United States v. Jesus Fernando Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248 (5th Cir. 1987). · Go Syfert
United States v. Jesus Fernando Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248 (5th Cir. 1987). Cases Citing This Book View Copy Cite
“a juxtaposition of such contentions trifles with the court.”
147 citation events (81 in the last 25 years) across 35 distinct courts.
Strongest positive: In re Warrant to Search a Target Computer at Premises Unknown (txsd, 2013-04-22) · Strongest negative: United States v. Moore-Bush (ca1, 2022-06-09)
Treatment trajectory · 1988 → 2026 · click a year to view as-of
1988 2007 2026
Top citers, strongest first. 50 distinct citers. How cited ↗
discussed Cited "but see" United States v. Moore-Bush (2×) also: Cited as authority (rule)
1st Cir. · 2022 · signal: but see · confidence high
But see, e.g., United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir. 1987); United States v. Vargas, No. CR-13-6025, 2014 U.S. Dist.
discussed Cited "but see" Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle v. Baltimore Police Department
D. Maryland · 2020 · signal: but see · confidence high
But see United States v. Cuevas-Sanchex, 821 F.2d 248 (5th Cir. 1987) (finding that extended, wattantless use of pole camera to capture drug-related activities occurring behind a 10-foot fence bordering defendant’s backyard constituted a Fourth Amendment “search”). .
discussed Cited as authority (verbatim quote) In re Warrant to Search a Target Computer at Premises Unknown (2×) also: Cited as authority (rule)
S.D. Tex. · 2013 · signal: see · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
a juxtaposition of such contentions trifles with the court.
cited Cited as authority (rule) Eric Brian Rosenberg also known as E. Brian Rose v. City of Ocean Springs, Mississippi, et al.
S.D. Miss. · 2026 · confidence medium
Second, is society willing to recognize that expectation as reasonable?’” United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir. 1987) (quoting Ciraolo, 476 U.S. at 211 ).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Rolando Antuain Williamson
11th Cir. · 2025 · confidence medium
See, e.g., Moore-Bush, 36 F.4th at 336 (Barron, C.J., concurring) (“No casual observer who is merely passing by can observe (let alone instantly recall and present for others to observe) the aggre- gate of the months of moments between relatives, spouses, part- ners, and friends that uniquely occur in front of one’s home.”); United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir. 1987) (holding that the use of a pole camera, which overlooked a 10-foot fence and surveilled the backyard of the defendant’s residence for a period of 55 days, constituted a Fourth Amendment search: “[…
cited Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Charles House
7th Cir. · 2024 · confidence medium
United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir. 1987) (relying on the subjective expectation analysis artic- ulated in Ciraolo).
cited Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Charles House
7th Cir. · 2024 · confidence medium
United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir. 1987) (relying on the subjective expectation analysis artic- ulated in Ciraolo).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Moore-Bush (2×) also: Cited "see"
1st Cir. · 2020 · confidence medium
Pole cameras have been mentioned in published decisions in our circuit since at least 2003, see United States v. Montegio, 274 F. Supp. 2d 190, 201 (D.R.I. 2003), and outside of the circuit since at least 1987, see United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 250-51 (5th Cir. 1987).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) v. Tafoya
Colo. Ct. App. · 2019 · confidence medium
See People v. Dunlap, 975 P.2d 723, 748 (Colo. 1999) (Colorado courts are “not bound by a federal circuit court’s interpretation of federal constitutional requirements.”); Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. United Food & Commercial Workers Int’l Union, 2016 COA 72 , ¶ 17 (The Colorado Court of Appeals is “not bound by the decisions of the courts of other states.”). ¶ 35 And unlike the cases noted above, we (like some other courts) consider the nature, the continuity, and particularly the duration of pole camera surveillance to be extremely relevant to the issue of whether police have engag…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Com. v. Mason, B.
Pa. Super. Ct. · 2019 · confidence medium
See United States v. Larios, 593 F.3d 82, 90 (1st Cir. 2010); United States v. Jackson, 213 F.3d 1269, 1280 (10th Cir. 2000); - 13 - J-S01040-19 United States v. Falls, 34 F.3d 674 , 679–80 (8th Cir. 1994); United States v. Koyomejian, 970 F.2d 536, 541 (9th Cir. 1992); United States v. Cuevas–Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir.1987); United States v. Biasucci, 786 F.2d 504 , 508–09 (2d Cir. 1986); United States v. Torres, 751 F.2d 875, 880-86 (7th Cir. 1984); see also Minotty v. Baudo, 42 So.3d 824, 829-33 (Fla. 4th DCA 2010); State v. Diaz, 706 A.2d 264, 267-68 (NJ.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Long v. State
Tex. Crim. App. · 2017 · confidence medium
See, e.g., United States v. Taketa, 923 F.2d 665, 678 (9th Cir. 1991) (holding that one employee had an expectation of privacy from covert video surveillance by the government in another employee’s office); United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir. 1987) ("[I]ndiscriminate video surveillance raises the specter of the Orwellian state.”); United States v. Tones, 751 F.2d 875, 882 (7th Cir. 1984) (“We think it ... unarguable that television surveillance is exceedingly intrusive.”). .
examined Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Rickey Beene (6×) also: Cited "see", Cited "see, e.g."
5th Cir. · 2016 · confidence medium
See Florida v. Riley, 488 U.S. 445, 451-52, 454-55 , 109 S.Ct. 693 , 102 L.Ed.2d 835 (1989); United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir.1987); Horton, 690 F.2d at 476-77; see also Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 24 , 88 S.Ct. 1868 ; 20 L.Ed.2d 889 (1968) (considering the “nature and-quality of the intrusion on individual rights” in assessing the permissibility of a search for weapons without probable cause).
