Many people feel anxious when they encounter police officers in public spaces. Even those with no intention of breaking the law might feel anxious when interacting with people in a position of legal authority. In some cases, police officers escalate what could be a few questions into a very embarrassing encounter. They may physically search an individual. Depending on what comes of that search, the person might face criminal charges.
People arrested after a stop-and-frisk encounter in a public location may question whether or not police officers violated their civil rights. When is it lawful for law enforcement professionals in Maryland to physically search people who are in public locations?
When they suspect the person has a weapon
People have protection from unreasonable searches. Under the Fourth Amendment, agents of the state need a valid reason to conduct searches. A stop-and-frisk interaction where police officers pat down people in public spaces is typically only appropriate if an officer has a reasonable suspicion that the person has a weapon in their possession. In such scenarios, a pat-down to check for a weapon is appropriate.
When they obtain permission
When police officers can’t credibly claim that they suspect someone of possessing a weapon, they might ask for their consent. An officer might casually ask if they can pat someone down as part of a brief interaction. In scenarios where people consent to a search, officers generally do not have to justify their decision after the fact.
When they arrest the person
The other common scenario in which officers can physically search a person’s body in a public space is as part of arrest procedures. Officers may need to check for weapons or contraband before transporting someone in a police cruiser and entertaining them at a state facility.
Frequently, the charges that follow questionable searches depend on the evidence found during those searches. If defense attorneys can establish that police officers violated a person’s civil rights, they may be able to ask the court to set aside certain evidence. Questioning the validity of a search is a reasonable strategy for people facing weapons charges, drug charges and other criminal allegations related to a search of their person. If police officers conduct inappropriate searches, what they find may not be admissible in court later.