Lo-Ji Sales, Inc. v. New York
United States Supreme Court
442 U.S. 319 (1979)
- Written by Sarah Venti, JD
Facts
An investigator purchased two adult films which, after viewing them, he believed violated state obscenity laws. He showed the films to the town justice who issued a warrant authorizing the search of Lo-Ji Sales, Inc.’s (defendant) inventory and the seizure of the other copies of the two films. The investigator’s affidavit also stated that the store had other “similar” items he believed to also violate state obscenity law. The justice agreed to accompany the investigator to the store to determine whether there was in fact probable cause to believe other items violated state law. The warrant then contained a section authorizing the seizure of “the following items” but no specific items were listed. During the search of the store, when the justice found something he believed to violate state obscenity law, he ordered it seized as well as all “similar” items. In all, hundreds of films, reels, books and magazines were seized. After the search of the store, the warrant was amended to include all the items that were seized and the town justice signed the amended warrant.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Burger, C.J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 811,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
