Legal Question in Criminal Law in Minnesota

Evicted because of consented search

Mine and my sisters homes were searched by warrant for narcotics possessed by our brother.(he lives w/me) The police then went to our niece's home because our brother had belongings in her garage. They had no search warrant but she complied to one anyhow. They used dogs to search her home and garage. The dog found a pot pipe that was left by her boyfriend months ago. The police interrogated her about my brother and threatened her w/ child endangerment if her house wasn't cleaned. They came back 1 week later to check if she complied. 2 weeks after that she got an eviction notice because of ''police raid and possession''. She was never convicted of a crime. Can she legally dispute this or does she have to move? She has 4 children and nowhere to live.


Asked on 1/21/04, 5:16 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Thomas C. Gallagher Gallagher Criminal Defense

Re: Evicted because of consented search -- not yet!

First - never consent to a search by police. That is a mistake.

As for her "eviction notice," I would encourage her to fight it in court. To do so, she should try to get a lawyer to represent her there -- a lawyer familiar with landlord-tenant law and housing court. In the meantime, she may want to read her lease again, to see what is says about such events. Also, she may want to review Minnesota Statutes Section 609.5317 "Real property; seizures." It appears that that statute attempts to provide a legal basis for court eviction of tenants in violation of illegal drug laws -- but, its language appears deficient in that regard. Even if it is not so deficient, it provides that it is a defense if the tenant had no knowledge of the contraband; and, that it will not apply at all if the value of the contraband was under $100. If all they found was a pipe -- certainly worth far less than $100 -- and if she did not know it was there before police found it, then she would have two defenses under that statute.

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Answered on 1/22/04, 1:17 pm


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