What is the name of your state?The following events occurred in Maryland.
My former roommate accidently left his back door wide open when he and a friend went out for a drink. His back door faces a small yard surrounded by houses on all sides, with a narrow alley providing street access. When he arrived home, he realized his stupid mistake and closed and locked his door.
Several days later, two officers knocked on his door and wanted to come inside and ask some questions. They claimed they were responding to a 'domestic' call. Since he lives alone and no one else had been with him recently, he was puzzled by this. The officers glanced around, took down all of his information and began to leave. On their way out, one nonchalantly asked R if he had heard of any break-ins in the area. R replied that he hadn't, and the officers left.
The following day, R received a telephone call from one of the officers, who asked him to come to the station for some questions regarding an investigation. R responded to the call and met the officer. He was read his Miranda rights and the officer asked if he had any idea why he was called in. R honestly didn't, and told him so. The officer told the following story.
He and his partner were following a man down an alley and lost him when the alley ended in a yard. They noticed an opened door, and proceeded to investigate, ostensibly making sure that the residence hadn't been broken into. Upon entering, they found no signs of foul play, but did find a small bag of marijuana and a piece of paraphenalia in plain view on a table. They took these with them and left.
The officer then grilled R on illegal activity in the area. R did not possess any pertinent information and told him so. The officer wanted to know where the marijuana came from. R replied that he had no idea what the officer was talking about. The officer kept pressing for that info, saying that R could be arrested, but he'd see what he could do if R could help him out. The officer claimed he wanted the bigger fish and that he was not worried about the small amount that had been found in R's apartment. R replied that he was on probation for a DUI and was doing whatever necessary to keep himself out of trouble. He told the officer that if he could provide any help, he would, but that he did not have any information for the officer. The officer said the items found would be fingerprinted, and if R's prints were present, then he would have proof of possession. The officer claimed he had 1 year and 1 day to make the arrest, if he was so inclined. R repeated himself about not being able to help and left after the questioning.
Some additional facts that may have bearing:
-R is on unsupervised probation for a DUI. He received probation before judgement in that case.
-The table in question is in no way visible from the back doorway. Anyone outside would not be able to see anything on the table.
-If the police did enter R's apartment, they left the back door open and unlocked, just as they found it.
-The officer claimed he and his partner had the express right to enter the building because the door was open. He compared it to entering a place of business with an open door.
Some questions I have:
1) If this made it to court, would this be considered a legal search & seizure?
2) If this search was illegal, does R currently have any recourse, or must he wait until charges are filed?
3) What is the likelihood of the police actually dusting the items for fingerprints? I've been led to believe that minimum time and resources are expended for such a minor find.
4) If fingerprints are identified, is it possible that a warrant could be issued? If fingerprints other than R's are identified and matches found, could warrants be issued for other people and/or their residences?
5) Are the police permitted to lie about the circumstances in which they allegedly found these items? They obviously lied about the 'domestic' call they claimed they were responding to. I'm sure they are allowed to do that, but I am doubtful of the veracity of the situation as a whole. How exactly did they lose somebody that went down a short alley into a small yard?
6) Do any of you frequent other boards similar to this one that I could post this on? I am trying to gather the most possible information in a short amount of time and any links provided would be most helpful.
I appreciate any informed responses and thank you for taking the time to read this. If I missed any important information, please say so and I shall provide what I can.
My former roommate accidently left his back door wide open when he and a friend went out for a drink. His back door faces a small yard surrounded by houses on all sides, with a narrow alley providing street access. When he arrived home, he realized his stupid mistake and closed and locked his door.
Several days later, two officers knocked on his door and wanted to come inside and ask some questions. They claimed they were responding to a 'domestic' call. Since he lives alone and no one else had been with him recently, he was puzzled by this. The officers glanced around, took down all of his information and began to leave. On their way out, one nonchalantly asked R if he had heard of any break-ins in the area. R replied that he hadn't, and the officers left.
The following day, R received a telephone call from one of the officers, who asked him to come to the station for some questions regarding an investigation. R responded to the call and met the officer. He was read his Miranda rights and the officer asked if he had any idea why he was called in. R honestly didn't, and told him so. The officer told the following story.
He and his partner were following a man down an alley and lost him when the alley ended in a yard. They noticed an opened door, and proceeded to investigate, ostensibly making sure that the residence hadn't been broken into. Upon entering, they found no signs of foul play, but did find a small bag of marijuana and a piece of paraphenalia in plain view on a table. They took these with them and left.
The officer then grilled R on illegal activity in the area. R did not possess any pertinent information and told him so. The officer wanted to know where the marijuana came from. R replied that he had no idea what the officer was talking about. The officer kept pressing for that info, saying that R could be arrested, but he'd see what he could do if R could help him out. The officer claimed he wanted the bigger fish and that he was not worried about the small amount that had been found in R's apartment. R replied that he was on probation for a DUI and was doing whatever necessary to keep himself out of trouble. He told the officer that if he could provide any help, he would, but that he did not have any information for the officer. The officer said the items found would be fingerprinted, and if R's prints were present, then he would have proof of possession. The officer claimed he had 1 year and 1 day to make the arrest, if he was so inclined. R repeated himself about not being able to help and left after the questioning.
Some additional facts that may have bearing:
-R is on unsupervised probation for a DUI. He received probation before judgement in that case.
-The table in question is in no way visible from the back doorway. Anyone outside would not be able to see anything on the table.
-If the police did enter R's apartment, they left the back door open and unlocked, just as they found it.
-The officer claimed he and his partner had the express right to enter the building because the door was open. He compared it to entering a place of business with an open door.
Some questions I have:
1) If this made it to court, would this be considered a legal search & seizure?
2) If this search was illegal, does R currently have any recourse, or must he wait until charges are filed?
3) What is the likelihood of the police actually dusting the items for fingerprints? I've been led to believe that minimum time and resources are expended for such a minor find.
4) If fingerprints are identified, is it possible that a warrant could be issued? If fingerprints other than R's are identified and matches found, could warrants be issued for other people and/or their residences?
5) Are the police permitted to lie about the circumstances in which they allegedly found these items? They obviously lied about the 'domestic' call they claimed they were responding to. I'm sure they are allowed to do that, but I am doubtful of the veracity of the situation as a whole. How exactly did they lose somebody that went down a short alley into a small yard?
6) Do any of you frequent other boards similar to this one that I could post this on? I am trying to gather the most possible information in a short amount of time and any links provided would be most helpful.
I appreciate any informed responses and thank you for taking the time to read this. If I missed any important information, please say so and I shall provide what I can.
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