Full opinion text
MEMORANDUM-DECISION AND ORDER MUNSON, Chief Judge. The defendants have been indicted for allegedly violating various federal laws concerning the trafficking of cocaine and marijuana. Following their arraignments, the defendants moved to suppress certain evidence derived from several wiretaps which had been authorized by New York State judges pursuant to New York law and which had been monitored by the New York State Police. The grounds asserted in these motions pertain to the issuance, extension, and execution of the wiretaps, and to various post-interception matters concerning the same. In addition to challenging the electronic surveillance, two defendants moved to suppress statements which they had made to law enforcement officers following their arrests. This Court duly presided over a suppression hearing with respect to both sets of motions, and also conducted an in camera proceeding in regard to a confidential informant. Based upon the evidence adduced at the hearing, and upon the papers and arguments presented by the parties, this Court now concludes that the motions to suppress the wiretap evidence should be denied, and that the motions to suppress certain statements should be granted. I. ELECTRONIC EAVESDROPPING Before addressing the arguments regarding electronic surveillance, it is necessary to consider the choice of law problems presented here. The issue concerns the extent to which New York, or federal, law governs the admissibility in this federal prosecution of evidence derived from the State wiretaps. The Second Circuit has explored this question on numerous occasions. See, e.g., United States v. Vasquez, 605 F.2d 1269, 1280 n.26 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 444 U.S. 981, 100 S.Ct. 484, 62 L.Ed.2d 408 (1979); United States v. Sotomayor, 592 F.2d 1219, 1224-26 (2d Cir. 1979); United States v. Fury, 554 F.2d 522, 525 n.3 (2d Cir. 1977), cert. denied, 436 U.S. 931, 98 S.Ct. 2831, 56 L.Ed.2d 776 (1978); United States v. Hinton, 543 F.2d 1002, 1011 (2d Cir.), cert. denied sub nom., 429 U.S. 980, 1051, 1066, 97 S.Ct. 493, 796, 50 L.Ed.2d 589, 783 (1976), 430 U.S. 982, 97 S.Ct. 1677, 52 L.Ed.2d 376 (1977); United States v. Marion, 535 F.2d 697, 702 (2d Cir. 1976); United States v. Manfredi, 488 F.2d 588, 598 (2d Cir. 1973), cert. denied, 417 U.S. 936, 94 S.Ct. 2651, 41 L.Ed.2d 240 (1974). See also S.Rep.No.1097, 90th Cong., 2d Sess., reprinted in [1968] U.S.Code Cong. & Admin.News, 2112, at 2187. What emerges from these cases is the requirement that, to be controlling, State wiretap guidelines must, at the very least, be as stringent as the requirements of federal law, which are contained in Title III of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, 18 U.S.C. §§ 2510-20, and in the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. Thus, initially, the contested wiretaps must be measured against both federal and State law. Where, however, State standards are more stringent than federal law, a federal court is obliged to apply only those requirements of State law that are intended to protect a person’s right of privacy. These requirements include conditions for the issuance and execution of eavesdropping warrants. A federal court does not apply those more stringent State laws that govern primarily evidentiary matters or the preservation of evidence after interception, such as the sealing of tapes. Finally, where State law governs, a federal court may look to federal law for guidance if State statutory and decisional law supply inadequate information on a particular issue. With these principles in mind, the Court shall now turn to the objections raised by the defendants. A. Issuance of the Initial Warrants The defendants have made a number of arguments directed at whether two eavesdropping warrants were properly issued. In regard to these claims, the following facts have been presented to this Court. On April 23, 1980, the District Attorney of Schenectady County applied to the New York Supreme Court, Schenectady County, for an eavesdropping warrant to investigate violations by Michael Lilla, and others, of New York Penal Law §§ 105.10 (Conspiracy, Second Degree), 221.55 (Criminal Sale of Marijuana, First Degree). Accompanying his application was an affidavit by New York State Trooper Kenneth T. Cook, dated April 23, 1980. Trooper Cook, who was assigned to a narcotics unit at Troop G, stated in his affidavit that he had initiated an investigation into narcotics trafficking by Michael Lilia, who worked at Unified Auto and Equipment, Inc., or Better Body Works, in Schenectady, New York, and who resided in Rexford, New York. In April, 1980, Cook stated, he received information from a confidential informant to the effect that Lilia was selling illegal drugs, including cocaine and marijuana, and that Lilia used the telephones at his place of employment and at his residence to arrange with other persons the sale of these drugs. Additionally, the informant told Cook that he could make arrangements with Lilia over the telephone to purchase drugs. Thereafter, on April 10, 1980, the confidential informant came to Cook’s office to telephone Lilla and buy illicit drugs. With the permission of the informant, Cook, using an extension telephone, dialed the telephone listing for Unified Auto, and subsequently overheard a conversation in code between the informant and a person whom the informant identified as Michael Lilia. During the course of the conversation, a person who responded to the name “Mike” said that although “Flake” was unavailable at that time, someone was going to bring some up in a week or two, and that he could meanwhile sell the informant “Lumbo.” In this context, “Mike” also mentioned that “we” had “all kinds of people” who owed “us” money for “Flake.” “Mike” then asked the informant to come to his place of business that day, for the apparent purpose of purchasing “Lumbo.” “Mike” stated further that if he was not at work when the informant came to make the purchase, the informant could call him at home. The conversation, a tape of which this Court heard in camera, then ended. Interpreting the code used by the parties, Cook, relying upon his experience and training as a narcotics investigator, stated in his affidavit that “Flake” signified cocaine and that “Lumbo” denoted marijuana. Following this conversation, Cook averred in his affidavit, the informant and Cook, in an undercover capacity, proceeded later that day to Unified Auto, where Cook purchased a pound of marijuana from a person who identified himself as Mike Lilla, and discussed with him the possibility of purchasing cocaine. Lilia informed Cook that cocaine would be available in a week or two and that his brother was in Florida arranging for the acquisition of “coke” and “grass.” He also advised Cook to telephone him at Unified Auto or at his home to discuss the purchase of additional drugs. Relying upon these contacts with Michael Lilia, Cook set forth in the affidavit his belief that his investigation of illicit drug trafficking apparently involved persons other than Michael Lilla, and that wiretapping was the “[only] investigative method ... to determine the identity of these other persons” and to gather “evidence of their guilt.” Cook went on to state, based upon his experience, that it is common for persons engaged in narcotics trafficking to conduct their business on the telephone at irregular hours during the day and night and through the use