United States v. Emmett C. McKinney A/K/A Charles McKinney

On this appeal from unlawful possession of a firearm, the central issue is the reasonableness of the seizure of the sawed-off shotgun in appellant’s hotel room. The pertinent facts that emerged at the hearing, on the appellant’s motion to suppress, developed that on July 30, 1970, at approximately 9 a. m., the manager of the Franklin Park Hotel noticed that the phone in room 642 (appellant’s room) was off the hook, and dispatched a bellman there to replace the receiver. The bellman entered the room with a pass key, and in looking for the telephone, which was obscured by a newspaper, 'he…