{"id":5412,"date":"2011-07-10T08:23:53","date_gmt":"2011-04-11T01:04:01","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2011-04-10T09:52:04","slug":"en-US","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/fourthamendment.com\/?p=5412","title":{"rendered":"CA9: Arizona v. Hicks<\/em> explained"},"content":{"rendered":"

An officer searching a car with probable cause saw a bill partially hidden in the weatherstripping. It did not violate Arizona v. Hicks<\/a> for the officer to pull out the bill, look at it, and discover that it was counterfeit. This case has an interesting discussion of the scope of Hicks<\/a>. United States v. Ewing<\/a>, 638 F.3d 1226 (9th Cir. 2011):<\/p>\n

Despite its unusual factual circumstances, Hicks<\/a> does not state a particularly novel principle of law. The proposition that the justification for a search defines its permissible scope is well established. For example, if a law enforcement officer has probable cause to search a vehicle, that probable cause extends to all contents in the vehicle that could be connected to the suspected criminal activity. See Wyoming v. Houghton<\/a>, 526 U.S. 295, 302, 119 S. Ct. 1297, 143 L. Ed. 2d 408 (1999) (\u201cWhen there is probable cause to search for contraband in a car, it is reasonable for police officers … to examine packages and containers without a showing of individualized probable cause for each one.\u201d); United States v. Ross<\/a>, 456 U.S. 798, 825, 102 S. Ct. 2157, 72 L. Ed. 2d 572 (1982) (\u201cIf probable cause justifies the search of a lawfully stopped vehicle, it justifies the search of every part of the vehicle and its contents that may conceal the object of the search.\u201d).<\/p>\n

Hicks<\/a> holds that a law enforcement officer may examine an item unrelated to the initial object of a search if the item is in plain view and if the officer has probable cause to believe that the item is connected to criminal activity. 480 U.S. at 326. The case does not set forth a rule that police officers must justify, on a molecular level, the manner in which they examine every object within the scope of a valid search. Therefore, the central question facing us is not whether unfolding the bills produced a new invasion of Mr. Ewing\u2019s privacy interest but, instead, whether the justification for the search of the car extended to the bills.<\/p>\n

The Fourth Amendment requires, as a general matter, that police procure a warrant before searching or seizing property. Arizona v. Gant<\/a>, __ U.S. ___, 129 S. Ct. 1710, 1716, 173 L. Ed. 2d 485 (2009). \u201cUnder the automobile exception to the warrant requirement,\u201d however, \u201cpolice may conduct a warrantless search of a vehicle if there is probable cause to believe that the vehicle contains evidence of a crime,\u201d Brooks, 610 F.3d at 1193, and \u201cthe vehicle is readily mobile,\u201d Davis, 530 F.3d at 1084 (internal quotation marks omitted). An officer has probable cause \u201cwhen, under the totality of the circumstances, there is a fair probability that contraband or evidence of a crime will be found in a particular place.\u201d Id. (internal quotation marks omitted).<\/p>\n

We agree with the district court that the circumstances presented a fair probability that the money was involved in drug trafficking and that a search of Vera\u2019s car would have revealed evidence of a crime. … <\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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