The decision eases standards for deciding to what extent police can use information obtained from an informant who is involved in criminal activity. Bloomington police received an anonymous letter informing them that a local couple, Lance and Susan Gates, regularly sold drugs from their home. The police verified the letter's statement concerning the couple's travels to Florida and obtained a search warrant. Huge quantities of marijuana were discovered in the Gates' house and automobile. The Illinois State Supreme Court ordered the drugs suppressed, ruling that the police had not satisfied one prong of the Aguilar-Spinelli Test -- a showing that the informant was credible. The U.S. Supreme Court rejected the rigid application of the Aguilar-Spinelli rule and determined that the requirement that, prior to using an informant, the police officer must show that the informant is 'credible' and his information 'reliable' is highly relevant but not always necessary. The Court stated that the 'totality of the circumstances' is the preferred approach and substituted that approach for the rigid 'two-pronged test' under Aguilar and Spinelli. A booklet accompanying the cassettes highlights the facts in the case and discusses the implications of the Supreme Court's decision.