examined Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Houston (5×) also: Cited "see", Cited "see, e.g."
E.D. Tenn. · 2013 · confidence medium
United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir.1987).
examined Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Karen Anderson-Bagshaw (6×) also: Cited "see"
6th Cir. · 2012 · confidence medium
We are inclined to agree with the Fifth Circuit that “[t]his type of surveillance provokes an immediate - 14 - No. 12-3074 United States v. Bagshaw negative visceral reaction.” United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir. 1987) (stating in dicta that using a pole camera to view curtilage over a 10-foot fence constitutes a Fourth Amendment search).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Jones v. HOUSTON COMMUNITY COLLEGE SYSTEM
S.D. Tex. · 2011 · confidence medium
In United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 250-51 (5th Cir.1987), the government placed a video camera on a power pole overlooking the defendant’s ten-foot-high fence, allowing the government to monitor all activity in the defendant’s backyard.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Richards v. County of Los Angeles
C.D. Cal. · 2011 · confidence medium
See, e.g., United States v. Koyomejian, 970 F.2d 536, 551 (9th Cir.1992) (Kozinski, J., concurring) (“[E]very court considering the issue has noted [that] video surveillance can result in extraordinarily serious intrusions into personal privacy.”); Taketa, 923 F.2d at 677 (finding a fourth amendment violated in part on the bases of the “exceptional intrusiveness of video surveillance”); United States v. Torres, 751 F.2d 875, 882 (7th Cir.1984) (“We think it ... unarguable that television surveillance is exceedingly intrusive.”); United States v. *1185 Falls, 34 F.3d 674, 680 (8th C…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Carter v. County of Los Angeles
C.D. Cal. · 2011 · confidence medium
See, e.g., United States v. Koyomejian, 970 F.2d 536, 551 (9th Cir.1992) (Kozinski, J., concurring) (“[E]very court considering the issue has noted [that] video surveillance can result in extraordinarily serious intrusions into personal privacy.”); Taketa, 923 F.2d at 677 (finding a fourth amendment violated in part on the bases of the “exceptional intrusiveness of video surveillance”); United States v. Torres, 751 F.2d 875, 882 (7th Cir.1984) (“We think it ... unarguable that television surveillance is exceedingly intrusive.”); United States v. Falls, 34 F.3d 674, 680 (8th Cir.199…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Larios
1st Cir. · 2010 · confidence medium
See United States v. Falls, 34 F.3d 674, 679-80 (8th Cir.1994); United States v. Koyomejian, 970 F.2d 536, 538 (9th Cir.1992) (en banc); United States v. Mesa-Rincon, 911 F.2d 1433, 1436-37 (10th Cir.1990); United States v. CuevasSanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir.1987); United States v. Biasucci, 786 F.2d 504, 508-09 (2d Cir.1986); United States v. Torres, 751 F.2d 875, 880-81 (7th Cir.1984).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Bernhard v. City of Ontario
9th Cir. · 2008 · confidence medium
See, e.g., United States v. Koyomejian, 970 F.2d 536, 551 (9th Cir.1992) (Kozinski, J., concurring) (“As every court considering the issue has noted, video surveillance can result in extraordinarily serious intrusions into personal privacy.”); United States v. Taketa, 923 F.2d 665, 677 (9th Cir.1991) (finding that warrantless video surveillance of an office violated the Fourth Amendment rights of those who were recorded, including a person recorded in an office that was not his); United States v. Falls, 34 F.3d 674 , 680 (8th Cir.1994) (“It is clear that silent video surveillance results…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Trujillo v. City of Ontario
C.D. Cal. · 2006 · confidence medium
United States v. Koyomejian, 970 F.2d 536, 551 (9th Cir.1992) (Kozinski, J., concurring) ("[E]very court considering the issue has noted, video surveillance can result in extraordinarily serious intrusions into personal privacy.”); United States v. Falls, 34 F.3d 674, 680 (8th Cir.1994) ("It is clear that silent video surveillance ... results in a very serious, some say Orwellian, invasion of privacy.”); United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir.1987) (holding that a camera monitoring all of a person's activity “provokes an immediate negative visceral reaction: indiscri…
examined Cited as authority (rule) Cowles v. State (6×) also: Cited "see", Cited "see, e.g."
Alaska · 2001 · confidence medium
Thus, exposing an activity to the sky or ceiling overhead constitutes knowing exposure to the public only if the public can reasonably be expected to occupy that vantage point. [57] 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir.1987) (holding that video surveillance was a search for Fourth Amendment purposes, but that the warrant obtained by police was valid).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) State v. Augafa
Haw. App. · 1999 · confidence medium
“To measure the government’s intrusion we must consider the expectations of society.” Id. at 145, 856 P.2d at 1276 (citing United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir.1987)); see Biggar, 68 Haw. at 409 , 716 P.2d at 496 (1986) (holding that a suspect’s reasonable expectation of privacy inside a closed toilet stall was objectively reasonable, and violated by police detective standing on adjacent toilet and peering over partition).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Cowles v. State
Alaska Ct. App. · 1998 · confidence medium
In United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir.1987), the court stated that video “surveillance provokes an immediate negative visceral reaction: indiscriminate video surveillance raises the spectre of the Orwellian state.” In United States v. Torres, *444 751 F.2d 875, 882 (7th Cir.1984), the court stated: “television surveillance is exceedingly intrusive ... and inherently indiscriminate, and ... could be grossly abused — to eliminate personal privacy as understood in modern Western nations.” See also State v. Bonnell, 75 Haw. 124 , 856 P.2d 1265, 1277 (1993); State…
examined Cited as authority (rule) State v. Holden (3×) also: Cited "see"
Utah Ct. App. · 1998 · confidence medium
