FL5: Barbed wire fence and “no trespassing” sign created reasonable expectation of privacy

Defendant’s rural property was surrounded by a barbed-wire fence and “no trespassing” signs. Police entered through his gate to do a knock-and-talk. They violated his reasonable expectation of privacy by entering. Bainter v. State, 2014 Fla. App. LEXIS 4607 (Fla. 5th DCA March 28, 2014):

The undisputed facts are that the property where the search and seizure took place was the defendant’s home. The home was located on a large piece of property that had a few acres that were cleared. The property was surrounded by a barbed-wire fence, had a chain-link push gate at the entry to the dirt driveway, and had “no trespassing” signs posted at the entry to the driveway. The police traveled to the defendant’s address to do a knock and talk after receiving an anonymous tip that the property owner might be growing cannabis. The police drove down the dirt driveway through the open gate, parked the car near the home, exited the car, walked about forty yards to the front porch, and knocked on the front door. The knock and talk resulted in the eventual seizure of cannabis. The police admitted that they did not have consent to enter the property and they did not have a warrant. They also did not see anything in plain view that was illegal.

. . .

Here, the posting of the signs and the fencing of the entire property, including a push gate at the entrance to the driveway, exhibited the defendant’s actual, subjective expectation of privacy, and we conclude that society is prepared to recognize same as being reasonable. Neither the fact that the gate was open, nor that occasional friends or service providers come onto the property, negate that expectation of privacy.