They were pulled over because his rear headlight was out. So the state police officer searched the car. DO they have the right to search the car for no reason. I'm in mass
2007-09-12 11:39:55 · 17 answers · asked by jjjosh911 3 in Politics & Government ➔ Law Enforcement & Police
Ugh what ever the freaken light is called its besides the point lol
2007-09-12 11:46:42 · update #1
I believe the officer has the right to search his car if he has probable cause, and he seems something suspicious in plain sight. For example, if your sister's boyfriend car has cocaine on the floor, and the officer can see it through the window, he can search it. But if the cocaine was in the trunk, then he can't search it unless your sister's boyfriend gave him permission to search. On occasion, an officer don't need a warrant if he thinks he has a good cause to search. If someone was banging on the trunk, the officer has the right to pop open the trunk.
Remember what happened at Logan after 9/11. When you go to park your car, the officer asks you to pop open your trunk, and he also searches the back of your car. He didn't ask, but he searched anyway.
2007-09-12 11:52:46 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
My husband is a police officer (with the city not the state). According to him, he must ask permission first. If he is not given consent but still feels like something is not right. He can call for a K-9 unit. If the canine hits, well then ... he doesn't need permission anymore. He can search the car whether the owner allows him to or not. Different states have different laws on this issue. We're in Louisiana not Massachusetts, so we're not totally sure if the officer legally had a right to do so. But there are plenty of ways to get around that sort of thing.
2007-09-12 18:51:00 · answer #2 · answered by copswife134 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Case law set forth in Carroll vs. United States (commonly called the Carroll Doctrine) dictates when a police officer can search your car. You do have a lesser expectation of privacy while on a public street, so you can search without a warrant. However, the officer still needs to articulate why he thinks the search will turn up something illegal.
2007-09-12 18:52:39 · answer #3 · answered by trooper3316 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
They do NOT need probable cause to search a car, what they need is reasonable suspicion. They can legally search your car for weapons when they stop you. If they want to get into the trunk or areas not accessible to the driver or passengers they would need a warrant or to impound your car and do an inventory search. They really just ask to be courteous but if you decline that gives them the reasonable suspicion they need to search.
2007-09-12 19:13:16 · answer #4 · answered by ~soy-yo~ 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
On the law, itself, no they don't have a right to search a car for no reason. They need cause. Behavior arounses suspicion, say for drug posession. But unless they see, smell, hear, something that gives cause, they must ask permission first. If you refuse, they can have a K-9 brought in. But if the K-9 doesn't sniff anything, either, the cop is going to look mighty foolish to his superiors for wasting time. Enough mistakes like that and his promotions are going to be pretty flimsy.
Even if you flat know that there is nothing in there that the dogs will sniff (guns drugs, etc), then refuse him permission. Let him waste time and then complain to his superiors afterward.
So, question is, what did they find in this case? My bet is that they had probable cause.
2007-09-12 18:53:27 · answer #5 · answered by Marc X 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I believe ~soy-yo~ is mistaken. Refusing a search DOES NOT give them 'reasonable suspicion'. If they didn't already have reasonable suspicion, they would not have asked to begin with. Just because you don't know/ don't accept the reason, I promise they HAD a reason. It may or may not have been legal, but the had a reason.
2007-09-12 20:44:33 · answer #6 · answered by STEVEN F 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well, I thought at the state level they needed probable cause, the probable cause may have been the tail light, or maybe the officer felt your sister was acting suspicious...
2007-09-12 18:46:00 · answer #7 · answered by John P 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I am sure they asked permission first. If he gave it to them anything they find is fair game. As far as Sis goes they must have probable cause to search her. Regrettably saying they were acting nervous or "suspicious" generally works without a decent lawyer.
2007-09-12 18:48:38 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
No, but if you don't let them they can make you wait there until they can get a search warrant. If you say no, they will definitely do that and then they will be pissed because you gave them a hard time.
2007-09-12 18:47:27 · answer #9 · answered by oldhag 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes they do. I'm sure they did ask permission and it could have been refused. By the way, why would you have headlights on the back of the car?
2007-09-12 18:45:36 · answer #10 · answered by macaroni 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