Commonwealth v. Ousley

Opinion of the Court by

Justice NOBLE.

The police in this case walked onto the Appellee’s property and into an area near his home late at night to search trash in closed trash containers which ended up containing evidence of drug trafficking. The containers had not been put out on the street for trash collection. Because the police invaded the curtilage without a search warrant, the search was illegal. Thus, this Court affirms the decision of the Court of Appeals, which found that the trial court erred in not suppressing the evidence.

I. Background

Appellee Danny Lee Ousley lived in a…