Although it is understandable that a person may feel “an immediate negative visceral reaction” to the thought of his house constantly being monitored by videotape over a period of time, United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir.1987), [i]t has long been the law that objects falling within the plain view of an officer from a position where he is entitled to be are not the subject of an unlawful search.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Salvatore A. Williams, A/K/A \Sonny.\" United States of America v. Salvatore C. Williams
unknown court · 1997 · confidence medium
See United States v. Falls, 34 F.3d 674, 680 (8th Cir.1994); United States v. Mesa-Rincon, 911 F.2d 1433, 1437 (10th Cir.1990); see also United States v. Koyomejian, 970 F.2d 536, 542 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 506 U.S. 1005 , 113 S.Ct. 617 , 121 L.Ed.2d 550 (1992); United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 252 (5th Cir.1987); United States v. Biasucci, 786 F.2d 504, 510 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 479 U.S. 827 , 107 S.Ct. 104 , 93 L.Ed.2d 54 (1986) 6 The video surveillance authorization order referred to violations of 18 Pa. Cons.Stat.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Williams
3rd Cir. · 1997 · confidence medium
See United States v. Falls, 34 F.3d 674, 680 (8th Cir. 1994); United States v. Mesa-Rincon, 911 F.2d 1433, 1437 (10th Cir.1990); see also United States v. Koyomejian, 970 F.2d 536 , 542 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 506 U.S. 1005 , 113 S.Ct. 617 , 121 L.Ed.2d 550 (1992); United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 252 (5th Cir. 1987); United States v. Biasucci, 786 F.2d 504, 510 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 479 U.S. 827 , 107 S.Ct. 104 , 93 L.Ed.2d 54 (1986). 6 .
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Hector Vega-Rodriguez v. Puerto Rico Telephone Company
1st Cir. · 1997 · confidence medium
See, e.g., United States v. Mesa-Rincon, 911 F.2d 1433, 1442 (10th Cir.1990); United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir.1987); Hawaii v. Bonnell, 75 Haw. 124 , 856 P.2d 1265, 1276-77 (1993).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Vega-Rodriguez v. Puerto
1st Cir. · 1997 · confidence medium
See, e.g., United States v. Mesa-Rincon, 911 F.2d 1433, 1442 (10th Cir. 1990); United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir. 1987); Hawaii v. Bonnell, 856 P.2d 1265, 1276-77 (Haw. 1993).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Sacramento County Deputy Sheriffs' Ass'n v. County of Sacramento
Cal. Ct. App. · 1996 · confidence medium
C. 82 v. Carey, supra, 737 F.2d 187 .) Plaintiffs cite cases commenting that video surveillance “raises the spectre of the Orwellian state.” (U.S. v. Cuevas-Sanchez (5th Cir. 1987) 821 F.2d 248, 251 [warrant authorizing video surveillance of defendant’s backyard did not violate Fourth Amendment]; United States v. Torres, supra, 751 F.2d 875 [holding district court had authority to issue warrant authorizing vision surveillance of terrorist group’s “safe houses”].) Plaintiffs also cite cases where warrantless videotaping was held to violate reasonable expectations of privacy; however…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Bissell
D.N.J. · 1996 · confidence medium
IV. 32 . ‘'[Videotaping [is] a continuous search of anyone who enter[s] the camera's field of vision.” United States v. Taketa, 923 F.2d 665, 675-76 (9th Cir.1991) (citing United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir. 1987); United States v. Torres, 751 F.2d 875, 882-83 (7th Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 470 U.S. 1087 , 105 S.Ct. 1853 , 85 L.Ed.2d 150 (1985)). 33 .
discussed Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Falls (2×)
8th Cir. · 1994 · signal: cf. · confidence medium
Cf. United States v. CuevasSanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir.1987) (Fourth Amendment provides freedom from indiscriminate video surveillance of backyard activity).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Eric Lamar Falls, United States of America v. Gregory Donnell Hedgewood, Also Known as Gregory Donnell Hegwood, United States of America v. Gerald Rey Bailey, United States of America v. Anthony Wells Johnson (2×)
8th Cir. · 1994 · signal: cf. · confidence medium
Cf. United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir.1987) (Fourth Amendment provides freedom from indiscriminate video surveillance of backyard activity).
cited Cited as authority (rule) State v. Bonnell
Haw. · 1993 · confidence medium
“To measure the government’s intrusion we must consider the expectations of society.” United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir. 1987).
examined Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Wanis Koyomejian (3×)
9th Cir. · 1992 · confidence medium
While we do not adopt all of the special, technical requirements of Title I, see, e.g., 18 U.S.C. § 2516 , we do adopt the following four requirements, in addition to the ordinary requirement of a finding of probable cause: 34 (1) the judge issuing the warrant must find that "normal investigative procedures have been tried and have failed or reasonably appear to be unlikely to succeed if tried or to be too dangerous," 18 U.S.C. § 2518 (3)(c); (2) the warrant must contain "a particular description of the type of [activity] sought to be [videotaped], and a statement of the particular offense t…
examined Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Koyomejian (3×)
9th Cir. · 1992 · confidence medium
United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 252 (5th Cir.1987); see Torres, 751 F.2d at 885 ; Biasucci, 786 F.2d at 510 ; Mesa-Rincon, 911 F.2d at 1437 .
examined Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Wanis Koyomejian (3×)
9th Cir. · 1992 · confidence medium
United States v. Mesa-Rincon, 911 F.2d 1433, 1437 (10th Cir.1990); United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 252 (5th Cir.1987); United States v. Biasucci, 786 F.2d 504, 510 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 479 U.S. 827 , 107 S.Ct. 107 , 93 L.Ed.2d 56 (1986); United States v. Torres, 751 F.2d 875, 885-86 (7th Cir.1984), cert. denied, 470 U.S. 1087 , 105 S.Ct. 1853 , 85 L.Ed.2d 150 (1985).
examined Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Koyomejian (3×)
