Constitutional law, specifically the Fourth Amendment, protects citizens from unlawful search and seizure. Per the Amendment, a warrant supported by probable cause will be required for a legal search to occur without the consent of an individual. However, throughout the years, a litany of court cases have continually sculpted and reshaped the modern interpretation of the search and seizure legal procedure.
Legal Search Process for Vehicles
Initially, the search and seizure laws relevant to private citizens dealt with person and home, however, as time progressed, the personal vehicle became a focal point of the modern search and seizure laws in the United States.
Stop and Frisk
Starting with the case of Terry v. Ohio, law enforcement has been granted the right to use what is known as a "stop and frisk", which allows law enforcement officers to stop any individual for probable cause and perform a pat down search for weapons.
Learn more about Searches on the Street and Stop & Frisk Laws.
Plain View Doctrine
The second legal precedent, known as the plain view doctrine, allows law enforcement to seize illegal materials in plain view, which has become an integral part of law enforcement searches during traffic stops of motor vehicles.
Learn more about Seizures and "Plain View".
Motor Vehicle Exception
The third, and most damaging law enforcement tool used during legal searches during vehicles, is the overall legal body of law, often called the motor vehicle exception, that has consistently established a private citizen's lack of rights regarding search and seizure in a vehicle. In essence, with simple probable cause, an officer can detain individuals, search vehicles, and search compartments within vehicles at their own discretion without a warrant.
Some states, however, have varying laws regarding the search and seizure process for vehicles, but it is universal that the reasonable expectation of privacy is nonexistent in vehicle stops, as well as during the ensuring searches.
These rights are only further being eroded through recent legislation enacted under the guise of preventing terrorism, which grants law enforcement even wider rights for vehicle searches without warrants or driver consent.
Get in-depth information on Car Searches by Police.
Reporting Illegal Search Process and Getting Legal Representation
Defeating criminal charges on the grounds of an illegal search of a vehicle is not an easy task. Your attorney will have to establish that probable cause was not sufficient for the search to occur in the first place, which may include concerns regarding the reason for the initial stop in the first place, reasons for further search after plain view sweeps, or the scope of a search incident to arrest.
Furthermore, the courts have consistently upheld the automobile exemption to citizen’s search and seizure rights, which hampers defenses based on illegal vehicle search. However, a defense attorney can work with defendants on the specific nature of their case, including the arrest and actions taken prior to arrest, in order to possibly invalidate evidence procured during or following an illegal search.
