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What happens if the police conduct an illegal search?

On Behalf of | Jan 14, 2025 | Criminal Law

Police officers are obligated to respond to calls for emergency support. They execute search warrants while investigating criminal activity and attempt to apprehend those who have broken the law. When seeking to gather evidence of criminal activity, police officers sometimes cross the line and engage in inappropriate conduct. They might conduct a search that is technically illegal or a violation of the basic constitutional protection against unreasonable searches and seizures.

What happens when police officers conduct a search without the proper justification?

Searches are only legal in some situations

A police search of private property or a person’s body is legal in a limited number of situations. Police officers can search when they have a warrant signed by a judge. They can also conduct searches if they have probable cause to suspect a specific crime. Other times, they can conduct a search with the permission of the subject of the search.

If officers search without appropriate justification, then the person arrested or prosecuted because of that search could fight back. They can hire a criminal defense attorney who may be able to prevent the courts from securing a conviction with the right defense strategy.

Lawyers can eliminate ill-gotten evidence

The Fourth Amendment protects individuals from unreasonable searches and seizures. The appellate courts and even the Supreme Court have had to rule on search issues repeatedly to clarify what is appropriate and what is unreasonable.

One of the important rules established because of judicial precedents is the exclusionary rule. If a criminal defense attorney can convince the courts that a search was inappropriate, then they can ask to exclude that evidence from criminal proceedings.

If a police officer conducts a physical search without permission or justification, anything they find in a defendant’s pocket may not be admissible evidence. If officers force entry into a private residence, anything they find during the resulting search may not hold up under scrutiny at trial.

Those who believe that police officers may have violated their rights may require the guidance and advocacy of a skilled criminal defense attorney. Discussing what happened before an arrest with a legal team could help people develop viable criminal defense strategies.

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