9th Cir. · 1991 · confidence medium
United States v. Mesa-Rincon, 911 F.2d 1433, 1437 (10th Cir.1990); United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 252 (5th Cir.1987); United States v. Biasucci, 786 F.2d 504, 510 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 479 U.S. 827 , 107 S.Ct. 107 , 93 L.Ed.2d 56 (1986); United States v. Torres, 751 F.2d 875, 885-86 (7th Cir.1984), cert. denied, 470 U.S. 1087 , 105 S.Ct. 1853 , 85 L.Ed.2d 150 (1985).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) United States v. David Taketa and Thomas O'Brien (2×)
9th Cir. · 1991 · confidence medium
United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251-52 (5th Cir. 1987) (quoting George Orwell’s 1984 ); United States v. Biasucci, 786 F.2d 504, 510 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 479 U.S. 827 , 107 S.Ct. 104 , 107, 93 L.Ed.2d 54, 56 (1986); United States v. Torres, 751 F.2d 875, 884-85 (7th Cir.1984), cert. denied, 470 U.S. 1087 , 105 S.Ct. 1853 , 85 L.Ed.2d 150 (1985).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Joaquin Emilio Mesa-Rincon, United States of America v. Peter Scott Stoppe
10th Cir. · 1990 · confidence medium
See also United States v. Torres, 751 F.2d 875, 883-84 (7th Cir.1984), cert. denied, 470 U.S. 1087 , 105 S.Ct. 1853 , 85 L.Ed.2d 150 (1985); United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 252 (5th Cir.1987). 6 .
discussed Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Paredes-Moya
N.D. Tex. · 1989 · confidence medium
The Fifth Circuit held in United States v. Cue-vas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 252 (5th Cir.1987), that the defendant could not sustain a Franks attack upon an order authorizing video surveillance of the exterior of his property.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) United States v. Chester W. Campbell
6th Cir. · 1989 · confidence medium
See United States v. Paradis, 802 F.2d 553, 558 (1st Cir.1986); United States v. Ferguson, 758 F.2d 843, 849 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 474 U.S. 841 , 106 S.Ct. 124 , 125, 88 L.Ed.2d 102 (1985); United States v. Calisto, 838 F.2d 711, 714-16 (3rd Cir.1988); United States v. Taylor, 857 F.2d 210, 215 (4th Cir.1988); United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 252 (5th Cir.1987); United States v. Malsom, 779 F.2d 1228, 1235 (7th Cir.1985); United States v. Leisure, 844 F.2d 1347, 1357 (8th Cir.), cert. denied, — U.S. -, 109 S.Ct. 324 , 102 L.Ed.2d 342 (1988); United States v. Whitworth, 856 F…
discussed Cited "see" United States v. Travis Tuggle (2×)
7th Cir. · 2021 · signal: see · confidence high
See generally United States v. Cue- vas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir. 1987) (concluding that defendant “manifested the subjective expectation of privacy in his backyard” because “he erected fences around [it], screening the activity within from views of casual observers,” and “the area monitored by the camera fell within the curti- lage of his home, an area protected by traditional fourth No. 20-2352 11 amendment analysis”).
examined Cited "see" State v. Thomas (4×)
Ind. Ct. App. · 1994 · signal: see · confidence high
See United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez (5th Cir.1987), 821 F.2d 248, 250-51 ; Ricks v. State (1988), 312 Md. 11 , 537 A.2d 612 , cert. denied, 488 U.S. 832 , 109 S.Ct. 90 , 102 L.Ed.2d 66 .
cited Cited "see" United States v. Chen
9th Cir. · 1992 · signal: accord · confidence high
See Koyomejian II, 970 F.2d at 542 ; accord United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251-52 (5th Cir.1987).
cited Cited "see" United States v. Chen
9th Cir. · 1992 · signal: accord · confidence high
See Koyomejian II, 970 F.2d at 542 ; accord United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251-52 (5th Cir.1987).
discussed Cited "see" Commonwealth v. Price (2×)
Mass. · 1990 · signal: see · confidence high
See United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 250 (5th Cir. 1987) (videotape surveillance described as a “potentially indiscriminate and most intrusive method of surveillance”); Application for Order Authorizing Interception of Oral Communications & Videotape Surveillance, 513 F. Supp. 421, 422 (D.
cited Cited "see" United States v. Andonian
C.D. Cal. · 1990 · signal: see · confidence high
See Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d at 252 ; Biasucci, 786 F.2d at 510 .
discussed Cited "see, e.g." Commonwealth v. Richard Comenzo
Mass. Super. Ct. · 2021 · signal: see also · confidence medium
See also United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir. 1987) (continuous silent videotape surveillance of an enclosed private area must be judicially authorized); United States v. Koyomejian, 970 F. 2d 536, 542 (9th Cir. 1992) (same); United States v. Falls, 34 F.3d 674, 678 (8th Cir. 1994) (same); Shafer v. City of Boulder, 896 F. Supp. 2d 915, 930-932 (D.
discussed Cited "see, e.g." Commonwealth v. Richard Comenzo
Mass. Super. Ct. · 2021 · signal: see also · confidence medium
See also United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248, 251 (5th Cir. 1987) (continuous silent videotape surveillance of an enclosed private area must be judicially authorized); United States v. Koyomejian, 970 F. 2d 536, 542 (9th Cir. 1992) (same); United States v. Falls, 34 F.3d 674, 678 (8th Cir. 1994) (same); Shafer v. City of Boulder, 896 F. Supp. 2d 915, 930-932 (D.
cited Cited "see, e.g." In re the United States for an Order Authorizing Prospective & Continuous Release of Cell Site Location Records
S.D. Tex. · 2014 · signal: see, e.g. · confidence low
See e.g., United States v. Cuevas-Sanchez, 821 F.2d 248 (5th Cir.1987) (video surveillance); United States v. Torres, 751 F.2d 875, 884-85 (7th Cir.1984) (same). .
Retrieving the full opinion text from the archive…
UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
Jesus Fernando CUEVAS-SANCHEZ, Defendant-Appellant
86-1665.
Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
Jun 29, 1987.
821 F.2d 248
Salvador C. Ramirez, Robert P. Harris, El Paso, Tex., for Cuevas-Sanchez., John F. DePue, Atty., Dept, of Justice, Crim. Div., Washington, D.C., Helen M. Eversberg, U.S. Atty., San Antonio, Tex., for U.S.
Gee, Jolly.
Cited by 72 opinions  |  Published
GEE, Circuit Judge:

