Darden, S.J.
. . . In any event, we conclude that the good faith exception is inapplicable here because Detective Fortune’s affidavit is so lacking in indicia of probable cause as to render an official belief in the existence of the warrant unreasonable. The informant gave Detective Fortune information that was at least three to four months old. The officers corroborated only facts that were readily available to the general public, i.e., observing an RV parked at the home. They did not attempt to confirm the informant’s claim of an ongoing methamphetamine dealing operation by placing surveillance on Cartwright’s property. In addition, Detective Fortune also relied on his stale four-year-old prior observation of Cartwright’s home, which had been rebuffed by the prosecutor for lack of probable cause. The officers’ reliance on a warrant issued on essentially uncorroborated hearsay from an anonymous informant was objectively unreasonable. See Jaggers, 687 N.E.2d at 186.
Mathias, J. concurs.
Baker, J., dissents with opinion:
. . . I agree that there was insufficient investigation done to establish the credibility of the CI. I also agree that each of these alleged facts, taken alone, does not establish probable cause. But I believe that the totality of these allegations easily exceed the threshold described by the United States Supreme Court in Leon. In other words, I do not believe that this affidavit is “so lacking in indicia of probable cause as to render official belief in its existence entirely unreasonable.” Leon, 468 U.S. at 923. [Footnote omitted.]
This conclusion does not end the inquiry, however, inasmuch as Detective Fortune was both the affiant and one of the police officials who executed the search warrant. Under certain circumstances, this overlap can render the good faith exception inapplicable. In Figert, our Supreme Court considered precisely this issue: “[b]ecause the same officer here filed the probable cause affidavit and participated in the execution of the warrant based on the affidavit, we must decide whether the officer’s reliance on the warrant was entirely unreasonable notwithstanding the magistrate’s decision to issue the warrant.” 686 N.E.2d at 831-32.
The Figert Court noted that “[m]ost Indiana appellate decisions upholding the admission of evidence under the good faith exception involved reliance on hearsay whose credibility was later found to be inadequately established.” Id. at 832. In Figert, however, “the officer obtained the warrant primarily based on his own observations and firsthand knowledge.” Id. Under those circumstances, “the officer’s own opinion . . . cannot be relied on to authorize a search not supported by the facts.” Id. at 833. Consequently, the Figert Court found that the officer’s reliance was not objectively reasonable under Leon, and the good faith exception was inapplicable.
Here, as opposed to Figert, Detective Fortune was relying primarily on “technically flawed hearsay . . . that in hindsight might make reliance on the warrant objectively reasonable.” Id. at 832. The vast majority of allegations supporting the request for a search warrant rested solely on the CI. And while I ultimately agree that the credibility of the CI was insufficiently established such that the hearsay amounted to probable cause, Detective Fortune’s reliance on the CI’s allegations and the warrant itself were objectively reasonable. As a result, the fact that Detective Fortune both signed the affidavit and helped to execute the warrant do not render the good faith exception inapplicable.