of code. Furthermore, Cook expressed his opinion that although probable cause existed for the issuance of an arrest or search warrant, it would be better to monitor conversations and determine the identity of other participants in the conspiracy. Based upon the District Attorney’s application and Cook’s supporting affidavit, Supreme Court Justice Dominick J. Viscardi issued an eavesdropping warrant for the seizure of conversations of Michael Lilia and other involved persons on a telephone number listed to Unified Auto and on a telephone number listed to Adrian Lilia, Michael Lilia’s father, with whom Michael Lilia resided in Rexford, New York. According to the warrant, the Justice found reasonable cause to believe that certain conversations either would constitute evidence of the crimes of possession and sale of cocaine, possession and sale of marijuana, and conspiracy and attempt to do the same, in violation of N.Y.Penal Law, Articles 220, 221, 110 and 105, or would aid in the apprehension of persons engaged in such criminal acts. Additionally, the Justice found that normal investigative procedures had been tried, but had failed to obtain evidence of these crimes. For these reasons, the warrant indicates, the Justice authorized the eavesdropping of all conversations pertaining to these crimes and concerning the buying, selling, delivery, transfer, and possession of such unlawful substances, and details relating to these crimes, including the conversations of other persons whose identities were then unknown, but whose conversations would be evidence, or lead to evidence, of their participation in the crimes. Also, in the warrant the Justice admonished law enforcement officers to minimize the interception of conversations not subject to seizure, and furthermore, to restrict seizures to any established pattern of operations. Finally, the Justice directed that all eavesdropping would cease on the 30th day following the date of the issuance of the warrant, viz., on May 24, 1980. Apart from this warrant, law enforcement officers also secured a second eavesdropping warrant. On May 8, 1980, the District Attorney of Saratoga County applied to the New York State County Court of Saratoga County for an eavesdropping warrant to investigate a person identified as “Doug” and other individuals who were suspected of violating N.Y.Penal Law Articles 220, 105 and 110 concerning the possession and sale of controlled substances and the conspiracy and attempt to do the same. The warrant application affected the residence telephone of Robert Lilia, who lived in Burnt Hills, New York. Accompanying the application was an affidavit by New York State Police Narcotics Investigator Edmund W. Girtler, Jr., dated May 8, 1980. In his affidavit Girtler, who was assigned to Troop G, averred that he had listened to drug-related conversations, in code, seized from a telephone listed to Unified Auto. For example, Girtler stated, on April 28, 1980, a person identified as Robert Lilia received a telephone call from “Everett”; “pharmaceutical”' was mentioned in the conversation. Also on April 28, Robert Lilia received a call from “Joe,” who asked for “Doug”; Lilia told “Joe” that “Doug” was sleeping, and that “Joe” should call “Doug” at Robert’s residence. Subsequent to this call from “Joe”, Robert Lilia, or “Bob”, was telephoned by “Doug”; the parties mentioned that “Charlie” would be coming over that night “to the house” to get “some stuff,” and discussed the availability of “some green”. Next, on May 3, 1980, Robert Lilia received another call from “Doug”; Robert told “Doug” that he intended to talk to “Charlie” and ascertain whether “Charlie” was interested in buying the “car”, “snow tires”, and “stuff”. That same day, Robert was contacted by “Frank”; Robert told “Frank” that he had someone who wanted to buy a “car”, and that he had only one “lot” left, and asked “Frank” if his “guy” wanted a “first crack at it.” Later on May 3, Robert telephoned his residence, and talked to “Doug”; Robert told “Doug” that someone was interested in the “car”. In this same conversation were the phrases “convertible”, “the whole roof”, “the hard top and the soft top”, “this other car dealer”, “breakdown”, “adding the additives to it”, “stereo”, “radio”, and “FM with complete control.” Relying upon his experience as a narcotics investigator, Girtler stated in affidavit that, in drug vernacular, “pharmaceutical” means cocaine. Additionally, the investigator averred, based upon conversations seized over the telephone held by Unified Auto, “car” and “snow tires” pertained to cocaine; “convertible” and “soft top” signified fine cocaine powder; “hard top” denoted rock or crystalized forms of cocaine; and “additives” referred to agents used to prepare or cut cocaine. In his affidavit, Girtler further recited that he and other investigators had attempted to conduct spot checks of Robert Lilia’s residence, but without success; a fixed surveillance of the location, a densely populated area, according to Girtler, could be easily detected, and could jeopardize the investigation. Moreover, Girtler stated that he and other investigators had unsuccessfully attempted to gather information regarding narcotics trafficking at Lilia’s residence by physical surveillance and by contacting informants. The investigator went on to express his opinion that other unknown co-conspirators were involved in drug trafficking, and that wiretapping was the only investigative method to determine the identity of such persons and to acquire evidence of their guilt. Finally, Girtler indicated that it is a common practice of persons dealing in unlawful drugs to conduct business on the telephone only with persons known to them and at irregular hours of the day and nights, and that although probable cause existed for the issuance of a search warrant for the residence of Robert Lilia, such action would destroy any opportunity of acquiring evidence of other criminal activity. Based upon the District Attorney’s application, and upon the supporting affidavit of Investigator Girtler, Saratoga County Court Judge Loren N. Brown issued an eavesdropping warrant on May 8, 1980, authorizing the interception of conversations of “Doug” and other persons on a telephone number listed to Robert Lilia, Burnt Hills, New York. In the warrant, the Judge expressed his conclusion that there was reasonable cause to believe that “Doug” and other persons were committing crimes of criminal possession and sale of controlled substances, and of conspiracy and attempt to do the same, in violation of N.Y.Penal Law Articles 220, 110, and 105. Finding further that interceptions of conversations of “Doug” and other persons would be evidence of such crimes, or would aid in the apprehension of persons committing these unlawful acts, and that normal investigative procedures had been exhausted, Judge Brown authorized the interception of all conversations of persons known and unknown which pertained to these crimes and concerned the buying, selling, delivery, transfer, and possession of controlled substances. In issuing the warrant, however, the Judge directed law enforcement personnel to minimize the interceptions of conversations not subject to seizure, and ordered that eavesdropping could be effected only during the thirty day period between May 9, 1980, and June 8, 1980. In their motions to suppress, the defendants contest the two eavesdropping warrants on the following grounds: (1) that the