by Bob Walsh
The California Supreme Court has just ruled (4-3) that the mere fact that the driver of a car is unlicensed is not probably cause to conduct a search of the vehicle. The decision went the other way when it was up for review in 2002.
In the case under review the cops got a call about an erratic driver. They went to the registered address of the car and shortly after that Maria Elena Lopez pulled up. She asserted that she was unlicensed. They hooked her up and asked if she maybe had ID in the car. She said maybe yes. They searched, found her purse. In the purse was some meth.
The original case presupposed that the driver might have had documentation which he/she ditched in the car to avoid identification and that it was permissible for the cops to search for the possibly dumped ID.
2 comments:
It all depends on if the vehicle is being towed. All towed vehicles must be inventoried or people will scream and sue about missing property.
Most cops hate inventorying vehicles before the tow so if this halts that policy then the cops will love it.
So far, contraband found during a vehicle inventory has been admissible.
I’m sorry, but I must ask, what came first, our right to travel or the automobile?
Just how did we get trapped into this private law, nonsense anyway? Could it have anything to with our name being spelled in all CAPS? I’d say it has everything to do with it. Statutory Laws are not intended for natural person, but rather the legal person. Which is a presumption of the state, nothing more. However, in law, any presumption left unchallenged is considered to be true.
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