United States v. Janis
United States Supreme Court
428 U.S. 433 (1976)
Relevant factsFree
Los Angeles police searched an apartment under a warrant later found defective and arrested the occupants (plaintiffs) for running a bookmaking operation. Police gave the seized bookmaking records to the IRS, which used them to assess the occupants' back taxes. After a judge ruled the search illegal, the occupants argued the IRS's civil tax claim should be dismissed because it relied on illegally obtained evidence. The case reached the Supreme Court.
IssueFree
Whether evidence seized by a state law-enforcement officer in good faith but in an unconstitutional manner is admissible in a related federal civil proceeding.