District Attorney of Schenectady County was the improper applicant for the April, 1980, warrant; (2) that the warrants rested upon insufficient probable cause to believe that particular designated offenses had been, were being, or would be committed; (3) that the April, 1980, warrant was grounded upon insufficient probable cause to believe that conversations pertaining to a particular designated offense would take place over the affected telephones; (4) that the April, 1980, warrant authorized only the seizure of conversations of Michael Lilia; (5) that the April, 1980, warrant issued without any showing that normal alternative investigative channels had been explored; (6) that the April, 1980 warrant failed to specify with particularity the requirements concerning duration and termination; and (7) that the May, 1980, warrant rested upon illegal evidence seized pursuant to the April, 1980, warrant. With respect to the first issue, the defendants claim that the District Attorney of Schenectady County was authorized only to apply for wiretaps on telephones within his county, and that, accordingly, the District Attorney was an improper applicant for a tap on the telephone of Adrian Lilia, who resides in Saratoga County. There is no question that suppression of some evidence would be required under Title III if the District Attorney were an unauthorized applicant. As the Supreme Court has explained, the detailed federal procedures regarding applications are “important preconditions to obtaining any intercept authority at all,” and evidence a congressional intent that wiretapping be utilized with restraint and only where warranted. United States v. Giordano, 416 U.S. 505, 515, 94 S.Ct. 1820, 1826, 40 L.Ed.2d 341 (1974). “Congress .. . made preliminary approval of submissions of wiretap applications a central safeguard in preventing abuse of this means of investigative surveillance...” United States v. Chavez, 416 U.S. 562, 571, 94 S.Ct. 1849, 1854, 40 L.Ed.2d 380 (1974) (discussing Giordano). Even though Giordano involved the suppression of evidence because of the unauthorized application of a federal official, its rationale would appear to govern unauthorized applications by state officials. Cf: United States v. Tortorello, 480 F.2d 764, 777-78 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 414 U.S. 866, 94 S.Ct. 63, 38 L.Ed.2d 86 (1973). Examining the language of the pertinent statutes to determine whether the District Attorney was a proper applicant, Title III requires resort to state law in the first instance. This Act provides that “the principal prosecuting attorney of any political subdivision [of any State], if such attorney is authorized by a statute of that State to make application to a State court judge of competent jurisdiction for [an eavesdropping warrant]” may apply for authorization to intercept wire communications. 18 U.S.C. § 2516(2) (emphasis supplied). Looking to New York law, New York Criminal Procedure Law [CPL] § 700.10(1) states that an eavesdropping warrant may issue only upon the “application of an applicant who is authorized by law to investigate, prosecute or participate in the prosecution of the particular offense which is the subject of the application.” See CPL § 700.15(1). “Applicant” has been defined as a “district attorney.” CPL § 700.05(5). In their arguments, several defendants rely heavily upon this statement from the legislative history behind 18 U.S.C. § 2516(2): “Where there are both an attorney general and a district attorney, either could authorize applications, the attorney general anywhere in the State and the district attorney anywhere in his county." S.Rep.No.1097,90th Cong., 2d Sess., reprinted in [1968] U.S.Code Cong. & Admin.News, at 2187. Certainly the language of this statement lends support to the defendants’ position. However, this language must be construed in light of the expressed congressional intent that state law govern the question of whom the proper prosecuting officer would be. See 18 U.S.C. § 2516(2); S.Rep.No.1097, 90th Cong., 2d Sess., reprinted in [1968] U.S.Code Cong. & Admin.News, at 2187; United States v. Giordano, 416 U.S. at 522-23, 94 S.Ct. at 1829-30. So construed, it is clear that this statement merely reflects an opinion as to what the requirements of state law might be; it does not purport to dictate to states what the geographical authority of their enforcement officers must be. In this regard, the New York Court of Appeals has interpreted CPL § 700.10(1) as authorizing district attorneys to apply for eavesdropping warrants on telephones located in counties outside their ordinary spheres of influence, so long as there is a “sufficient nexus” or sufficient “contacts” between the conduct complained of in the application and the county represented by the office of the district attorney. People v. DiPasquale, 47 N.Y.2d 764, 765-66, 391 N.E.2d 710, 711, 417 N.Y.S.2d 678, 678-79 (1979) (memorandum) (upholding application of Bronx County District Attorney to tap phone located in New York County). See People v. Paz, 109 Misc.2d 832, 441 N.Y.S.2d 183, 197 (Sup.Ct., N.Y.Co.1981). Under this construction of CPL § 700.10(1), the application and supporting affidavit submitted by the District Attorney of Schenectady County establish that he was indeed a proper applicant to seek authorization to intercept conversations on the telephone of Adrian Lilia. These papers charge that Michael Lilia was engaged in drug-related activities at his place of business in Schenectady County, and that he was using his residential telephone in Saratoga County in furtherance of these activities. These alleged actions plainly have a “sufficient nexus” with Schenectady County, so as to make the District Attorney of that county a lawful applicant for an eavesdropping warrant affecting the telephone number listed to Adrian Lilia. Turning to the various challenges attacking the probable cause allegedly underlying the April, 1980, warrant, no choice of law problem is presented here. Under the Fourth Amendment, Title III, 18 U.S.C. § 2518(3), and under the CPL, CPL § 700.-15(2), (3), & (5), the test is as follows: Probable cause .. . exists where the facts and circumstances within the affiant’s knowledge, and of which he has reasonably trustworthy information, are sufficient unto themselves to warrant a man of reasonable caution to believe that an offense has been or is being committed. . .. Berger v. United States, 388 U.S. 41, 55, 87 S.Ct. 1873, 1881, 18 L.Ed.2d 1040 (1967). See United States v. Fury, 554 F.2d at 530; People v. Kaiser, 21 N.Y.2d 86, 103, 233 N.E.2d 818, 828, 286 N.Y.S.2d 801, 815 (1967), aff’d 394 U.S. 280, 89 S.Ct. 1044, 22 L.Ed.2d 274 (1969). In applying this test, courts have cautioned that papers in support of eavesdropping warrants must be tested in a common sense manner. See United States v. Cale, 508 F.Supp. 1038, 1040 (S.D.N.Y.1981); People v. Fusco, 75 Misc.2d 981, 989, 348 N.Y.S.2d 858, 869 (Nassau Co. Ct. 1973). Supporting papers, however, must contain “a full and complete statement of the facts and circumstances relied upon by the applicant to justify his belief” that eavesdropping should be authorized. 18 U.S.C. § 2518(1)(b); CPL § 700.