Pulled Over By the Police and Now in Trouble

Pulled Over By the Police and Now in Trouble

Any defense attorney in Frederick, MD will tell you that the police seem to be granted more and more rights to pull people over in their cars and to search their cars and personal possessions without a search warrant. Some of those police rights would seem to violate the constitutional right prohibiting a search without a warrant, but the courts have taken a liberal stand that basically says you don’t have full protection when using publicly funded roads. They also have said it is too easy for you to escape with the evidence, and police need to be able to search on the spot.

As a result, there are plenty of people who find themselves pulled over for speeding or minor offenses and end up being charged with possession of illegal substances. A police officer can pull you over, ask to see your driver’s license and auto registration and notice you have a baggie of marijuana lying on the seat. If the officer can clearly see the marijuana then it can be seized and you can be arrested.

In Plain View

This is called a plain-view seizure, and they happen every day. The key to legality that the attorney in Frederick, MD will investigate is whether the police officer was acting legally when he or she saw the drug. This all goes back to probable cause. If the police officer legally pulled you over and was legally standing by the car and then legally noticed the marijuana then it becomes apparent a crime is in progress.

If a crime is in progress then the officer can seize the evidence and arrest you. In addition, the officer can also conduct a warrantless search of the rest of the car. That’s why you see people pulled over on interstates with their 4 doors and trunk wide open and all their possessions laid out on the side of the highway as police officers search the car or truck. The police are conducting warrantless searches.

Warrantless searches are allowed when:

There is probable cause the vehicle has contraband stowed in it (guns, drugs, stolen goods, open alcohol containers etc.)

Passengers are suspected of holding contraband

There is probable cause to believe glove compartments are holding contraband

You are under arrest and there is a closed container in the car believed to hold contraband

You are not under arrest but there is probable cause to believe a closed container may hold evidence of a crime

No Probable Cause Means No Search Allowed

As you can see, the police have a lot of leeway when it comes to searching a car. Your defense attorney in Frederick, MD may launch a legal attack on the probable cause search justification. If there was no probable cause, the warrantless search would be considered illegal and the evidence would not be admissible.

When you are stopped for any reason in your vehicle and the officer says he or she wants to search it, you can ask why the officer wishes to do so. You do not have to give permission but you should not try to stop a search either. If you don’t give permission and the officer cannot prove probable cause, then your attorney in Frederick, MD has a good basis for challenging the legitimacy of the search.

Marc Ward has been in the practice of DUI and DWI defense for over 15 years. For more information click on Attorney Frederick, MD and Defense Attorney Fredrick, MD than please visit our website www.wardlawoffices.com