Davila v. State (2005)

In Davila v. State, 169 S.W.3d 735 (Tex. App.--Austin 2005, no pet.), the Austin Court of Appeals concluded the issuing magistrate did not have a substantial basis to support a probable cause determination based on an affidavit that contained conclusory statements by a confidential informant that illegal drugs were possessed at the suspected residence, police observance of heavy traffic to the residence, and a report of drug traces found in a one-time search of the residence's garbage. The Austin court concluded the tip from the CI did not support issuance of the warrant because the CI was not shown to be reliable or credible. It further declined to give significant weight to the single discovery of drug residue in the abandoned trash. It explained garbage containers left outside a residence for collection are readily accessible to the public, "including neighbors and passers-by with overflow or undesirable trash" and other "unwelcome meddlers." Davila, 169 S.W.3d at 740. It concluded that, considering the totality of the circumstances, the magistrate did not have a substantial basis for concluding probable cause existed.