Sikeston parents charged over graduation party say computer seizure improper

CHARLESTON, Mo. -- Sikeston, Mo., police lacked probable cause when they secured computer data from the household of a Sikeston couple charged with serving alcohol to minors, their attorney argued at a motion hearing Wednesday.

Attorney Stephen C. Wilson argued to suppress the evidence collected from two computers belonging to Mark Cheatham and Terry Brewer-Cheatham, because the search warrants issued to secure the data contained insufficient evidence.

Scott County Prosecuting Attorney Paul Boyd admitted both search warrants and the computer data printout, an Internet invitation to the party, as evidence, saying the facts contained in the documents spoke for themselves.

Circuit Judge Terry Lynn Brown said he would rule on whether to suppress the evidence within seven to 10 days.

The Cheathams were charged with 30 counts each of supplying alcohol to minors at a graduation party they held at their Greenbrier Drive residence in Sikeston on May 20.

At the hearing, which was held at the Mississippi County Courthouse on change of venue from Scott County, Sikeston officer Tim Bartlett testified for the state that he was dispatched to the house because an anonymous caller reported loud music and underage drinking.

When he arrived, he went around the house and walked toward an open gate leading to the backyard, he testified. As he approached the open gate, he said he observed several teenagers carrying a keg across the yard.

He testified on cross-examination that he entered the yard to find the Chathams and ask them to turn down the music but admitted knowing they had obtained a permit from the city of Sikeston allowing them to violate the noise ordinance.

Wilson argued that Bartlett could not have known that a crime was taking place before he entered the yard.

Bartlett was relying on his experience as a law enforcement officer in determining that the individuals carrying the keg were underage before he entered the yard, Boyd said.

Micah Agnew, 18, who had been at the graduation party, testified for the defense that the gate had been closed, and he heard it open when Bartlett walked into the yard because it scraped the concrete.

On cross-examination, Agnew said he had no knowledge of the Internet invitation sent out from the Cheathams' son saying his mother would buy a keg for the party.

If convicted, the Cheathams face a maximum penalty of six months in the county jail and up to a $500 fine for each of the 30 counts.

bdicosmo@semisosurian.com

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