Page 30 - TPA Journal November December2021

Joe C. Tooley, Legal Digest Editor
Joe C. Tooley, Attorneys & Counselors, Rockwall, Texas
www.TooleyLaw.com 972-722-1058

TEXAS POLICE ASSOCIATION

LEGAL DIGEST

November - December 2021

AUTHOR’S NOTE: It is the goal of this submission to extract those portions of relevant appellate
opinions or the syllabus of the legal reporter which bear directly upon law enforcement methods
and provide guidance for officers on an operational level. Much of the information pertaining to
these cases is lifted verbatim from the court opinion or syllabus with independent analysis inserted
as appropriate. Due to clarity for training purposes, the distinction between quotes from the
opinions and inserted analysis is not always identified and legal citations within the opinion are
often omitted. Emphasis is placed upon reported decisions from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals
and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.

WARRANTS – SEARCH WARRANT - Bitcoin numbers. Bitcoin users send Bitcoin to other users
data – privacy of electronic data. through these addresses using a private key
function that authorizes the payments. To
[ed. Note: the trend seems to be to lean toward conduct Bitcoin transactions, Bitcoin users must
protecting electronic data. So the old saying “Get either download Bitcoin’s specialized software or
a warrant!” often applies.] use a virtual currency exchange, such as the one
used here, called Coinbase.
Richard Gratkowski appeals the district court’s
denial of his motion to suppress evidence obtained When a Bitcoin user transfers Bitcoin to another
through a search warrant. We AFFIRM. address, the sender transmits a transaction
announcement on Bitcoin’s public network, known
Gratkowski became the subject of a federal as a blockchain.2 The Bitcoin blockchain contains
investigation when federal agents began only the sender’s address, the receiver’s address,
investigating a child-pornography website (the and the amount of Bitcoin transferred. The owners
“Website”). To download material from the of the addresses are anonymous on the Bitcoin
Website, some users, like Gratkowski, paid the blockchain, but it is possible to discover the owner
Website in Bitcoin. of a Bitcoin address by analyzing the blockchain.

Bitcoin is a type of virtual currency. Each Bitcoin For example, when an organization creates multiple
user has at least one “address,” similar to a bank Bitcoin addresses, it will often combine its Bitcoin
account number, that is a long string of letters and addresses into a separate, central Bitcoin address

26 www.texaspoliceassociation.com • (512) 458-3140 Texas Police Journal