Case Explained: Non-Argument Calendar UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. GREGORY ALLEN WILLIAMSON

Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit Filed: 2026-06-30 Docket: 8:21-cr-00355-WFJ-CPT-1 The eleventh-circuit affirmed the defendant’s convictions for coercion and enticement of a minor, production and attempted production of child pornography, distribution of child pornography, and possession of child pornography. The court held that Yahoo acted as a private entity rather than a government agent when it searched the defendant’s email account, finding no evidence that law enforcement knew of or acquiesced in the search or that Yahoo’s purpose was to assist law enforcement rather than further its own business interests. Additionally, the court determined that NCMEC’s review did not exceed the scope of Yahoo’s initial private search, and law enforcement’s subsequent review of the flagged files remained within those parameters. Regarding the search warrants, the court ruled that even if the warrant for the email account was insufficiently particularized, the good-faith exception to the exclusionary rule applied because the officers objectively relied on a warrant issued by a neutral magistrate. Finally, the court found that the defendant was not entitled to a *Franks* hearing regarding the residential search warrant affidavit; even if the officer’s misclassification of NCMEC labels and omission of specific login dates were excluded, the remaining content of the affidavit still established probable cause. As a result, the evidence seized from the email account and residence remains admissible, and the defendant’s life sentence stands. Do It For The Case Law is a news reporting service. Nothing in this episode constitutes legal advice.