-20(2)(b). Conclusory statements, without more, are altogether inadequate. See United States v. De Palma, 461 F.Supp. 800, 807 (S.D.N.Y.1978). In this regard, apart from direct evidence reported in the papers, circumstantial evidence may be sufficient in certain cases to establish probable cause. See United States v. Cale, 508 F.Supp. at 1040. Also, probable cause necessarily depends upon the facts of each case. See United States v. Martino, 664 F.2d 860, 866 (2d Cir. 1981). Finally, perhaps because of the importance of facts in determining the existence of probable cause, an issuing judge’s determination of probable cause is entitled to deference. See id. at 867; United States v. Vasquez, 605 F.2d at 1281; People v. Romney, 77 A.D.2d 482, 484, 433 N.Y.S.2d 941, 943 (4th Dep’t 1980). With respect to the question of whether there was probable cause to believe that particular designated offenses had been, were being, or would be committed, see 18 U.S.C. § 2518(1)(b)(i) & (3)(a), CPL § 700.-20(2)(b)(i), the defendants correctly note that the criminal sale of marijuana in the first degree, which the District Attorney of Schenectady County recited in his application for the April, 1980, warrant, is not a “designated offense” under CPL § 700.-05(8). The Government, however, correctly observes that both warrants charge violations of the New York Penal Law regarding the possession and sale of a controlled substance, namely, cocaine, and the attempt and conspiracy to do the same, all “designated offenses” under CPL § 700.05(8)(a) & (c). Examining in this light the allegations set forth in the papers supporting the April, 1980, warrant, this Court concludes that Trooper Cook’s conversation with Michael Lilia in regard to the future acquisition of “coke” from Lilia sufficiently established probable cause to believe, at a minimum, that Lilia would be committing a violation of N.Y.Penal Law § 220.31, which prohibits the sale of any quantity of cocaine and which is a “designated offense” under CPL § 700.05(8)(c). Additionally, the conversation between Lilla and the informant, which revealed Lilia’s involvement with other persons in transporting narcotics into New York, furnished probable cause to believe that Michael Lilia was conspiring with others to violate N.Y.Penal Law § 220.31. Such a conspiracy would also be a “designated offense.” N.Y. CPL § 700.05(8)(a). As to the affidavit of Investigator Girtler in support of the May, 1980, warrant, various intercepted conversations, in code, had linked Robert Lilia, “Doug,” “Everett,” “Frank,” and “Charlie,” to dealings in cocaine, see United States v. Aloi, 449 F.Supp. 698, 732-33 (E.D.N.Y.1977), and thus, in the judgment of this Court, supplied at a minimum probable cause to believe that these persons would also be committing a violation of N.Y.Penal Law § 220.31, a designated offense, and would be conspiring to commit the same, CPL § 700.05(8)(a). Because, under New York law, only one designated offense need be supported by probable cause, at least where there is no evidence of bad faith, see People v. Bove, 93 Misc.2d 430, 435, 402 N.Y.S.2d 930, 934 (Sup.Ct., Suffolk Co. 1978), this Court finds that probable cause in regard to designated offenses amply justified the issuance of both eavesdropping warrants. With respect to the question of whether there was probable cause to believe that conversations related to designated offenses would take place over the telephones targeted in the April, 1980 warrant, see 18 U.S.C. § 2518(3)(b), CPL § 700.15(3), Trooper Cook stated in his affidavit that he had been advised by Michael Lilia to telephone Lilia at either his home or place of employment to discuss the future sale and purchase of cocaine. Given this averment, this Court must find that probable cause existed for the authorization of the warrant. In regard to the argument that the April, 1980 warrant authorized only the seizure of conversations by Michael Lilia, several defendants claim that the failure of the state law enforcement officers to obtain an amendment of the warrant to include the interception of conversations of persons other than Michael Lilia mandates suppression. This argument is plainly without merit. The eavesdropping warrant explicitly authorized the seizure of pertinent conversations by persons whose identities were unknown at that time. Additionally, both federal and state law permit the use of communications against persons not named in an eavesdropping warrant, even without amendment of the warrant. See United States v. Tortorello, 480 F.2d at 775; People v. Gnozzo, 31 N.Y.2d 134, 142, 286 N.E.2d 706, 709, 335 N.Y.S.2d 257, 262 (1972), cert. denied sub nom. Zorn v. New York, 410 U.S. 943, 93 S.Ct. 1373, 35 L.Ed.2d 610 (1973). See also CPL § 700.65(4); United States v. Donovan, 429 U.S. 413, 97 S.Ct. 658, 50 L.Ed.2d 652 (1977); United States v. Kahn, 415 U.S. 143, 94 S.Ct. 977, 39 L.Ed.2d 225 (1974); United States v. Scafidi, 564 F.2d 633, 642 (2d Cir. 1977), cert. denied, 436 U.S. 903, 98 S.Ct. 2231, 56 L.Ed.2d 401 (1978); United States v. Principie, 531 F.2d 1132, 1136-37 (2d Cir. 1976), cert. denied, 430 U.S. 905, 97 S.Ct. 1173, 51 L.Ed.2d 581 (1977); United States v. Cale, 508 F.Supp. at 1042-43. Next the defendants contend that the April, 1980, warrant must fall because the law enforcement officers made little or no attempt to exploit alternative investigative methods, and because the supporting affidavit stated purely conclusory allegations as to the proven, or probable, futility of such methods in this particular investigation. In support of these contentions, the defendants observe that normal investigative procedures had already successfully uncovered important information regarding the source of the narcotics; that the defendant Michael Lilia certainly was not secretive, evasive, suspicious, cautious, uncooperative, or otherwise sensitive to ordinary investigative methods, as evidenced by the ease with which Cook had arranged, and completed a drug deal; and that there was no reason why normal physical surveillance of Unified Auto could not have proven useful, in view of the location of this establishment on a busy street in a commercial area. Both sides recognize that federal and state statutory law authorize electronic eavesdropping only when “normal investigative procedures have been tried and have failed or reasonably appear to be unlikely to succeed if tried or to be too dangerous.” 18 U.S.C. § 2518(3)(c); CPL § 700.15(4). Recently, the New York State Court of Appeals has interpreted the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States as imposing upon state law enforcement officers a responsibility to use electronic surveillance “only . . . where normal investigative procedures had been tried and failed or are demonstrably unlikely to succeed.” People v. Teicher, 52 N.Y.2d 638, 656, 422 N.E.2d 506, 515, 439 N.Y.S.2d 846, 855 (1980) (video electronic surveillance). New York statutory law, which governs this issue, cf: United States v. Fury, 554 F.2d at 530, also requires that an application for an eavesdropping warrant contain a full and complete “statement of facts” demonstrating the actual, or likely, success of normal investigative procedures. CPL § 700.20(2)(d). Title III has a similar requirement. Compare 18 U.S.C. § 2518(1)(c) (a “statement”) with 18 U.S.C. § 2518(3)(d) (“probable cause”). As interpreted by courts, the purpose of such rules governing the content of eavesdropping applications is to ensure that issuing judges are apprised of the nature and purpose of the investigation and of the difficulties involved in employing normal law enforcement techniques, in order that wiretapping is not routinely resorted to in criminal investigations. See, e.g., People