Commonwealth v. Byfield

On November 1, 1989, prior to trial on a charge of trafficking in a Class B substance (cocaine), see G. L. c. 94C, § 32E (b) (1990 ed.), the defendant, Stanley Byfield, filed a motion to suppress evidence seized during the execution of a search warrant. The defendant argued that the affidavit filed in support of the application for the warrant did not establish probable cause and, thus, that the search violated his rights under the Fourth Amendment to the Federal Constitution and under art. 14 of the Declaration of Rights of the Massachusetts Constitution. A judge in the Superior Court denied…