Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

search warrant wording

If the description of dwelling on the search warrant reads a single story stucture, when in reality it is a two-story structure, and the evidence was found on the 2nd story, can the search warrant be considered nullified for mis information, or at least can the fruits of the search upstairs be considered inadmissable because of the description of dwelling? Also if night search request was marked no and the police came in after dusk, is this considered a night search. When I was looking up code 1524 I found where it said that searches would usually be conducted during normal hours of operation, but there was no real definition of what that was.


Asked on 3/29/05, 6:11 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys
Philip Iadevaia Law Offices of Philip A. Iadevaia

Re: search warrant wording

I can be argued that the warrant was not specific enough, but you would have to bring a motion to suppress the evidence of the search. That may be too costly in light of the fact that the court may just consider that the officers believed in good faith the warrant was legitimate. (See U.S. v. Leon.)

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Answered on 3/29/05, 7:01 pm
Edward Hoffman Law Offices of Edward A. Hoffman

Re: search warrant wording

If the home described in the warrant is the one which the police searched then there isn't a problem. The reason warrants describe the premises is to make sure the police go to the right place, not to create a hurdle they must overcome by presenting a perfectly accurate description. (When a warrant applies only to a portion of a building, the description also must be good enough to make it clear what part the officers can search.) Since these police evidently did get to the right place, I don't see a problem.

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Answered on 3/29/05, 7:28 pm


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