Warrant
GRAND RAPIDS (WWJ/AP) - An appeals court has ruled that child porn charges must be dropped against a man whose computer was searched by police at a Best Buy store without a warrant.
The state appeals court agreed with a Kent County judge who suppressed the evidence and dismissed charges against the 26-year-old Grand Rapids man.
The man was charged in 2011 after Best Buy employees fixing his laptop saw suspicious file names like "12-year old Lolita" and "12-year-old female virgin" and called police.
A sheriff's deputy seized the hard drive and accessories without a search warrant. Child pornography was later found on the hard drive.
In a 3-0 decision last week, the appeals court says it's not a tough call. The court says Kent County authorities searched the man's property without his permission or a warrant.
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