Can a tenant renting a property give consent for a plice search search without the owners knowledge?
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Can a tenant renting a property give consent for a plice search search without the owners knowledge?
Asked on August 19, 2011 Mississippi
Answers:
M.D., Member, California and New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
Yes they can, at least to the part of the rental that is under their exclusive control. Their landlord need not consent. However, they cannot give permission to search the landlord's private areas if they also live on the premises. Additionally, if there is more than 1 tenant who lives at the same location, typically 1 tenant cannot consent to a search of areas exclusively occupied by another tenant. Therefore a tenant can consent to a search of their own bedroom as well as to a search of the common areas of a home, such as the living room or kitchen but not to a search of their roommates's bedroom. Further, a landlord is prohibited from giving consent to the search of the leased premises.
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