Probable cause

Yeah, we're trying to lock her into anything that we can verify on our end up here as, as false, and then we've got a criminal charge we can detain her on.

She's got than we have it here, so we have to at least have probable cause or something to detain her now.

Okay.

Um, that, that may work.

So Flock camera discovered her, basically her complete itinerary, and based on that he...

I, I believe that's what allowed him to decide to, um, search her car without her consent, 'cause he thought that was maybe probable cause.

His Flock, his Flock data was probable cause for searching her car, and it seems that the judge ruled that that is not, not probable cause.

Um, which I, which I, which I believe is valid.

Even though he did end up finding drugs in her car, I don't think that someone making a quick, a quick trip from one place to far away is probable cause for them to have their, like, privacy violated.

Um, and so I belie- I, I, uh, I agree with the judge's ruling, so for whatever that matters.

Um-

But then it's also in this weird kinda space where it's like they did illegally, like, clock her doing these things.

[upbeat music]

I'm Andrea Gunning, and this is Betrayal, Season 6, episode 3, Probable Cause.

In our last episode, the harassment campaign against Carl, his boyfriend Drew, and their friend Paul reached new heights.

Carl's ex-boyfriend denied he was behind the attacks.

As she combed through it, she came to the same conclusion as Carl.

His ex-boyfriend, Adam Mejia, was likely their guy.

All that information that we had constituted probable cause to believe that Adam Mejia was actually the perpetrator of this.

Probable cause.

The nonpartisan judges serve six-year terms.

Jamie Duffy of the Probable Cause and Dirk Rowley of Wayne Fifteen asked questions, and Allen County Prosecutor Michael McAlexander moderated the panel.

Kearns has served as Allen Superior Court ju-- ju-- excuse me, Allen Superior Court magistrate for fifteen years.

Before that, he worked as a deputy prosecuting attorney for the county.

That's right.

To be entitled to a franks hearing, he has to make a substantial showing that there are false statements or with reckless disregard for the truth and that they were material to the existence of probable cause.

And I think the easiest way for this court to address that is that they were not material.

Even if you take out everything that he says was false from the affidavit and you include everything that he says was omitted, there is still probable cause, which is not a high standard.

Because we still have his own statement saying, I'm the guy who passed these girls on the path at 1.30.

These girls all identified him as bridge guy.

And he says, I'm the guy who was out on the bridge shortly before Abby and Libby would have arrived at the bridge.

And that in and of itself is probable cause for a search warrant.

The warrants and associated applications were sealed due to the sensitive nature of the investigation at the time.

Since then, an extensive probable cause affidavit has been unsealed in Latah County, Idaho, which has alleviated the need for the sealing of the return service here in Washington.

This order was presented by a prosecuting attorney, Dennis P. Tracy, and it was signed by Judge Gary Libby.

In the matter of application for search warrant, motion and order for original search warrant and search warrant application to remain sealed but redacted version be provided for public's release.

These warrants were issued and served in Washington state because the suspect in the crimes resided and worked here during the time of the murders.

These warrants and associated applications were sealed due to the sensitive nature of the investigation at that time.

Since then, an extensive probable cause affidavit has been unsealed in Latah, Idaho, which has alleviated much of the need for sealing here in Washington.

But the documents filed in Latah County have not disclosed the surviving victims' names, only their initials.