Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Re: Search Warrant, Who and Where can they search?

The warrant entitled the police to search any part of the house they could reasonably believe were accessible to your tenant. Normally, I would think your room would not qualify, but the fact that the police found some of the items in the room and that you say they were there "because we live in the same house and it was just left there by my tenant" suggests they were on the money.

Did you tell the police your tenant had access to your room? If so, that was all the reason they needed. If not - and if they had no other reason to believe he had such access - then the search strikes me as improper. You may very well be able to have the evidence obtained from your room excluded, along with any other evidence the police found later as a result of going into your room.

Assuming the evidence can be used against you, the fact that your marijuana plant was dead is of no help to you. A conviction requires only proof that you had cultivated the plant, even if it happened to be dead when it was discovered. And if the jury isn't convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that you were cultivating, it can still get you for possession.

And for the record, tenants who supposedly rent only one room do not routinely leave items in other bedrooms in the home. You might want to reconsider your story. And you definitely want to hire an attorney.

Re: Search Warrant, Who and Where can they search?

Thank you for your question.

I also agree with Mr. Hoffman that you may benefit greatly from the services of an attorney, but part of the defense is going to be analyzing and presenting the issue of whether or not the warrant "described with particularity" the scope of the search, and the items to be found.

It may be, if the warrant described the particular areas where the items were found, that the search will be upheld, even if your name wasn't on the warrant. But another possibility is that the police exceeded your search, by going "beyond the warrant" in searching your room without your consent or the authority in the warrant.

As you can probably tell from the way you've asked it in your question, the fact that the plant was dead doesn't matter - marijuana cigarettes are filled with dead plant matter, but they're still, in normal circumstances, illegal.

If you have any further questions, or feel that you need legal representation, please feel free to email me directly at [email protected]. It's my pleasure to help if I can.

Re: Search Warrant, Who and Where can they search?

It sounds to me to be exceeding the limits of the warrant. If you are charged with any crime, call me directly at (619) 222-3504.