Texas-Book-Gun Law Armed And Educated - Flipbook - Page 60
warrantless searches that they have in their homes. As a result,
there are very few circumstances in which the police have to seek a
warrant to search a vehicle.
A. The probable cause search
This is the farthest reaching exception to searching without a
warrant. In order to legally search a vehicle, a police officer only
has to articulate probable cause that a crime has been, will be, or
is being committed. See detailed discussion of probable cause,
Chapter 2. Once this occurs, an officer can search anywhere in
the vehicle that could contain evidence of that crime without the
requirement of obtaining a warrant.
It is a common misconception that a police officer cannot search
containers, bags, or other self-contained personal items present in
a vehicle. Unfortunately, this is most often not the case. A police
officer may search any part of the vehicle, including the glove box
or trunk, which could contain evidence of the crime for which they
developed probable cause.
For example, if an officer smells the odor of marijuana in a
vehicle, he may search anywhere in the vehicle that could
contain marijuana. Since marijuana could be stored in a very
small space, there will be virtually no restrictions on where the
officer may look. By contrast, if the officer has probable cause
to believe you are a felon in possession of an AR-15, he will
not be able to look in your glove box, center console, or small
locked briefcase, as an AR-15 could not reasonably be stored in
any of these locations.
What about the wheel well and body panel of the vehicle? An
Know Your Rights: Part III | 49
