Part II- Was there an Illegal Search of My Car
Illegal Search-Continued from Part 1-dated July 16, 2008
A police search of your car, without a warrant, is presumed illegal or invalid unless an exception to the search warrant requirement applies. As always police need a reasonable and articulable suspicion that you have even committed a motor vehicle offense or a crime. After the stop by police they need a warrant or an exception to a warrant to search your car. These exceptions include, but are not limited to plain view, plain smell, consent, searches incident to arrest, exigent circumstances, etc. The most widely used of these exceptions is the motor vehicle exception. In the United States Supreme Court case of Carrol v. United States, 267 U.S. 132 (1925), the Court held that if the police have probale cause to believe that the car contains evidence of criminal activity, they can do a warrantless search of your vehicle based upon exigent circumstances. The reason is that the vehicle is inherently mobile and could lead to the destruction of evidence by the vehicle occupants before a warrant can be obtained.