Jesus Fernando Cuevas-Sanchez appeals his conviction of possession of marijuana with intent to distribute. In the district court, Cuevas moved to suppress the evidence used to convict him on the ground that it was derived from the unlawful video surveillance of his property. The district court denied this motion and, after Cuevas waived a jury trial, found him guilty. Cuevas, raises only the suppression issue in his appeal.

In early 1986, federal law enforcement agents suspected that Cuevas’s home was being used as a drop house for drug traffickers. On March 13, the United States Attorney for the Western District of Texas applied to the district court for an order authorizing video surveillance of the exteri- or of Cuevas’s property. The application included a letter from the Director, Office of Enforcement Operations of the Department of Justice Criminal Division, authorizing the application and an extensive affidavit from a narcotics detective describing the premises and the reasons behind the police’s suspicions. The affidavit provided information gathered from confidential informants as well as from police surveillance of the property. The affidavit also contained a false statement that the appellant had been arrested while in possession of 47 grams of cocaine. Finally, it explained that conventional law enforcement techniques, although attempted, had failed to uncover enough evidence to convict the drug traffickers. The order issued that same day, limiting surveillance to 30 days[*250] and directing the police to minimize observation of innocent conduct and to discontinue the surveillance when none of the suspected participants were on the premises.

On March 19, Agents installed the video camera atop a power pole overlooking the appellant’s 10-foot-high fence bordering the back of the yard. [1] This camera allowed officers to observe the removal of drugs from vehicles’ false gas tanks in Cuevas’s yard; observations that led to the arrest of another participant in the drug ring. On April 30, the United States Attorney asked for an extension of the video surveillance order based on an additional affidavit that included information obtained from the first 30 days of surveillance. A district judge granted the extension on May 5. On May 15, the video surveillance revealed the appellant loading his car with garbage bags believed by the monitors to contain drugs. After he drove off, police stopped Cuevas and made a warrantless search of his car, finding 22 pounds of marijuana. They then obtained a warrant to search his property and found 58 more pounds.

