What Are Your Rights When Police Search Your Vehicle?

0:02 Can police search your car after you've been arrested? Let's take a look. You're pulled over by police, arrested for a traffic-related offense, handcuffed and placed in the back of a patrol car. You're no longer capable of reaching your vehicle. You cannot retrieve a weapon, destroy evidence. Yet police walk back to your car, open the doors, and begin searching.

0:21 Is that legal? Well, the answer depends on the circumstances. A 2009 Supreme Court decision dramatically clarified the constitutional limits of such searches. The case was Arizona v. Gantt. On August 25, 1999, Tucson police officers went to a residence while investigating a possible drug-related matter. They encountered Rodney Gantt, who drove into the driveway. Officers knew Gantt had an outstanding warrant for driving with a suspended license. They arrested him, handcuffed him, and secured him in the back of a patrol vehicle. At that point, Gantt possessed no immediate physical threat and could not access his automobile. Nevertheless, officers searched his car. Inside, they discovered a firearm in a bag

1:00 containing cocaine. Gant was subsequently charged with drug offenses. His attorney argued that the search violated the Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable searches and seizures. What did the Supreme Court decide? Well, in a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in Gant's favor. The court explained that the police may search a vehicle incident to a recent occupant's arrest in two principal circumstances— First, officers may search the passenger compartment when the arrested person is unsecured and within reach distance of that compartment at the time of the search. Second, officers may conduct such a search when it is reasonable to believe the vehicle contains evidence relevant to the offense of arrest. Neither apply

1:39 to Gantt. He was handcuffed and secured in a patrol car and officers had no reasonable basis to expect evidence of driving with a suspended license inside his vehicle. The search, therefore, cannot be justified as a search incident to arrest. The police officers relied on an overly broad interpretation of an earlier Supreme Court decision, New York v. Belton. They treated the arrest of a vehicle occupant as sufficient justification for searching the passenger compartment, even when the person could no longer access the vehicle. The Supreme Court rejected that interpretation.

2:12 The crucial legal principle was that an arrest does not automatically authorize a vehicle search. When can't police search a car? Arizona v. Gantt did not eliminate warrantless vehicle searches. Police still may search your car and other established legal exceptions. For example, the automobile exception permits a vehicle search when officers have probable cause to believe it contains contraband or evidence of a crime. A valid voluntary search may also be lawful, and officers may conduct properly limited inventory searches when vehicles are lawfully impounded. The Fourth Amendment protects individuals against unreasonable government intrusions, but constitutional protections do not prevent police from conducting legitimate investigations. Arizona v. Gant established an

2:56 important boundary between officer safety and evidence preservation. Being arrested does not automatically mean the police have the constitutional authority to search your automobile, and when officers cross that boundary, evidence they discover may be excluded from criminal proceedings.