New Haven Register: “Bill would let Connecticut towns seek search warrants to inspect properties”

New Haven Register: Bill would let Connecticut towns seek search warrants to inspect properties by Jordan Fenster:

A bill up for legislative review would grant municipalities the right to seek a search warrant if zoning officials believe there has been an ordinance violation.

The pending legislation, requested by state Rep. Susan Johnson, D-Windham, is the result of a state Supreme Court ruling that affirmed the right of citizens to, in the words of the court’s decision, “be free from unreasonable searches.”

In the case of the town of Bozrah v. Anne D. Chmurynski, town zoning official Thomas Weber had been asked to examine private property because, according to the court record, “he intended to inspect the property for ‘junk.’”