Appeals Court Reverses Guilty Plea
Updated September 30, 2026. This post originally reprinted a 2016 newspaper article. It now summarizes the court’s decision.
Court of Appeals Vacates a Guilty Plea After a Search Beyond Consent
In March 2016, the North Carolina Court of Appeals vacated a Currituck County defendant’s guilty plea and judgment in a case Daniel Donahue handled in superior court. The court held that officers went beyond the defendant’s consent when they searched computer storage devices he had not agreed to let them search.
What the Court Decided
- The defendant consented to searches of two laptops and a smartphone.
- Officers also searched an external hard drive and other storage devices found in a laptop bag, without a warrant and without consent to search those devices.
- The Court of Appeals held that the search of those devices violated the Fourth Amendment, reversed the denial of the motion to suppress, and vacated the guilty plea and judgment.
Read the court’s opinion, No. COA15-1071 (N.C. Ct. App. March 15, 2016).
Why It Matters
Consent to search one thing is not consent to search everything. When a search goes beyond the consent given, the evidence it produces can be challenged with a motion to suppress. North Carolina law also allows the denial of a motion to suppress to be reviewed on appeal after a guilty plea, when the issue is properly preserved.
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Facing a criminal charge in Dare or Currituck County? Call or text Donahue Defense at 252-715-5785. Learn more about criminal defense.