Texas-Book-Gun Law Armed And Educated - Flipbook - Page 48
person to be arrested, the crime alleged, and the name of the victim,
if any. A search warrant’s requirements are a little more complicated.
To cover all bases, a search warrant generally includes three separate
descriptions of the location—the street address, visual characteristics
of the land or building, and descriptors from the county property
records. More often than not, police officers will attach a photo of
the location to the search warrant. The warrant must also describe the
items the police want to seize and what they believe will be found
in the location. Once probable cause is established and the warrant is
signed, it may be executed by a police officer.
C. How is a warrant executed?
1. General rule—police must “knock and announce”
It is generally required that the government “knock and announce”
their presence before entering a premises to execute a warrant.
However, there is an exception to this requirement, and this exception
swallows the rule. If the police can state reasonable suspicion to
believe that if they knocked or announced before entering it would
be “dangerous, futile, or would frustrate the search’s purpose,”
then they may disregard the knock and announce requirement. The
police can ask in advance that the warrant dispense with the knock
and announce requirement, or they may claim the circumstances
surrounding the actual search justified dispensing with the knock
and announce requirement at the time the warrant was executed.
In practice, the potential for destruction of evidence and issues of
officer safety will almost always supersede the knock and announce
requirement. What does this mean? The police may possibly break
down your door without any warning to execute their warrant.
2. Is there a limit on destruction of your property?
It is a violation of the Fourth Amendment to cause unnecessary
Know Your Rights: Part II | 37