v. Penna, 53 A.D.2d 941, 942, 385 N.Y.S.2d 400, 402 (3d Dep’t 1976); People v. Brenes, 53 A.D.2d 78, 80, 385 N.Y.S.2d 530, 531-32 (1st Dep’t 1976) (opinion of two justices), aff’d on other grounds, 42 N.Y.2d 41, 364 N.E.2d 1322, 396 N.Y.S.2d 629 (1977); People v. Holder, 69 Misc.2d 863, 868, 331 N.Y.S.2d 557, 564 (Sup.Ct., Nassau Co. 1972). See also United States v. Giordano, 416 U.S. at 515, 94 S.Ct. at 1826; United States v. Kahn, 415 U.S. at 153 & n.12, 94 S.Ct. at 983 & n.12; United States v. Martino, 664 F.2d at 868; United States v. Vasquez, 605 F.2d at 1282; United States v. Scafidi, 564 F.2d at 641; United States v. Fury, 554 F.2d at 530; United States v. Hinton, 543 F.2d at 1011. The rules are not, however, intended to prohibit the authorization of electronic surveillance until all possible avenues of investigation have been explored. See People v. Versace, 73 A.D.2d 304, 308, 426 N.Y.S.2d 61, 64 (2d Dep’t 1980). See also United States v. Martino, 664 F.2d 860, 868; United States v. Fury, 554 F.2d at 530 & n.7; United States v. Hinton, 543 F.2d at 1011. Moreover, in applying these rules, courts are to use a practical and common sense approach in their assessments of applications for eaves dropping warrants. See People v. Versace, 73 A.D.2d at 308, 426 N.Y.S.2d at 64. See also S.Rep.No.1097, 90th Cong., 2d Sess., reprinted in [1968] U.S.Code Cong. & Admin.News, at 2190; United States v. Martino, 664 F.2d 860 at 868. Considering the affidavit of Trooper Cook in light of these guidelines, and according appropriate deference to the determination of the issuing judge, this Court concludes that marginally sufficient facts were presented to justify a reasonable belief that normal investigative measures would be unavailing, in terms of garnering sufficient evidence as to the scope of the unlawful narcotics conspiracy. As Cook stated in his affidavit, Michael Lilia had indicated that his brother and, inferentially, at least one other person were in Florida arranging for the transportation of narcotics into the State of New York and particularly into the Schenectady area. Moreover, based upon the conversation which Cook reported he had overheard between Michael Lilla and the informant, common sense would suggest that a number of people were relying upon Lilla, and, by inference, upon at least one other person, as a source of narcotics. Given the investigative need to ascertain the identities and geographical locations of persons in business with Lilia, and given the probable cause belief that Lilia would use telephones in furtherance of this business, an authorizing judge “could reasonably conclude” that other investigative efforts “would likely have been inadequate”, People v. Penna, 53 A.D.2d at 942, 385 N.Y.S.2d at 402, “could [not] have been successful”, People v. Brenes, 53 A.D.2d at 80, 385 N.Y.S.2d at 532, or “were unlikely to reveal” the sought-after information about Michael Lilla’s contacts, People v. Versace, 73 A.D.2d at 308, 426 N.Y.S.2d at 64. See also United States v. Martino, 664 F.2d 868; United States v. Todisco, 667 F.2d 255, 259 (2d Cir. 1981); United States v. Vasquez, 605 F.2d at 1282; United States v. Hinton, 543 F.2d at 1011; United States v. Stein berg, 525 F.2d 1126, 1130 (2d Cir. 1975), cert. denied, 425 U.S. 971, 96 S.Ct. 2167, 48 L.Ed.2d 794 (1976); United States v. Loften, 518 F.Supp. 839, 844 (S.D.N.Y.1981). Electronic surveillance here, as asserted by Trooper Cook, would not have been “merely a useful additional tool,” People v. Brenes, 53 A.D.2d at 80, 385 N.Y.S.2d at 532. With respect to the challenges to the duration and termination directives of the April, 1980, warrant, the defendants contend that the Cook affidavit failed to set forth sufficient facts calling for the continuation of eavesdropping after the seizure of the first sought-after conversation. In this regard, both federal and state law specify that an eavesdropping warrant must define the duration of the authorized interception,” including a statement as to whether or not the intercepting shall automatically terminate when the described communication has been first overheard.” 18 U.S.C. § 2518(4)(e); CPL § 700.30(6). See CPL § 700.10(2). These laws also require that applications, which request authorization to continue surveillance following the first interception of the described conversation, must contain specific “facts establishing probable cause to believe that additional communications of the same type will occur thereafter.” 18 U.S.C. § 2518(1)(d); CPL § 700.20(2)(e). In applying these requirements, courts have recognized that the nature of the crime involved and the type of conversations sought are factors to consider in determining the longevity of the wiretap authorization. See People v. Palozzi, 44 A.D.2d 224, 227, 353 N.Y.S.2d 987, 990 (4th Dep’t 1974); People v. Castania, 73 Misc.2d 166, 168, 340 N.Y.S.2d 829, 832 (Monroe Co. Ct. 1973). See also United States v. Clemente, 482 F.Supp. 102, 107 (S.D.N.Y.1979), aff’d without opinion, 633 F.2d 207 (2d Cir.1980). Under these standards, the affidavit of Trooper Cook clearly passes muster. Trooper Cook was investigating a conspiracy to traffic controlled substances that was being furthered by use of the telephones. Because “it is extremely unlikely that one telephone conversation would . .. establish this conspiracy,” People v. Fiorillo, 63 Misc.2d 480, 481, 311 N.Y.S.2d 574, 576 (Montgomery Co. Ct. 1970), this Court is not prepared to say that the state judge lacked probable cause to believe that additional communications of the same type would occur after the first sought-after interception. For these reasons, it appears that the April, 1980, warrant was issued lawfully. Accordingly, the May, 1980, warrant is not subject to challenge as an illegal “fruit.” B. Extension of the Eavesdropping Warrant Several defendants challenge the validity of the extensions of the April, 1980, and May, 1980, warrants. The following facts are pertinent to this discussion. On May 23, 1980, the District Attorney of Schenectady County applied to Justice J. Raymond Amyot of the New York State Supreme Court, Schenectady County, for a thirty-day extension of the April, 1980, warrant for the period ending June 23, 1980. In the application and in a supporting affidavit by Trooper Cook, a number of conversations were set forth which had been intercepted pursuant to the initial warrants. The following are some of these conversations: [O]n May 12, 1980, conversations were seized wherein MARK LILLA received a call on [the telephone listed to Adrian Lilia] from a male who identified himself as “PETE.” PETE asks MARK what’s up? MARK replies, “DOUG” is supposed to call me later tonight. PETE replies, I could use a couple of OZ’s. MARK replies if DOUG calls me tonight, I’ll be able to call you from the body shop tomorrow and let you know. PETE replies, OK. [O]n May, 16, 1980, conversations were seized wherein MARK LILLA received a call on [the telephone listed to Unified Auto] from a male who identified himself as “PETE.” PETE asked MARK, did you hear anything yet? MARK replied, no, he called me, as soon as he finds something good, he’s going to bring it up. PETE replied, then when he does call, it will be two or three days after that, right? MARK replied, ya. PETE said, I just wanted to get an idea so I could tell some people, you know. [O]n May 19, 1980, conversations were seized wherein a male who identified himself as “DOUG” called on [the