What is Unlawful Search & Seizure?

In order for evidence gathered by law enforcement to be used against you in court, it must be obtained legally. This is a protection afforded by the Fourth Amendment, which is designed to help ensure those who face criminal accusations are given a fair trial by guaranteeing your right to privacy. Invasions of privacy that yield evidence but are unwarranted are ruled illegal and the evidence may not be used against you by the prosecution.

Most people know the basic principle of this rule: the police or other law enforcement must obtain a search warrant to be able to search you, your home, your car, or other property for contraband that can be used as evidence. Most people do not know that law enforcement doesn’t always need a warrant to search or obtain evidence. Some of these situations include: when you leave the evidence in plain view, when police want to prevent evidence from being destroyed, or when your actions constitute a threat to general public safety.

Let’s look closer at what is and is not protected by this amendment.

What Is Protected?

In general the Fourth Amendment guarantees you privacy of what’s in your home, your car, your pockets, and on your property, provided it’s not immediately visible or kept in a way that no reasonable person should expect it to remain private.

For example, if you are pulled over by a law enforcement officer for speeding, the officer cannot request that you step out of the car and then perform a search on you for drugs. Since the officer has no reason to suspect that you have drugs in the vehicle, this search would be considered unreasonable and therefore any drugs they were to find could not be used as evidence against you in your trial.

That being said, law enforcement does have the ability to search you or your property if they obtain a search warrant from a judge. To get one of these documents, law enforcement must go to a judge and present their case, including where they wish to search, when they plan to do it, and what they expect to find. Judges require them to be specific with these details, so law enforcement may not obtain evidence for an entirely unrelated crime when they have a warrant for an initial charge. For example, if law enforcement obtains a search warrant on suspicion that you are hiding drugs in your home, they cannot find evidence of illegal firearms and use it against you to open an entirely new charge.

What Is Not Protected?

If you do not have a “legitimate expectation of privacy,” then the Fourth Amendment offers you no protection. Going back to the drug example, if you are pulled over for speeding and have drugs sitting on the passenger seat, then you do not really have a reasonable expectation of privacy. At this point, the officer does not need to obtain a warrant to arrest you on drug possession charges and submit the drugs on your passenger seat as evidence against you.

This protection also does not extend to private security forces, who may detain you and then turn you over to local authorities along with evidence they have discovered by their own search procedures. For example, if a mall security officer catches suspects a teenager shoplifting from a store, they may detain them and search their backpack or pockets for the stolen items. Should they find the items and prove they are stolen, security can then turn the thief over to the police along with the stolen goods, which are admissible as evidence in court.

Have you been subjected to a search you believe may have been illegitimate? Call a Walnut Creek criminal defense attorney from Cardoza Law Offices, Inc. as soon as possible. Our attorneys are well versed in the laws regarding searches and seizures, and may be able to work to suppress the evidence in your case if it was illegitimately obtained. With more than 45 years of experience and over 250 full jury trials, you can trust that Attorney Cardoza has the skill you need to seek the best possible outcome to your case.