981 F.3d 961
11th Cir.2020Background
- Scott Trader sexually abused his daughters for years, recorded the abuse, and distributed child pornography via messaging apps; he also solicited and exchanged child pornography with numerous minors.
- A parent reported that a SayHi user named “Scott” sent child pornography to his nine-year-old; SayHi profile referenced a Kik account whose profile photo matched the SayHi photos.
- Homeland Security obtained from Kik the account email (strader0227@yahoo.com) and recent IP addresses; Comcast subscriber records for a repeated IP linked the IP to a residence on Edinburgh Drive registered to Shelly Trader.
- Agents matched the Kik/SayHi photos to Scott Trader’s driver’s-license photo and identified Trader with the Edinburgh Drive address; a magistrate issued a warrant to search that house.
- Execution of the warrant produced a concealed cache of electronic devices containing videos of Trader abusing his daughters, thousands of child-pornography files, and communications showing distribution and solicitation; Trader was indicted, moved to suppress, pleaded guilty reserving appeal rights, and was sentenced to life imprisonment.
Issues
| Issue | Trader's Argument | Government's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether a warrant was required to obtain email and IP addresses from Kik | Carpenter should extend to IP/email as location records; thus a warrant was required | Carpenter's narrow exception applies only to CSLI; ordinary business records (email/IP) fall under the third-party doctrine so no warrant needed | No warrant required; third-party doctrine controls and Carpenter does not extend to ordinary IP/email records |
| Whether probable cause supported the warrant to search the Edinburgh Drive house | Affidavit only tied a Kik user to the house, not conclusively the SayHi user/Trader; connection was speculative | Matching photos across accounts, the Kik email, IP logins tied to the house, and Trader’s mailing address established a fair probability of finding evidence at the residence | Probable cause existed to support the warrant; the totality of interrelated facts connected Trader to the residence |
| Whether Trader's life sentence was substantively unreasonable | Life was excessive given age, family ties, limited criminal history, and asserted rehabilitation potential | Offense gravity, extensive victimization, continued offending while on supervision, threats, and high reoffense risk justified a within‑guidelines life term | Sentence was reasonable and not an abuse of discretion; district court reasonably weighed §3553(a) factors |
Key Cases Cited
- Carpenter v. United States, 138 S. Ct. 2206 (2018) (narrowed third-party doctrine for historical cell-site location information)
- Smith v. Maryland, 442 U.S. 735 (1979) (third-party doctrine: no reasonable expectation of privacy in information voluntarily conveyed to third parties)
- Miller v. United States, 425 U.S. 435 (1976) (business records held by third parties fall outside Fourth Amendment protection)
- Kyllo v. United States, 533 U.S. 27 (2001) (search occurs when government violates a subjective expectation of privacy society recognizes)
- Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. 213 (1983) (probable cause evaluated under totality of circumstances; fair-probability standard)
- United States v. Leon, 468 U.S. 897 (1984) (good-faith exception to exclusionary rule)
- United States v. Gibson, 708 F.3d 1256 (11th Cir. 2013) (standard of review for suppression and sentencing appeals)