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CA11: Open garage facing street was not curtilage

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Attempted entry into an open garage in broad daylight was not curtilage. Plaintiff was arrested for obstructing a court order when the officers attempted to enter the garage to serve a court order and the plaintiff tried to close the door on them. Coffin v. Brandau, 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 3815 (11th Cir. February 24, 2010)*: The third and fourth Dunn factors, however, weigh strongly against the garage constituting curtilage when the Deputies arrived. When the Deputies arrived, there was still daylight. The Coffins did not take steps to protect the interior of the garage from the observation of people passing by. Both cars were in the driveway and the garage door was open. Mrs. Coffin agreed that "[i]t would be fair to say that until the moment [she] pushed the control to shut the overhead door, ...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on March 01, 2010 (boomark / email).