telephone listed to Unified Auto] and talked to MARK LILLA. DOUG said, we have got to get together and talk. MARK replied, yeah when? DOUG replies, I’ll call your house [Adrian Lilia’s telephone] tonight. MARK replied, alright, because everybody is pretty ready around here. DOUG replied, ya I know, there’s a couple of things in the wind now. [O]n May 20, 1980, conversations were seized wherein ROBERT LILLA received a call on [the telephone listed to Unified Auto] from a male who identified himself as “CHRIS.” CHRIS asked BOB, you know, 714, you know anybody that wants? BOB replies, no, uh I know what your talking about, I have customers here, when you get a chance stop down and we’ll talk. [O]n May 20, 1980, conversations were seized wherein ROBERT LILLA received a call on [the telephone listed to Unified Auto] from a male who identified himself as “RICK”. RICK asked, I was wondering if you got anymore of those “wheels”. BOB replied, no, they’re not in yet, I called and they said maybe the end of the week. RICK replied, OK, I could probably use quite a few of them. BOB replied, I’ll let you know. [O]n May 20, 1980, conversations were seized wherein MARK LILLA received a call on [the telephone listed to Adrian Lilia] from an unknown male. The unknown male asked, is there anything around? MIKE replied, no, I’ll call you when it comes around. In his affidavit, Cook also stated that, based upon other intercepted conversations, “wheels” referred to one pound of marijuana, “714” denoted the controlled substance “Quaaludes”, and “OZ’s” signified one ounce of the controlled substance cocaine or one ounce of marijuana. Cook then averred that the full scope of the conspiracy had not yet been ascertained, and that the conversations already seized indicated that Robert, Mark, and Michael Lilia would continue to use the telephones to further their trafficking of controlled substances. Relying upon the application of the District Attorney and upon the affidavit of Trooper Cook, Justice Amyot authorized on May 23, 1980, a thirty-day extension of the April, 1980, warrant. Thereafter, on June 6, 1980, the District Attorney of Saratoga County approached Saratoga County Court Judge Loren N. Brown for a thirty-day extension of the May, 1980 warrant for the period ending on July 6, 1980. The following conversations were reported in the application of the District Attorney and in a supporting affidavit of Investigator Girtler: [O]n May 16, 1980, conversations were seized wherein BOB MOFFRE received a call on [the telephone listed to Robert Lilia] from a male who identified himself as CHRIS BURCH. CHRIS says, I don’t want to talk on the phone, you know, but I was told you had some stuff, I know some people who are interested if the price is right. BOB says, “BOB” told you the price, right, twenty-one? CHRIS says, around there. MOFFRE says, the color is good and it spreads real nice and everything else. CHRIS asks, one-hundred percent? MOFFRE replies, I don’t have that kind of accuracy, but it’s right up there. [O]n May 16, 1980, conversations were seized wherein ROBERT LILLA called out on [his telephone] to a male identified as THOMAS DiCOCCA. BOB tells TOM, your buddy wants 1075 and I ain’t making a nickel. I’m just taking it from him and giving it to you. If your guys want it, I’ll bring it down. [O]n May 18, 1980, conversations were seized wherein ROBERT LILLA received a telephone call on [his telephone] from a male identified as DOUG PINTEA. DOUG asks BOB how things are and BOB replies, everybody is waiting. DOUG says he should be ready in a couple of days. We’ll do something this week, for sure. We could do something right now, but you got to walk in with cash and carry. BOB replies, well forget that. I haven’t heard anything in a while and everybody up here is dying for it.” DOUG asks BOB, how’s things with you, and BOB replies, everybody is alright, I even conjured up some new business, so things should move even faster. DOUG tells BOB that he will be bringing up three or four hundred to do real quick. BOB replies, you could even bring five, I’ve got a couple of people that got cash for the stuff now. DOUG then says, alright, I’ll bring five. DOUG says, tell MARK the “WHITE” fell through, I don’t want to mix business. BOB says, I talked to CHARLIE and he said, you give me three hundred and in two days I’ll have all the money. BOB then says to DOUG, if you bring like five up this time, in a weeks time — DOUG interrupts and says, we’ll probably have some more word. BOB replies, okay, because everybody’s waiting. [O]n June 1, 1980, conversations were seized wherein BOB LILLA, using [his telephone] called a subject identified as FRANK. BOB says to FRANK, I can bring the car up there, he has to get 21, call your guy, the quality of the body work is there. FRANK says, I can pick it up and pay you tomorrow. BOBBY replies, yeah. Investigator Girtler stated further in his affidavit that, based upon other intercepted conversations, “color” and “percent” referred to cocaine; “1075” was $1,075.00, the going rate for one-half ounce of cocaine; “21” was $2,100.00, the going price for an ounce of cocaine; and that “White” denoted cocaine. Girtler next asserted that the full scope of the conspiracy had not yet been fully ascertained, and that several seized conversations indicated that Robert Lilia and others would continue to use the telephone to further their business of drug trafficking. Upon receiving this affidavit, and the application of the District Attorney, Judge Brown authorized on June 6, 1980 a thirty-day extension of the May, 1980 eavesdropping warrant. Several defendants have raised objections to the extensions of the two warrants. First, they contend that the application for an extension of the April, 1980 warrant should have been brought to Justice Viscardi, because he had issued the initial warrant. Second, they maintain that the supporting affidavit of Trooper Cook contains certain intentional misrepresentations which, when put aside, remove the factual basis to justify an extension of the April, 1980, warrant. Specifically, they note that the log book of May 19, 1980, refers to “Z’s”, not “OZ’s”, and that “Z’s” is a common slang word for sleep or rest. Furthermore, they claim that the log book of May 19, 1980, contains no statement “I’ll call your house [Adrian Lilia’s telephone] tonight”, and that the May 29, 1980, call between Mike Lilia and an unknown male is too vague to supply any basis for determining that the telephone listed to Adrian Lilia was being used for drug dealings. For their third argument, the defendants assert that by failing to specifically identify Mark Lilia in the extension of the April, 1980, warrant, as a target figure, the law enforcement officers had unlawfully failed to apprise the authorizing judge of the identi ties of all persons whose conversations were to be seized. Finally, the defendants state that both extensions must be suppressed as illegal “fruits.” In regard to the first argument, CPL § 700.40 provides that “[a]t any time prior to the expiration of an eavesdropping warrant, the applicant may apply to the issuing justice, or, if he is unavailable, to another justice, for an order of extension.” The defendants claim that the Government has made no showing here that the issuing justice was unavailable, and that, accordingly, the extension of the April, 1980, warrant was unlawful. Contrary to the assertions of the defendants, a showing of unavailability