On August 2, 2009, David Leon Riley who belong to the Lincoln Park gang in San Diego, California open fire with others on a rival gang member that was driving past them. They then got into Riley’s Oldsmobile and drove away. The police pulled over driving a different car on August 20, 2009 for having expired registration tags, because Riley was driving with a suspended driver’s license, the required police policy is for the car to be impounded. Before any car is impounded, the police are required to perform a inventory search to make sure it has all the components at the time of the search, to protect against liability claims in the future, and to find hidden contraband. Police found 2 firearms and arrested Riley for possession of firearms. …show more content…
The information that was found on Riley’s cell phone was enough to determine that he was gang affiliated. Later Riley was then tied to the shooting that happened on August 2nd via ballistic testing. Seperate charges were brought including shooting at an occupied vehicle, attempted murder and assault with a semi-automatic firearm. Riley moved to suppress the evidence involving his gang affiliation that was found on his cell phone, but the motion was denied. During the trial, a gang expert testified to Riley being in the Lincoln Park gang, the rivalry between the two gangs, and why the shoot could have been gang-related. Riley was convicted on all 3 counts and sentenced to 15 years to life in prison. This was affirmed by The California Court of Appeal, Fourth District, Division