Legal Question in Constitutional Law in Florida

My question is one concerning Constitutional rights. If I am at a location where a crime has possibly been committed, let's say a battery of some sort, does law enforcement have the right to take my cell phone to conduct an investigation or may I politely decline? If I do not agree to them taking my cell phone to conduct their investigation would they then be able to arrest me on the charge that I am interfering with a police investigation?


Asked on 6/16/11, 7:38 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Edward Hoffman Law Offices of Edward A. Hoffman

Merely being present at the scene would not justify taking your cell phone. But I can imagine other factors which would. For example, if you or another witness tell the police that you taped the crime with the phone's built-in camera, then your camera could be seized as evidence. If evidence that belonged to third parties could not be seized, many criminals would escape justice.

Note that evidentiary seizures are not permanent. The authorities will return the evidence, though it might take a while. If all the police want is a video from your phone then they probably will only need to retain the phone long enough to copy the recording.

Withholding evidence from police can indeed result in a charge of interfering with an investigation, depending upon the circumstances.

Read more
Answered on 6/16/11, 12:09 pm


Related Questions & Answers

More Constitutional Law questions and answers in Florida