Seattle DUI Attorney | Vehicle Searches - Don't Give Consent

As a Seattle DUI attorney I see this situation all the time: you are driving around, minding your own business, and all of a sudden there is a cop on your tail with lights already flashing. Maybe you were speeding, maybe you forgot to use your turn signal, maybe you were following too close. Whatever the reason, you've had a couple of drinks at a buddies house and are a little nervous that the officer is going to smell your breath and investigate you for Seattle DUI.

But, thankfully, the cop doesn't do anything. He writes you a ticket for whatever you've done and is about to leave when he stops, turns around, and casually says "do you mind if I take a look inside the vehicle real quick to make sure there are no drugs or weapons?"

You freeze. You are not sure what to do. You know you have a small baggie of marijuana in the glove box, so you don't want him to search. But you don't know what to do. Sensing some hesitation the officer asks you if you have any drugs in the car, and you say no. So, he says, it won't be any problem if you take a look inside the vehicle. You say okay, and start thinking about the Seattle criminal attorney you are going to need to hire to take care of this (so much for the relief of not needing a DUI defense attorney).

I see this situation play out over and over again (and talk about it constantly on the DUI Attorney Seattle Blog) with clients. And one thing never changes, you should never consent to a search of your vehicle. If you consent, you are freely giving up all of your constitutional rights to be protected from unreasonable searches and seizures.

What that right means is that before an officer can search your car or anything else, he must have probable cause, and get a warrant (most of the time). Probable cause is most easily described as an articulable suspicion that crime is afoot. This means the officer must be able to point out specific facts that tend to make him reasonably believe that your car has drugs in it. In the example that didn't exist, but since you consented, all of that is out the window.

If you are investigated for Seattle DUI, a speeding ticket, or anything else in Seattle and the police ask if they can search anything of yours, always say no. If they search anyway then you can hire us to help you. We are Seattle DUI attorneys, but we also do other types of criminal defense. And in the example above, we'd have a great shot of getting the evidence suppressed. Bottom line - don't consent to a search - ever.

Related Posts:

Seattle DUI Attorney | Search and Seizure

Seattle DUI Attorney | Reminder to Remain Silent