The appellant argues that the government’s application for the surveillance order did not conform to statutory or constitutional standards; therefore, the initial stop, based upon information obtained from the surveillance, was tainted and illegal. He also argues that a false statement contained in the affidavit supporting the government’s application for surveillance voided the entire order.

The government first attempts to bypass Cuevas’s contentions by arguing that Cuevas “had no reasonable expectation of privacy in activities conducted in his backyard visible to a casual observer,” and that therefore the government did not need an order to put the camera on top of the pole. For the factual basis of this argument it points out that activities in the driveways and on the southwestern portion of the property were visible from the street; that some of the activity in the rear portion was visible from the street; that because the east fence was only five to six feet high, a person of average height could observe activity from that vantage point; and finally that power company lineman on top of the pole or a policeman on top of a truck could peer over the 10-foot rear fence. For the legal basis it relies on California v. Ciraolo, 476 U.S. 207, 106 S.Ct. 1809, 90 L.Ed.2d 210 (1986), in which the Supreme Court held that the “Fourth Amendment simply does not require the police traveling in the public airways at [1,000 feet] to obtain a warrant in order to observe what is visible to the naked eye.” Id. at 1813. [2] At first blush, this argument has a certain appeal. Close inspection, however, discloses the sophistry underlying the government’s argument.

