A-23-1039, State v. William B. Langley (Appellant)
District Court for Scotts Bluff County, District Judge Leo Dobrovolny
Attorney for Appellant: Jessica R. Meyers (Scotts Bluff County Public Defender’s Office)
Attorney for Appellee: Michael T. Hilgers and Melissa R. Vincent (Attorney General’s Office)
Criminal Action: Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person
Action taken by the Trial Court: The district court denied Langley’s motion to suppress, finding that a locked gun case was presented to an officer by Langley’s family members after the officer’s inquiry. The district court concluded that the officer’s activity was not a search, and if there was a search, it was done by someone other than law enforcement, so the Fourth Amendment was not implicated. During a jury trial, the State offered the gun that had been inside the case into evidence and Langley objected based on his motion to suppress. The district court overruled the objection. The jury found Langley guilty of one count of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and the district court, after accepting the jury’s verdict, sentenced Langley to a term of 3 to 3 years’ imprisonment.
Assignments of Error on Appeal: The district court erred in concluding that no search occurred, which resulted in the court denying Langley’s motion to suppress.