In appeal, man tied to former Sen. Ray Holmberg says search warrant in his own case was unconstitutional

FARGO — A Grand Forks man connected to a former North Dakota senator who traveled abroad with plans to sexually abuse children is appealing

his own federal child sex abuse conviction,

arguing a search warrant in the case was unconstitutional.

Nicholas James Morgan-Derosier, 37, argued evidence showing he possessed child sex abuse material should have been thrown out due to what his defense team called an “overbroad” search warrant. The warrant was used to search Morgan-Derosier’s home in September 2020 for evidence that he violated a judicial order that banned him from doing business as Team Lawn, his landscaping business.

The search turned up a thumb drive that contained child sex abuse materials, according to court documents. Police applied for a search warrant once they found images of children being sexually abused, court documents said.

The evidence likely would have been used in a trial in North Dakota U.S. District Court, but Morgan-Derosier pleaded guilty in September 2023 to charges that said he received, distributed and possessed child sex abuse materials. The plea came after U.S. District Judge Peter Welte denied Morgan-Derosier’s motion to suppress.

Prosecutors also said the defendant sexually abused multiple children over the years, including some he met online and lured to a physical location. Morgan-Derosier and another man sexually abused a boy in 2020 together in a tent near Park Rapids, Minnesota, court documents said.

Morgan-Derosier did not have to admit to the sexual abuse, but he is serving a 40-year sentence for possessing thousands of child sex abuse materials and sharing some of the images online.

Morgan-Derosier reserved the right to appeal his conviction based on the search warrant.

He filed a notice to appeal

last year in the U.S. Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

In an appeals brief that was recently unsealed, Morgan-Derosier’s attorney argued that the search warrant was unconstitutional, overbroad and lacking particularity. His team also argued that the warrant led to evidence of a crime that was unrelated to the investigation of his business dealings, the brief said.

“The warrant essentially authorized the police to seize all computers and electronic devices for any crime that was committed at any time,” the brief said. “It is difficult to conceive a less particular or more broad case.”

Morgan-Derosier has been connected to former Sen. Ray Holmberg, R-Grand Forks.

The Forum reported on phone records

that showed Holmberg and Morgan-Derosier exchanged dozens of text messages while Morgan-Derosier was jailed in August 2021.

During Morgan-Derosier’s

January 2022 detention hearing,

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Puhl said a “77-year-old man from Grand Forks” texted Morgan-Derosier on Aug. 23, 2021, about bringing Morgan-Derosier’s 19- or 20-year-old boyfriend “over for a massage.” Puhl did not identify the 77-year-old, but the age matched Holmberg’s at the time.

In an interview with The Forum, Holmberg denied asking Morgan-Derosier about a massage but acknowledged he texted Morgan-Derosier about patio work and “a variety of things.”

Other documents and audio recordings revealed Holmberg gave Morgan-Derosier a

ride to Bismarck

shortly after police searched Morgan-Derosier’s home. Once there, Morgan-Derosier spoke with North Dakota consumer protection officials about his business, according to a transcript from the North Dakota Attorney General’s Office. Holmberg attended a legislative energy development and transmission committee meeting that day.

Holmberg was

charged in October 2023

in federal court, with prosecutors saying he

traveled to Prague

multiple times in the 2010s with plans to sexually abuse children. He pleaded guilty to the charge in August.

During that plea hearing,

prosecutors said Holmberg and Morgan-Derosier watched child sex abuse material together.

Holmberg has been

jailed in Minnesota

after

a judge

determined he

violated presentence release conditions.

A sentencing hearing has not been scheduled in his case.

Holmberg served in the North Dakota Senate from 1976 to 2022, when he

resigned shortly after The Forum

broke the story about his connection to Morgan-Derosier.