II> Correct.  In fact, a lot of drug busts have occured because the dealiers
II> were using their wireless phones to arrange deals... while the cops were
II> sitting down the block, listening and taping... without benefit of a
II> court wiretap order!  I would think that a good lawyer could get that
II> thrown out of court in a New York minute, but I've heard that the
II> convictions were made and they were not overturned.
I have a different perspectove on that based on a wide variety of cases
in which that has happened.  In such cases, the intercepted conversations
are not used as evidence at all, because obviously they CANT be (of course
that never stops LEO's from trying to scam the system by trying to pass off
illegal evidence but usually their not stupid enough to do that because 
illegal wiretapping is obviously clearly illegal (with a few exceptions 
actually!) not to mention inadmissible (with exceptions).   No, the way
its always been suggested in such cases, is that a warrant was issued
for the drug busts based on  "anonymous tips" (which is of questionable
legality in itself.  Many times a "so-called anonymous tip" is all that is 
needed, but some decent judges (probably most) will not buy into that.. but 
some do nevertheless..  Another tactic is simply to take the information on
the drug buys and then send an officer in to do an undercover "buy". And 
hence, that is 100 percent legal, and the intercepted conversations need not 
even be brought up.  
--- GEcho 1.00
---------------