5 ms·

Genuinely curious, do you need a warrant to look through a window. I guess the answer is "sometimes, it's complicated"...

by PJDK 10y ago

HillaryBriss 10y ago
In California, police can peer into car windows without a warrant. That's one reason police always seem to be carrying a mag-light when they pull someone over. (The other being that mag-lights are heavy and useful as clubs.)
HillaryBriss 10y ago
Oh yeah. Another piece of advice I've often heard is that, if police come to your door asking questions, it's prudent to step outside to speak with them, rather than speaking with them through an open door. If they see something suspicious through your opened door, they can reasonably claim probable cause and force entry. This may be all BS. But it's advice I've heard more than once.
- anonbanker 10y ago
  If police are doing a "knock and talk", they don't have a warrant. Barry Cooper had the best script for that: If police are knocking, lock your door and say through a window: "I don't talk to police; have your dispatcher call me. If you have a warrant, here are my hands, go ahead and kick the door down". Then cover your ears, close your eyes, and wait.
  - coldtea 10y ago
    The problem with those kind of scripts is that while they correctly account for not accidentally exposing yourself to the Police (without a lawyer present etc), they fail to account for the consequences of getting in the police's nerves and looking like a suspect in their eyes (which can get down to them downright making stuff up or planting stuff on you).
    - anonbanker 10y ago
      if police are targeting you, they're likely to make stuff up or plant evidence anyway. If you feel you can't handle your affairs, make sure to lawyer up as soon as the police leave your house. You'll need to. let the lawyer know what you did, so he can take appropriate action. Just remember that a lawyer, should (s)he put your needs above the needs of The People or The Court, (s)he would be disbarred. So don't expect magic to happen.
wang_li 10y ago
> Genuinely curious, do you need a warrant to look through a window. Home windows? If it is visible from a place where a normal person going about their normal activities can see, then no warrant. For example, if someone walks up your walk to your stoop and there are windows that can been seen through from there, then no warrant. If they have to step off your walkway, walk around the side of your house, scramble through your bushes and pull themselves up to peer through, then a warrant would be required.

Genuinely curious, do you need a warrant to look through a window. I guess the answer is "sometimes, it's complicated"...

by PJDK 10y ago

Genuinely curious, do you need a warrant to look through a window. I guess the answer is "sometimes, it's complicated"...

HillaryBriss 10y ago

In California, police can peer into car windows without a warrant. That's one reason police always seem to be carrying a mag-light when they pull someone over. (The other being that mag-lights are heavy and useful as clubs.)

HillaryBriss 10y ago

Oh yeah. Another piece of advice I've often heard is that, if police come to your door asking questions, it's prudent to step outside to speak with them, rather than speaking with them through an open door. If they see something suspicious through your opened door, they can reasonably claim probable cause and force entry. This may be all BS. But it's advice I've heard more than once.

anonbanker 10y ago
If police are doing a "knock and talk", they don't have a warrant. Barry Cooper had the best script for that: If police are knocking, lock your door and say through a window: "I don't talk to police; have your dispatcher call me. If you have a warrant, here are my hands, go ahead and kick the door down". Then cover your ears, close your eyes, and wait.
- coldtea 10y ago
  The problem with those kind of scripts is that while they correctly account for not accidentally exposing yourself to the Police (without a lawyer present etc), they fail to account for the consequences of getting in the police's nerves and looking like a suspect in their eyes (which can get down to them downright making stuff up or planting stuff on you).
  - anonbanker 10y ago
    if police are targeting you, they're likely to make stuff up or plant evidence anyway. If you feel you can't handle your affairs, make sure to lawyer up as soon as the police leave your house. You'll need to. let the lawyer know what you did, so he can take appropriate action. Just remember that a lawyer, should (s)he put your needs above the needs of The People or The Court, (s)he would be disbarred. So don't expect magic to happen.

wang_li 10y ago

> Genuinely curious, do you need a warrant to look through a window. Home windows? If it is visible from a place where a normal person going about their normal activities can see, then no warrant. For example, if someone walks up your walk to your stoop and there are windows that can been seen through from there, then no warrant. If they have to step off your walkway, walk around the side of your house, scramble through your bushes and pull themselves up to peer through, then a warrant would be required.