senttohospital
Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Utah
A little background first, not sure if it matters but I’ll include it for the sake of completeness. I have suffered from severe depression since early adolescence along with a smattering of other psychological issues, I am currently 28. Also, I have not been on medication because I have no insurance. A few months ago I moved to Utah to help my Dad out with his business, living in his house paying rent out of my pay. Things were going relatively well for me until I slipped back into depression and began drinking heavily.
A few weeks ago, while everyone was out of the house, I decided it would be a good idea to drink a liter of booze in about an hour. So, I get kind of crazy and start texting people about how I’m going to kill myself. My Dad comes home and finds me sprawled out on my bed being wasted. He asks me if I’m on drugs and I tell him no I just want to die. He then proceeds to call 911 and tell them of my extremely drunken, suicidal situation.
The cops show up and my Dad invites them inside, one of the officers comes up to my room. He asks my Dad if I’ve had anything else besides alcohol, my Dad says I told him no but he’s not sure. The cop points at my backpack on the other side of the room and asks if it’s mine. My Dad says yes and the cop starts to go through it. In the outside pocket he finds a jar with a few marijuana stems, some rolling papers, and two tiny roaches.
I then proceed to have a struggle with the officers down the stairs, out the front door and on to the lawn. We continue to tussle until one of them aims the tazzer at me and I calm down and let them cuff me, I may have been out of my mind but I’m not a sadist! They take me to the hospital, where upon arrival I fight with them again, and I was admitted to the psych ward. Apparently my blood alcohol was almost at the poisoning level. I’m kept there about a week, given therapy, medication, comunity resources and rest. I feel way better now as a person then before I went in and for that I’m thankful.
So, four days after getting out I get a letter to appear in the local Justice Court. The charges: Intoxication, Possession Marijuana (less than 1oz.) and Possession of Paraphernalia. I went to the summons today and was told I would have to pay a $1195 ($190 of that for the intoxication) fine and serve 6 months probation. I told the Judge I needed time to talk with an attorney and was given a new date in two weeks time. (For what it’s worth I tested negative for marijuana at the hospital.)
Here is my question: was the search of my personal property (my backpack in my room) legal? From what I’ve read:
I also considered that this might have been an “Exigent Circumstance” but:
So what do you experts think?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
A little background first, not sure if it matters but I’ll include it for the sake of completeness. I have suffered from severe depression since early adolescence along with a smattering of other psychological issues, I am currently 28. Also, I have not been on medication because I have no insurance. A few months ago I moved to Utah to help my Dad out with his business, living in his house paying rent out of my pay. Things were going relatively well for me until I slipped back into depression and began drinking heavily.
A few weeks ago, while everyone was out of the house, I decided it would be a good idea to drink a liter of booze in about an hour. So, I get kind of crazy and start texting people about how I’m going to kill myself. My Dad comes home and finds me sprawled out on my bed being wasted. He asks me if I’m on drugs and I tell him no I just want to die. He then proceeds to call 911 and tell them of my extremely drunken, suicidal situation.
The cops show up and my Dad invites them inside, one of the officers comes up to my room. He asks my Dad if I’ve had anything else besides alcohol, my Dad says I told him no but he’s not sure. The cop points at my backpack on the other side of the room and asks if it’s mine. My Dad says yes and the cop starts to go through it. In the outside pocket he finds a jar with a few marijuana stems, some rolling papers, and two tiny roaches.
I then proceed to have a struggle with the officers down the stairs, out the front door and on to the lawn. We continue to tussle until one of them aims the tazzer at me and I calm down and let them cuff me, I may have been out of my mind but I’m not a sadist! They take me to the hospital, where upon arrival I fight with them again, and I was admitted to the psych ward. Apparently my blood alcohol was almost at the poisoning level. I’m kept there about a week, given therapy, medication, comunity resources and rest. I feel way better now as a person then before I went in and for that I’m thankful.
So, four days after getting out I get a letter to appear in the local Justice Court. The charges: Intoxication, Possession Marijuana (less than 1oz.) and Possession of Paraphernalia. I went to the summons today and was told I would have to pay a $1195 ($190 of that for the intoxication) fine and serve 6 months probation. I told the Judge I needed time to talk with an attorney and was given a new date in two weeks time. (For what it’s worth I tested negative for marijuana at the hospital.)
Here is my question: was the search of my personal property (my backpack in my room) legal? From what I’ve read:
(I forget where I found that, correct me if it’s wrong.)Can my roommate or my landlord give the police permission to search my apartment?
If you and your roommate share common areas (such as the kitchen and living room), your roommate can authorize a search of those areas. But your roommate cannot give permission to search your separate bedroom.
I also considered that this might have been an “Exigent Circumstance” but:
And I think this situation hardly fits that criteria.United States v. McConney, 728 F.2d 1195, 1199 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 824 (1984):
"Those circumstances that would cause a reasonable person to believe that entry (or other relevant prompt action) was necessary to prevent physical harm to the officers or other persons, the destruction of relevant evidence, the escape of a suspect, or some other consequence improperly frustrating legitimate law enforcement efforts."
So what do you experts think?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?