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An Evansville man’s convictions in district court on several drug and gun possession offenses were based on overwhelming evidence and methamphetamine seized from his house fell within the legally permissible scope of a police search warrant, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Friday in upholding a lower court’s decision.
The case was originally argued in the U.S. District Court in Evansville.
According to court documents, in 2022, a jury found Nathaniel Jacobs, Sr. guilty of several 2020 offenses, which included illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and witness tampering.
Jacobs shot himself in the hand when one of three guns he inherited fell and discharged while he was retrieving money from a safe in his home. He admitted that he was not allowed to possess firearms as a convicted felon, court documents stated.
A search of his home turned up two other firearms, ammunition boxes, and drug-related evidence.
In appealing his conviction to the 7th Circuit, Jacobs argued that the district court violated his rights under the Sixth Amendment by not allowing him to confront his ex-girlfriend about potential bias regarding state criminal charges that were pending against her.
The government brought in his ex-girlfriend as a witness to testify against Jacobs at his trial.
Jacobs also argued that the district court erred by admitting into evidence the drugs that were found in his home.
In the circuit court’s decision, authored by Judge Doris Pryor, the court stated that Jacobs’s conviction did not hinge on the ex-girlfriend’s testimony or credibility.
Pryor wrote that even if Jacobs had shown that his ex-girlfriend was more involved in the criminal activity than she had stated, or if her testimony was an effort to get leniency in her own case, the evidence against Jacobs was still overwhelming.
The jury saw photos of Jacobs with his guns, heard testimony from witnesses about their interactions with Jacobs, and heard recorded phone calls between Jacobs and his ex in which he stated they should get married so they wouldn’t have to testify against each other, according to court documents.
Jacobs also argued that instability with his trial counsel and a change in the law relating to sentencing contributed to his inability to timely file a suppression motion in the district court, which would’ve kept the drug evidence seized in his home from being used in trial.
He believed that law enforcement exceeded the scope of their search warrant of his home by looking inside two tobacco cans that are too small to fit firearms.
But the search warrant permitted police to search not only for firearms, but also ammunition and electronic devices, both of which can fit in a tobacco can, the circuit court affirmed.
Pryor pointed out that the record did not support Jacobs’ assertion, pointing to the fact that his counsel had roughly 10 months to assess suppression claims. The e court also found that Jacobs’ counsel represented to the district court that he didn’t think he had valid legal grounds to file a suppression motion, according to court documents.
“When executing a warrant, officers may search ‘anywhere the items to be seized might likely be discovered, so long as that is within the place authorized to be searched.’ Archer v. Chisholm, 870 F.3d 603, 617 (7th Cir. 2017). As such, it would not be error to conclude that the officers were permitted under the Fourth Amendment to search the tobacco cans at issue,” Pryor wrote.
The case is United States of America v. Nathaniel J. Jacobs, Sr., No. 22-2615.
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