Rodriguez v. State

The defendants were convicted on pleas of nolo contendere of various lottery violations, specifically reserving their right to appeal the denial of their motions to suppress the tangible physical evidence of their lottery operation. We reverse.

We find that the affidavit in support of the search warrant did not establish probable cause that an illegal lottery operation was being conducted on the premises. The only connective between the suspicious activity and gambling was that brown paper bags were passed from third parties to occupants of the premises. The affiant made no attempt to…