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NY2: Failure to pay motel for room means no reasonable expectation of privacy

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

If the rent on a room is unpaid, the occupant has no reasonable expectation of privacy in it. The officers conducted a knock-and-talk to evict defendant for noise and unpaid fees, and the officers smell burnt marijuana and could see scales from the door. He admitted to smoking marijuana in the room. People v. Hardy, 2010 NY Slip Op 6382, 2010 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 6461 (2d Dept. August 10, 2010). Gant should not be retroactive to a search that occurred before it was decided because there is no deterrent effect on officers. United States v. Tschacher, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 81092 (D. Neb. May 20, 2010).* Defense counsel can chose the issues to appeal, and the record shows that the decision not to appeal a search claim was justified because defendant would not have prevailed because probable cause was shown...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on August 16, 2010 (boomark / email).