Cincinnati -- A Lake County man who hid illegal explosives in his house was found out after his waterbed caught fire.
The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday found that the search of James Buckmaster's home that led to the discovery of the commercial fireworks and to Buckmaster's conviction was lawful. The Madison Township Fire Department responded to a fire at Buckmaster's home on May 14, 2005, according to court records.
The fire in the headboard of a waterbed in an upstairs bedroom was put out easily, but water from fire hoses and the waterbed -- which was punctured -- seeped to lower floors. That led firefighters to inspect electrical outlets on the first floor and basement to make sure they posed no danger of shorting and starting a new fire.
In the furnace room, inspectors found open boxes of fireworks, containing about 1,250 pounds of explosive, for which Buckmaster had no license.
He was charged and pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Cleveland on the condition that he be allowed to withdraw the plea if the search was later found to be illegal as he claimed.
A judge rejected the claim, and the appeals court agreed, finding that the search for potential electrical dangers was reasonable.
"Oxymoronic and unfortunate as it may seem, Buckmaster appears to have been done in by a burning waterbed," the court wrote in its ruling.
The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday found that the search of James Buckmaster's home that led to the discovery of the commercial fireworks and to Buckmaster's conviction was lawful. The Madison Township Fire Department responded to a fire at Buckmaster's home on May 14, 2005, according to court records.
The fire in the headboard of a waterbed in an upstairs bedroom was put out easily, but water from fire hoses and the waterbed -- which was punctured -- seeped to lower floors. That led firefighters to inspect electrical outlets on the first floor and basement to make sure they posed no danger of shorting and starting a new fire.
In the furnace room, inspectors found open boxes of fireworks, containing about 1,250 pounds of explosive, for which Buckmaster had no license.
He was charged and pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Cleveland on the condition that he be allowed to withdraw the plea if the search was later found to be illegal as he claimed.
A judge rejected the claim, and the appeals court agreed, finding that the search for potential electrical dangers was reasonable.
"Oxymoronic and unfortunate as it may seem, Buckmaster appears to have been done in by a burning waterbed," the court wrote in its ruling.