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OK, so everyone can understand what I& #39;m on about with the Subpoena thing in the "Hunter Biden" nonsense from the Post: Now that pretty much everyone knows it was SA Joshua Wilson from the Wilmington RA who signed the service, and assuming it& #39;s the same Wilson who (like me) 1/
spent a long time working child exploitation seizing tons of PCs, the subpoena is weird. There are two principal ways to get authorization to *SEARCH* a hard drive: Consent from a person w/ access & authority, or a warrant. Warrant is best - always - but written consent is OK. 2/
It gets complicated in some districts with third-party consent, but this story (concocted perhaps with a former prosecutor) is written exactly to the case law: a computer repairman "innocently" finds something "criminal" and calls the FBI. What normally happens then is this: 3/
An agent goes out, takes a statement, gets the document the owner of the computer signed, ensures that the repairman could legally consent to the removal of the PC, has him/her sign a consent to search, gives them a receipt, and leaves. 4/
If it *really* looks like there might be something there, you get a warrant. Period.
But the only times someone asked me for a subpoena in such cases was when the *consenting party* asked, "Could you cover me with some paper?" which is a way to CYA if the customer sues. 5/
But the only times someone asked me for a subpoena in such cases was when the *consenting party* asked, "Could you cover me with some paper?" which is a way to CYA if the customer sues. 5/
Don& #39;t get me wrong: you can get subpoenaed to bring anything - records, hard drives, a ham sandwich - anything before a GJ, but that doesn& #39;t mean the FBI can *search* the hard drive of a computer. Subpoenas are far too easy to get for that. 6/
But if you& #39;re going to take the computer to search it, and the consent is dodgy ("cover me with some paper, bro"), you get a warrant.
*IF* - and this is a big if- you can *swear to a judge* you have Probable Cause to believe: 7/
*IF* - and this is a big if- you can *swear to a judge* you have Probable Cause to believe: 7/
1) A federal crime has occurred
*and*
2) Evidence of it is likely on that computer now
If you can& #39;t do that, you take it, give bro his paper, talk to the AUSA, peek just enough around to convince yourself it& #39;s bogus, and give it back (hence why that external HD is with Rudy) 8/
*and*
2) Evidence of it is likely on that computer now
If you can& #39;t do that, you take it, give bro his paper, talk to the AUSA, peek just enough around to convince yourself it& #39;s bogus, and give it back (hence why that external HD is with Rudy) 8/
Now, maybe there& #39;s some other set of circumstances here which I& #39;m not considering - I have no inside information, and I& #39;ve been out of the game for a while. But as of this moment and what I& #39;ve seen, this just sounds like a bunch of nonsense. Maybe they did get a warrant, 9/
hit the jackpot, and then... sat around for months and months twiddling their thumbs, waiting for the NY Post to break it all wide open for them. Maybe, but...