The government applied to a United States District Judge for authority to use a potentially indiscriminate and most intrusive method of surveillance. To justify its application, a narcotics officer swore that “conventional law enforcement techniques, such as debriefing defendants, undercover investigations, informants, and surveillance had been attempted but had failed____” Affidavit of Phil Harrold, Gov’t Exhibit 1A at 13. Yet now the government argues, in effect, that conventional surveillance would have revealed the activities that led to Cuevas’s arrest. It cannot have it both ways; “A juxtaposition of such contentions trifles with the Court.” United States v. de Luna, 815 F.2d 301, slip op. at 3498 (5th Cir., 1987).

Furthermore, the government wishes to stretch Ciraolo’s holding far beyond its natural reach. Ciraolo reaffirmed the Katz fourth amendment analysis of whether a person has a constitutionally protected reasonable expectation of privacy. Katz v. United States, 389 U.S. 347, 360-62, 88 S.Ct. 507, 516-17, 19 L.Ed.2d 576 (1967) (Harlan, J., concurring). That analysis[*251] uses a two-part inquiry: “first, has the individual manifested a subjective expectation of privacy in the object of the challenged search? Second, is society willing to recognize that expectation as reasonable?” Ciraolo, 106 S.Ct. at 1811. We do not doubt that Cuevas manifested the subjective expectation of privacy in his backyard necessary to satisfy the first part of the inquiry: he erected fences around his backyard, screening the activity within from views of casual observers. In addition, the area monitored by the camera fell within the curtilage of his home, an area protected by traditional fourth amendment analysis.

The second part focuses on “whether the government’s intrusion infringes upon the personal and societal values protected by the Fourth Amendment.” Oliver v. United States, 466 U.S. 170, 182-83, 104 S.Ct. 1735, 1742, 80 L.Ed.2d 214 (1984). To measure the government’s intrusion we must consider the expectations of society. Ciraolo teaches us that a fly-over by a plane at 1,000 feet does not intrude upon the daily existence of most people; we must now determine whether a camera monitoring all of a person’s backyard activities does. This type of surveillance provokes an immediate negative visceral reaction: indiscriminate video surveillance raises the spectre of the Orwellian state. [3] Here, unlike in Ciraolo, the government’s intrusion is not minimal. It is not a onetime overhead flight or a glance over the fence by a passer-by. Here the government placed a video camera that allowed them to record all activity in Cuevas’s backyard. It does not follow that Ciraolo authorizes any type of surveillance whatever just because one type of minimally-intrusive aerial observation is possible. Indeed, the Supreme Court recently denied review of a California Appeals Court decision suppressing evidence gained through the aerial observations of a helicopter hovering at 400 to 500 feet above the defendant’s backyard. [4] People v. Sabo, 185 Cal.App.3d 845, 230 Cal.Rptr. 170 (4 Dist.1986), cert. denied, — U.S. -, 107 S.Ct. 2200, 95 L.Ed.2d 855 (1987). Cuevas’s expectation to be free from this type of video surveillance in his backyard is one that society is willing to recognize as reasonable.

The government’s actions therefore qualify as a search under the fourth amendment, entitling Cuevas to judicial protection. The government recognized the intrusiveness of the video camera by applying to the district court for an order authorizing it in the first place. We must determine whether the government’s action in obtaining a court order sufficiently protected Cuevas’s fourth amendment rights. The courts that have addressed this issue analyze a request for video surveillance under the statute permitting electronic aural surveillance — Title III of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, 18 U.S.C. §§ 2510-2520. In this circuit, we have yet to address this question. We do so now.

