The Redated Warrant

On an affidavit describing a purchase of beer from the owner of a small hotel, a federal commissioner issued a search warrant. The law required a warrant to be executed within ten days, and this one was not. Three weeks after it was issued, prohibition agents brought it back to the commissioner, who changed its date and reissued it, relying on the original affidavit. Using the redated warrant, officers searched the hotel and found a pint of gin and a pint of beer in the bar room and three and a half barrels of liquid in the cellar. The owner was charged with possessing and selling intoxicating liquor at the hotel. The defence moved to exclude the evidence, arguing that the original warrant had expired and could not be brought back to life simply by changing its date.