During a warranted property search, can police use a next door neighbor’s driveway?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
During a warranted property search, can police use a next door neighbor’s driveway?
They did not ask permisson and there are numerous no trespassing signs in plain sight the drive ways property was not listed in the
warrant as it is another area completely and has no relation to the property for which the warrant was carried out. Is it legal for
them to use another property without permission which clearly states no trespassing to carry out a warrant search on a unrelated
property or should permission have been given.
Asked on January 12, 2018 under Criminal Law, North Carolina
Answers:
M.D., Member, California and New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 6 years ago | Contributor
So long as the search was legal, that means it was performed within the scope of the warrant, then it was legal. Whether or not the police had the legal right to use your neighbor's driveway it a matter for your neighbor to pursue if they choose; it has no bearing on you or the search that was conducted.
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 6 years ago | Contributor
Whether or not the other property owner may have grounds to complain and possibly seek redress has no bearng whatsoever on the validity of a warrant: how the police get to the location to be searched does not affect whether the search was legal. As long as the search was done within the parameters of the warrant, and the warrant was properly obtained, the search is legal and anything found during it is admissible as evidence.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.