Are police allowed to search cars without any evidence?

Question

I got pulled over for speeding.
The officer saw that I was a college student and decided to search my car for drugs.

Is he allowed to do that?

Answer 1

Any time the officer has a reason to have you step out of the car, the officer can perform a limited search of you and your vehicle. That reason can be something as simple as you acting nervous, moving around a lot, suspicious hand movements, aggressive attitude, or even if the officer makes it a standard procedure on every traffic stop he/she makes.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the officer has a right to ensure his/her own safety when dealing with any member of the public for any legal reason. That means any time that an officer comes into contact with a person on any type of police call: suspicous person, domestic disturbance, disorderly conduct, traffic violation, etc.

According to the Court, the officer can conduct a "pat down" search of the person, checking for weapons. This means the officer can pat down the outside of person's clothing feeling for weapons. If an officer feels anything that, based on his/her training and experience, could possibly be a weapon, drugs, or other illegal item, the officer can then go inside the pocket to determine the true nature of that item. They are looking for weapons, but if they find anything else, it'll stick in court.

The officer is also allowed to conduct what is referred to as a "wing-span" search of the vehicle to check for weapons. This search covers any area of the vehicle that could be reached by any occupant of the vehicle. If there is more than one person in the car, this will pretty much cover the entire passenger compartment of the car. It does not, however, include a locked glove box or the trunk, unless the inside of the trunk was accessible to a person inside the car (such as if the back seat was laid forward, leading into the trunk). The officer is checking for weapons, but if they find anything else illegal, it will stick in court.

So to answer your question more simply, yes, a police officer can search your car.

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

Yes, but probaby not for the reasons that most people might think.

Probable cause is the most common reason that people jump to when the police search a vehicle (your appearance, the time and place you occupy, etc). But one of the most common reasons police search a vehicle is for their own protection. Perhaps the officer was searching for drugs (as you indicate) and if so the answer is still complicated.

Your bottom line question is if they can do this. The answer is that it depends on more variables than you have provided. As a college student I got pulled over many times, but was never searched. It might be reasonable to assume that most college students who get pulled over don't get searched too, so I doubt that the fact you are a student weighed in the decision.

The officer has to spend a lot of tedious time filling out reams of paperwork on a search, even if the search doesn't turn up anything. It's not in his interest to search your car if he doesn't have some reason to be suspicious. It is likely that, as innocent as you may have been, that there was some indication on your part (also innocent) that a search may have been warranted.

The fact that you were speeding, coupled with that variable, may be the key. The practical way to proceed would be to take no offense and watch your speed in the future. If you feel your rights were violated (and maybe they were) you might contact your local ACLU branch and ask them what they think. My guess is that they won't pursue the matter. It may not seem "fair" or "constitutional", but the officer's report is the key to whether or not he was performing his role in a reasonable manner.

Best of luck to you.

Answer 4

If you were under arrest for something (suspended license, DUI, etc, etc) then the search of you and the vehicle is legal. If it was just for speeding, the officer needs consent (from you) to search the vehicle. Some departments will have a consent form to fill out.

But if he smelled an odor of cannabis or another drug coming from the vehicle, he has probable cause to search.

Answer 5

No. But he asked you like this. "I'm going to search your car is there anything in there i should know about"? or I'm going to search your car if that is OK with you...if you don't say no that is consent.
Or yes if he had reasonable suspicion, (and here is the tricky part) reasonable suspicion is different for each officer. He may of smelled something saw something, had a description of a vehicle like yours.

In the future state. "I do not give consent for you to search my vehicle." He will then ask a K-9 officer to come out, again if the dog alerts, Boom he's back to reasonable suspicion and bang your popped again.

Best bet don't smoke weed in your car....we know what it smells like.

Answer 6

I'm pretty sure that they cannot legally search any personal property (home or car) without a warrant, BUT... they can ask for your permission to conduct a search without a warrant, and if you give them permission, then it's just like they have a warrant. You can say no, but if you said no you'd look guilty and he'd probably follow you and get a warrant or give you a hard time, so most ppl say yes if they have nothing to hide. So basically they can do it by sheer intimidation factor.

Answer 7

If a person is a cop then they believe they have the right to search cars without any evidence.

Answer 8

According to all that you've said, no. The officer needs either a warrant OR your permission, so if you let the officer, that's a different story.

Answer 9

you probably will not win in a probable cause suit against the police all he has to say was he thought he smelled pot or thought he saw a seed or anything to do a better check and poof there is your probable cause.

Answer 10

he has the right to search ur car, if u give him permission. if u say no, then he might bring the k-9 unit