Cuevas argues that the government did not meet all of the requirements of Title III in obtaining the surveillance order. Because Title III does not include video surveillance techniques, we must decide what standards should guide a court in issuing these orders; whether to adopt its technical requirements verbatim or to use Title III as a guide for the constitutional standard. The Second and Seventh Circuits have chosen the latter path. See United States v. Biasucci, 786 F.2d 504 (2nd Cir.), cert. denied, — U.S. -, 107 S.Ct. 104, 93 L.Ed.2d 54 (1986); United States v. Torres, 751 F.2d 875 (7th Cir.1984), cert. denied, [*252] 470 U.S. 1087, 105 S.Ct. 1853, 85 L.Ed.2d 150 (1985). These two Courts considered a court’s power to issue warrants and the constitutional standards governing valid warrants in all cases. They then borrowed the provisions in Title III that implement those constitutional standards for application in the context of video surveillance. Those provisions are:

(1) the judge issuing the warrant must find that “normal investigative procedures have been tried and have failed or reasonably appear to be unlikely to succeed if tried or to be too dangerous,” 18 U.S.C. § 2518(3)(c); (2) the warrant must contain “a particular description of the type of communication sought to be intercepted, and a statement of the particular offense to which it relates,” id. § 2518(4)(c); (3) the warrant must not allow the period of interception to be “longer than is necessary to achieve the objective of the authorization, [ ]or in any event longer than thirty days” (though extensions are possible), id. § 2518(5); and (4) the warrant must require that the interception “be conducted in such a way as to minimize the interception of communications not otherwise subject to interception under [Title III],” id.

Biasucci, 786 F.2d at 510. We accept these as the standards under which an order for video surveillance may issue. We cannot add the other technical requirements of Title III because Title III does not cover video surveillance. We are not a legislature; we can mandate only those protections required by the Constitution. The above requirements protect the constitutional rights of those under surveillance as they have been announced by the Supreme Court.

The application of these standards undercuts Cuevas’s primary contention. He complains that the letter of authorization did not come from the Attorney General or Assistant Attorney General as required in Title III, 18 U.S.C. § 2516. The Fourth Amendment does not require such a letter of authorization. Cuevas also attacks the extension of the order only after the expiration of the 30-day period. There is no evidence that the government continued surveillance in the hiatus between the end of the 30-day period and the beginning of the extension period. Cuevas cannot complain of surveillance that followed the district court’s order. The evidence shows that the government followed all the requirements set out in Biasucci.

Cuevas also contends that the false statement contained in the affidavit supporting the warrant application tainted the application and rendered the subsequent warrant invalid. See Franks v. Delaware, 438 U.S. 154, 98 S.Ct. 2674, 57 L.Ed.2d 667 (1978). Franks held that if, setting aside an affidavit’s false material, the remaining information is insufficient to establish probable cause, the warrant is void. The affidavit in this case, removing the one statement that Cuevas had been arrested while in possession of cocaine, [5] is still sufficient to establish probable cause. Cuevas’s claim cannot survive.

Because the government followed the proper procedures in obtaining a court order for video surveillance, we AFFIRM the appellant’s conviction.

1

. The house faced south with residences on both sides, and the half-acre lot was enclosed by a 10-foot metal fence on the north; a five to six foot metal fence on the east; and a chain link fence on the west. A garage-like building was in the northwest corner.

2

. In Ciraolo, the defendants were growing marijuana in their backyard. They had a 10-foot privacy fence protecting against any unwanted ground observations. The police flew over their property in a fixed-winged aircraft and identified the marijuana. They used this observation as the basis of the subsequent search warrant.

3

. The telescreen received and transmitted simultaneously. Any sound that Winston made, above the level of a very low whisper, would be picked up by it; moreover, so long as he remained within the field of vision which the metal plaque commanded, he could be seen as well as heard. There was of course no way of knowing whether you were being watched at any given moment.

G. Orwell, 1984, at 4 (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich ed., 1949).

4

. George Orwell described similar activities in his portrait of the totalitarian state:

In the far distance a helicopter skimmed down between the roofs, hovered for an instant like a bluebottle, and darted away again with a curving flight. It was the Police Patrol, snooping into people’s windows.

G. Orwell, 1984 at 4.

5

. The officer had actually arrested Fernando Cuevas-Sanchez, the appellant’s brother, and similar to Jesus Fernando Cuevas-Sanchez in appearance.