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Use of key taken in a search incident to effect a search warrant not unreasonable

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Officers with a search warrant could use a key seized from the defendant under a search incident to open a closet. United States v. Herrara-Contrrras, 2008 U.S. App. LEXIS 5671 (11th Cir. March 12, 2008) (unpublished) (Comment: Better than the alternative: breaking in the door. Since the police had a search warrant and they were looking for drugs, breaking in the closet would have been lawful. So, how are the defendant's rights violated by using a key they came into possession of through the search incident? It is annoying when they don't use the key and break down the door, and that happens enough as it is--breaking into something without looking for a key that was present. If anything, defendant was protected against a greater invasion of his interest if the door had to be broken...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on March 19, 2008 (boomark / email).