## Facts

- Police received information from a confidential informant that Timothy Barton kept a large quantity of marijuana in a closet in his apartment, packaged in plastic garbage bags.
- The informant provided police with a sample substance, which testing confirmed was marijuana.
- The informant reported that Barton drove a vehicle with Texas license plates and described Barton returning after about a week away, unloading several large plastic bags into the apartment.
- The informant stated that shortly thereafter several people arrived, stayed briefly, and left with bags.
- Based on an affidavit summarizing the informant’s information, police obtained a search warrant for Barton’s apartment.
- Execution of the warrant led to seizure of approximately 52 pounds of marijuana, packaged in clear plastic bags inside large garbage bags.
- Barton was charged with possession of marijuana with intent to sell and possession of marijuana.
- Barton moved to suppress the seized marijuana, arguing the affidavit did not sufficiently establish probable cause because it inadequately showed the informant’s basis of knowledge.

## Issues

1. Under article first, § 7 of the Connecticut Constitution, whether probable cause for an informant-based search warrant is assessed by a totality-of-the-circumstances approach rather than a rigid Aguilar–Spinelli two-prong test.
2. Whether the affidavit provided a substantial basis for the issuing magistrate to find probable cause to search Barton’s apartment.

## Decision

- The Connecticut Supreme Court adopted a totality-of-the-circumstances framework for evaluating informant-based warrant applications under article first, § 7, treating veracity and basis of knowledge as important factors rather than separate, mandatory prongs.
- The court held the affidavit provided a substantial basis for the magistrate’s probable-cause determination.
- The court reversed the Appellate Court’s judgment affirming suppression and remanded for further proceedings consistent with its ruling.

## Legal Principles

- Under article first, § 7, probable cause for a search warrant based on an informant’s information is determined by the totality of the circumstances, with informant veracity and basis of knowledge remaining key considerations.
- Corroboration and concrete indicia of reliability—such as a tested sample of contraband and detailed, specific observations—may support probable cause even if the affidavit does not satisfy a formal two-prong presentation.
- Reviewing courts give substantial deference to the issuing magistrate and ask only whether the affidavit furnished a substantial basis for concluding that probable cause existed, rather than re-deciding probable cause anew.
- Warrant affidavits are read in a common-sense, practical manner consistent with the preference for searches conducted pursuant to a warrant.

## Conclusion

The court held that Connecticut’s search-and-seizure provision permits a totality-of-the-circumstances assessment of informant-based warrants, and it sustained the warrant here because the informant’s detailed report and the tested marijuana sample provided a substantial basis for the magistrate’s probable-cause finding.


State v. Barton, 219 Conn. 529, 594 A.2d 917 (Conn. 1991)