MOTION TO SUPPRESS EVIDENCE

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

   On December 9, 2024 officers of the Altoona Police Department conducted a search of Luigi (himself), backpack, laptop etc. 

The search was allegedly conducted without a valid warrant, without probable cause, and without Defendant’s informed and voluntary consent.
During the course of this unlawful search, officers seized certain items.
The Commonwealth, New York, and the federal government has indicated its intent to introduce said evidence against Defendant at trial.

II. ARGUMENT

A. The Search Violated Constitutional Protections

The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees “[t]he right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures.”
Article I, Section 8 of the Pennsylvania Constitution provides that “the people shall be secure in their persons, houses, papers and possessions from unreasonable searches and seizures,” and has been interpreted by Pennsylvania courts to afford greater privacy protections than its federal counterpart. See Commonwealth v. Edmunds, 586 A.2d 887 (Pa. 1991).
The search at issue was conducted in the absence of a judicially authorized warrant. No valid exception to the warrant requirement applied.

B. The Exclusionary Rule Applies

Under the exclusionary rule, evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment or Article I, Section 8 must be suppressed. Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643 (1961).
The “fruit of the poisonous tree” doctrine further requires suppression of not only the unlawfully seized evidence itself, but also any derivative evidence obtained as a result. Wong Sun v. United States, 371 U.S. 471 (1963).

C. No Valid Exception Applies

Defendant did not provide knowing, intelligent, or voluntary consent to the search. Any alleged “consent” was coerced, involuntary, or otherwise invalid.
No exigent circumstances justified the warrantless entry and seizure. The officers had ample opportunity to obtain a valid warrant but failed to do so.
The search therefore constituted a direct violation of Defendant’s constitutional rights.

III. PRAYER FOR RELIEF

WE THE PEOPLE respectfully request that this Honorable Court issue a writ of habeas corpus on behalf of the defendant named Luigi Nicholas Mangione. The defendant is presently being detained and seeks to be brought before the Court so that the legality of their confinement may be reviewed as well as an illegal search and seizure. It is asserted that the defendant’s continued detention is unlawful, and this petition is submitted to ensure that due process of law is fully observed. The defendant has the fundamental right to challenge unlawful imprisonment and to appear personally before the Court to have the cause of their detention examined. Accordingly, I respectfully ask that this Court order the defendant to be brought forth without unnecessary delay for judicial review of the circumstances of their restraint. 

WE THE PEOPLE also respectfully request that the that this Honorable Court:

Grant this Motion to Suppress;
Exclude from evidence at trial all items seized by Altoona Police Department as a result of the unlawful search and seizure conducted on December 9, 2024
Suppress any derivative evidence or statements obtained therefrom; and
Grant such other relief as this Court deems just and proper.