However, Jim Murray of radio station 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston tweeted that, according to a source, "Patrick Chung’s home in Meredith had an alarm tripped for a B&E. Police show up to check on the home, have probable cause to enter the home, and ultimately end up finding cocaine, leading to the investigation and indictment."
“The rule of thumb is if the police are in a place where they have a right to be then anything they see is fair game,” explained Harry Starbranch, a former Deputy Strafford County Attorney, who is now a criminal defense attorney practicing in New Hampshire. “But it has to be in plain view,” he stressed in a phone interview. “They can’t go searching.”
This is a travesty and they charged him with a felony? Why is everyone on the cops' side in here? I'm glad the League is not punishing him and I'm surprised everyone in this thread is only dumping on Chung.
Where do you draw the line on this stuff? The attorney is absolutely correct regarding the law, and I think think it's a sensible rule. Police shouldn't just ignore things that are clearly illegal just because that wasn't the crime they were originally investigating.
I am not up on the details but was the coke out in plain site or did the cops search for it and find it?
If they entered and then saw coke on a kitchen counter, that's one thing. But if the cops enter, see a plate with a razor blade on it, both looking clean, but open a drawer next to the plate and see a bag of coke, that's something completely different.