has been made. The Government has submitted a sworn affidavit of New York State Police Investigator Ralph Marshall, in which the Investigator states that the “warrant extension was taken before Justice Amyot due to the then unavailability of Justice Viseardi.” In view of this sworn averment, and in the absence of any contrary evidence in the present record before the Court, it appears that the defendants’ argument is without merit. As for the second argument, it is well-settled that even if allegations of deliberate falsehood or of reckless disregard for the truth are taken as true, a warrant will not be held unlawful if, setting aside the questioned material, there is sufficient information to support a finding of probable cause. See Franks v. Delaware, 438 U.S. 154, 171-72, 98 S.Ct. 2674, 2684-85, 57 L.Ed.2d 667 (1978). Putting aside the alleged falsities cited by the defendants, this Court finds that probable cause remains to justify the extension of the April, 1980, warrant affecting the telephones of both Unified Auto and Adrian Lilia. For example, the May 20, 1980, conversation between Robert Lilla and “Chris” concerning “714” is strong evidence that the telephone listed to Unified Auto was being used by Robert Lilia for the purpose of drug trafficking. Additionally, when considered together, the conversation of May 12, 1980, between Mark Lilla and “Pete” over the telephone listed to Adrian Lilia; the conversation of May 16, 1980, between Mark Lilla and “Pete” over the telephone listed to Unified Auto; the conversation of May 19, 1980, between Mark Lilia and “Doug” over the telephone listed to Unified Auto; and the May 20, 1980, conversation between Mark Lilia and an unknown male over the telephone listed to Adrian Lilia tend to suggest that Mark Lilia was using both telephones to deal in unlawful drugs. This argument by the defendants, then, is also without merit. With respect to the argument that the extension of the April, 1980, warrant should have specified the identity of Mark Lilia, it is sufficient here that the supporting affidavit of Cook specifically named Mark Lilla, and Robert Lilia, as target figures. Accordingly, this argument must fall. Finally, to the extent that the April, 1980, and May, 1980, warrants were lawfully issued, the evidence derived from the extensions of these warrants is not subject to suppression as tainted “fruit.” C. Minimization The defendants next assail the minimization efforts of monitoring officers. On this issue, the following facts emerge from the suppression hearing. New York State Police Investigator Ralph Marshall, a witness on behalf of the Government who attested to having previous experience regarding wiretapping, testified that he was in charge of the monitoring of telephones affected by the April, 1980, and May, 1980, warrants and extensions. Prior to the issuance of the first warrant, Marshall stated, Captain G. E. Looney, who was in charge of the Bureau of Criminal Investigation for Troop G, met with him and three other monitoring agents to discuss, among other matters, minimization. These other agents were Investigator Girtler, Trooper Cook, and Investigator Morris. According to an outline of this meeting, which was prepared by Marshall, Captain Looney advised the agents to monitor all conversations of suspects, including Robert Lilia, Michael Lilla, and Mark Lilia, that dealt with the designated offenses and with other crimes, and to use a two-minute “rule of thumb” regarding the monitoring of all other, “non-pertinent” conversations. This rule of thumb, Marshall explained, provided that generally, a monitoring agent would be able to determine within two minutes whether a conversation is covered by an eavesdropping warrant. This rule, Marshall elaborated, did not mean that an officer should monitor all conversations for two minutes; an officer might be able to ascertain within thirty seconds that a conversation is non-pertinent, in which event the officer would cease intercepting the conversation. Marshall noted further that no specific instructions were given as to the types of conversations that would be deemed non-pertinent. Finally, Marshall indicated that no instructions were given on the matter of privileged communications; he suggested further, however, that he and the other agents were aware of privileges, and would cease monitoring if they determined a conversation to be privileged. Shortly after the issuance of the first warrant, Marshall testified that he met with Investigators Girtler, Cook and Morris, and instructed them again on the requirements of minimization. Marshall stated how he had explained to the agents that for calls identified as non-pertinent, two buttons were to be activated on the recording device; these buttons would terminate both recording and hearing. Marshall continued by stating that after these buttons had been activated, an officer might resume monitoring in order to determine whether a conversation had remained non-pertinent. Additionally, Marshall indicated that he directed these investigators not to leave the recording device when it was functioning. As for the actual process of interception, Marshall stated that the conversations on the Unified Auto telephone were monitored during the business hours, and that the residential telephones were monitored almost 24 hours a day during the first week, and then were monitored from 8:00 a. m. until 12:00 midnight or 1:00 a. m. once the officers had identified the patterns of phone use. Marshall explained further that log books were placed next to the recorder. As a conversation began, Marshall testified, officers would note in the log book whether the call was incoming or outgoing, the time of the call, and give a summary of the conversation. A meter on the recorder, Marshall stated further, reflected the length of time between a telephone receiver being picked up and being replaced; each meter reading signified a lapse of five to seven seconds. Marshall revealed, however, that one could not determine the actual length of a conversation from the meter readings because the meter did not reflect the time that a person might be on “hold” or might otherwise be waiting for the person at the other end of the telephone wire. Marshall went on to testify that on approximately a daily basis, he would review the log books with the monitoring agents, identifying for them pertinent conversations that had been intercepted for more than two minutes. Apart from the directives in the eavesdropping warrants regarding minimization and privileged communications, Marshall further established that there was no judicial supervision, and no supervision by the offices of the district attorneys. In regard to the success of the two-minute “rule of thumb”, Marshall explained that there were specific reasons why non-pertinent conversations were intercepted for more than two minutes. Some such intercepted calls, Marshall indicated, represented efforts by monitoring agents to break a code used by the suspects and to identify members of the conspiracy. The rule itself remained in effect even after the code had been broken. With respect to one particular conversation, between two females who were not suspects, that had been monitored for almost twenty minutes, Marshall stated that this conversation had been seized by an investigative officer who was not part of the regular monitoring team and who had received no instructions from Marshall concerning