Juvenile Consent to Search a Cellphone
This question comes from an officer in Kansas. What are the requirements for consent to search a cellphone? The situation was; several officers stopped some young kids that were suspected of throwing rocks from an overpass onto a car. The officers noticed that they had cell phones, and they asked for consent to search the […]
Single Purpose Container Doctrine
Today’s question is from an officer in Indiana; Would the single purpose container doctrine allow cops to search a vehicle’s hidden compartment? The first thing we want to learn is: What is a single purpose container? The single purpose container doctrine basically says that some containers, due to their shape, weight, size, material and the […]
Vehicle Trunk Search
This question came from an officer in New Jersey. Can police search the trunk of a car on the motor vehicle exception? The hypothetical goes something like this: patrol was notified of a suspicious person and vehicle. They found a male under the influence of heroin located right outside the vehicle. A semi-conscious female was […]
Consent to Search by Co-Occupants
Today’s question is one that I get all the time around the country and it’s important. So let’s go through it. Can you get consent to search a home from a spouse, even if the non- consenting spouse has left? The answer is, “Yes you can.” You can use that consent even if there is […]
What is the Cat Out of the Bag Search?
Today’s question is, What is a cat out of the bag search? This ties in with private searches. Just to remind you, a private search is not a Fourth Amendment search. It does not have to be reasonable. We don’t care if it would offend the Fourth Amendment. If the police are not involved in […]
Reasonable Suspicion Vs Probable Cause
What is the difference between reasonable suspicion and probable cause? It’s a great question, because even the courts struggle with defining the difference. There is no one definition that’s in the legal dictionary, so let’s look at them separately. First of all, we have to find a hunch. Every officer can have a hunch. Officers […]
No Trespassing Signs
Here is a question that we frequently encounter: Will a “No Trespassing” sign and a closed gate prohibit you from doing a knock and talk? Let me give you some context here. Some deputies in a rural setting want to do a knock and talk on a burglary suspect. They don’t have probable cause to […]
Tagging Abandoned Vehicles on Curtilage
This is a question that comes up a lot. I’m being very proactive about this particular issue, which is; Can police tag an abandoned or junk vehicle when it’s on curtilage? Okay, here is the scenario. There’s a new ordinance. This is comes out of the great state of Louisiana. There’s an ordinance that directs […]
Back Yard Arrests
Anthony Bandiero here. The question I have for you is: Can officers go into the backyard when they’re serving an arrest warrant and not violate curtilage? The answer is, “Yes,” officers can do it. And here’s why. First of all, from the Supreme Court’s perspective, the back yard is typically treated like the home itself. […]
Community Caretaking and Red Flag Laws
This is a commentary on Corniglia V. Strong, US Supreme Court, May 17, 2021. This is a massively, important case on two fronts. Number one: firearm confiscation and red flag laws. Number two: a little more guidance on the so called Community Caretaking Doctrine as it applies to homes. Let me give you some quick […]
Drug Sniffing Dog in Motel or Apartment Hallway
Today’s question is: May officers run a drug dog in apartment or motel hallways? And the answer is “yes” and “no.” Officers can run a drug canine in a motel or hotel hallway, but they cannot run the same dog in an apartment hallway. Let me explain to you why. Now, first of all, when […]
Misdemeanor Crimes not Committed in Your Presence
Our next topic is: How do you handle misdemeanor crimes that are not committed in your presence? Many states have a misdemeanor restriction that you cannot make an arrest for a mis-demeanor that was not committed in your presence. Now, all of those states that have this restriction also have some exceptions. For example: DUI, […]