minimization. According to Marshall, this investigator, Investigator Bailey, maintained the recorder during the afternoon of June 9, 1980, until relieved by Investigator Morris that evening, and during the morning of June 10, 1980, until Marshall returned from an unexpected investigative trip. Both Girtler and Marshall had apparently been suddenly called away on the afternoon of June 9, 1980, leaving no regular monitoring officer to operate the recorder. Rather than turning off the machine, Marshall testified that he instead directed Investigator Bailey to conduct the monitoring. A second witness on behalf of the government was DEA agent Raymond W. Tripp, Jr. Tripp analyzed the minimization efforts of the monitoring agents and offered the following statistics: that of the 2,366 actual calls monitored over the telephone listed to Unified Auto, 2,072 or 87.6% were non-pertinent; that of the 845 actual calls monitored over the telephone listed to Adrian Lilia, 779 or 92.2% were non-pertinent; and that of the 449 actual calls monitored over the telephone listed to Robert Lilia, 382 or 85% were non-pertinent. Tripp noted that he regarded as pertinent a few conversations which had been identified by monitoring agents as non-pertinent. Additionally, Tripp shared Marshall’s opinion that meter readings commenced when the phone was off the hook, and ceased when the phone was replaced, thus signifying that one could accurately ascertain the length of conversations only by listening to the tapes, and not by examining the meter readings. Also at the suppression hearing, the defendants made an offer of proof to the effect that the meter readings fairly accurately reflect the length of the conversation. The defendants continued by proffering these figures concerning the seizure of non-pertinent conversations in excess of two minutes, basing these statistics on their examinations of the log books: that of the 1450 non-pertinent calls on the telephone listed to Unified Auto, 93 or 4% were monitored for over two minutes; that of the 527 non-pertinent conversations on the telephone listed to Adrian Lilia, 37 or 7% were monitored for over two minutes; and that of the 449 non-pertinent calls on the telephone listed to Robert Lilia, 33 or 7.3% were monitored for over two minutes. Finally, at the hearing all counsel stipulated that the meter would change readings approximately every six seconds. At this same time, the Court heard four non-pertinent conversations over the telephone listed to Unified Auto that had been intercepted in their entirety in excess of two minutes. One of these calls was from Robert Lilia to a restaurant in regard to a party; a second call was among three defendants. Apart from these calls, the defendants called to the Court’s attention four other intercepted telephone calls which had been made to attorneys, a conversation in Italian between Adrian Lilla and another person which the monitoring agent had recorded in its entirety, and a conversation seized over the Unified Auto telephone between “Chris” and a “Dr. Paul.” In objecting to the minimization efforts of the monitoring officers, the defendants make two general arguments: that the agents made no attempt to minimize non-pertinent conversations, and that the agents should have minimized the interception of conversations of all persons not specifically named in the eavesdropping warrant. On this issue, which concerns the execution of the eavesdropping warrants, New York law governs to the extent that it is not inconsistent with federal law. See United States v. Sotomayor, 592 F.2d at 1225, 1226; United States v. Hinton, 543 F.2d at 1011; United States v. Capra, 501 F.2d 267, 275 (2d Cir. 1974), cert. denied, 420 U.S. 990, 95 S.Ct. 1424, 43 L.Ed.2d 670 (1975); United States v. Rizzo, 491 F.2d 215, 217 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 416 U.S. 990, 94 S.Ct. 2399, 40 L.Ed.2d 769 (1974); United States v. Manfredi, 488 F.2d at 598. Turning, then, to state law, CPL § 700.30(7) states that eavesdropping warrants must require officers “to minimize the interception of communications not otherwise subject to eavesdropping. ... ” Cf: 18 U.S.C. § 2518(5). As interpreted by New York courts, minimization imposes upon officers a duty to make “a good faith and reasonable effort to keep the number of nonpertinent calls intercepted to the smallest practicable number.” People v. Floyd, 41 N.Y.2d 245, 250, 360 N.E.2d 935, 940, 392 N.Y.S.2d 257, 262 (1976). See People v. Calogero, 75 A.D.2d 455, 459, 429 N.Y.S.2d 970, 973 (4th Dep’t 1980); People v. Estrada, 97 Misc.2d 127, 130, 410 N.Y.S.2d 757, 759 (Sup.Ct. Queens Co. 1978). See also United States v. Capra, 501 F.2d at 275; United States v. Manfredi, 488 F.2d at 600. Cf: Scott v. United States, 436 U.S. 128, 139, 98 S.Ct. 1717, 1724, 56 L.Ed.2d 168 (1978) (Title III). In a judicial proceeding to determine whether officers in fact acted reasonably and in good faith, the prosecuting body bears the initial burden of establishing “that procedures were established to minimize interception of nonpertinent communications and that a conscientious effort was made to follow such procedures.” People v. Floyd, 41 N.Y.2d at 250, 360 N.E.2d at 940, 392 N.Y.S.2d at 262. See People v. Brenes, 42 N.Y.2d at 46, 364 N.E.2d at 1326, 396 N.Y.S.2d at 633; People v. Calogero, 75 A.D.2d at 461, 429 N.Y.S.2d at 974. See also United States v. Hinton, 543 F.2d at 1012. Although such a determination must necessarily be made on a case by case basis, see People v. Floyd, 41 N.Y.2d at 250, 360 N.E.2d at 940, 392 N.Y.S.2d at 262; People v. Calogero, 75 A.D.2d at 461, 429 N.Y.S.2d at 974; see also United States v. Manfredi, 488 F.2d at 599; cf: Scott v. United States, 436 U.S. at 140, 98 S.Ct. at 1724, thus making impossible the application of a wooden rule, a number of factors are relevant to the issue of minimization: [t]he nature and scope of the actual investigation; the character and sophistication of the parties who are its targets and the nature of their expected associates; the extent of the official supervision devoted to each step of the surveillance; the possibility and practicality of determining, contemporaneously with their investigation, whether particular conversations are in fact pertinent to the objectives of the investigation; these are among the many factors to be taken into account. People v. Brenes, 42 N.Y.2d at 46, 364 N.E.2d at 1326, 396 N.Y.S.2d at 633. Applying these principles here, not only did the law enforcement officers establish reasonable procedures regarding interceptions, they also reasonably and in good faith applied these procedures. It is true that, upon inspection of the log books, the monitoring agents may not have strictly abided by their procedures with respect to all conversations over the three targeted telephones. The log books reflect few instances where the machines were “off” and “back on.” Most of the intercepted conversations, however, were less than two minutes in duration. This short period of time unquestionably caused difficulties in determining pertinency. See People v. Floyd, 41 N.Y.2d at 253, 360 N.E.2d at 942, 392 N.Y.S.2d at 264; People v. Calogero, 75 A.D.2d at 461, 429 N.Y.S.2d at 974; People v. Carter, 81 Misc.2d 345, 349, 365 N.Y.S.2d 964, 969 (Nassau Co. Ct.1975). See also United States v. Capra, 501 F.2d at 275-76. Even with such brief calls, the agents did make some attempt to minimize, for example, nonpertinent communications of a targeted