Tag: warrantless search

GRL Law Wins Landmark Search and Seizure Case Before Iowa Supreme Court

In State v. Wright, the Iowa Supreme Court recently banned warrantless searches of curbside trash.  This landmark ruling puts an end to an investigative technique used by police for decades.   The issues before the Iowa Supreme Court were matters of first impression.  The drug defense attorneys at GRL Law are the first to ever raise the issue of trespass onto a constitutionally-protected “effect” in Iowa. We are also the first to persuade an Iowa appellate court to find an expectation of privacy in uncollected garbage. Prior to Wright, police wantonly searched household garbage set out for collection.  This was often […]

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Murphy Presents on Search and Seizure to Floyd County Criminal Law Seminar

On May 14, 2021 Colin Murphy presented at the Floyd County Spring Criminal Law Seminar in Charles City. The presentation focused on developments in Fourth Amendment jurisprudence.  In particular, Colin demonstrated how defense attorneys can apply trespass principles to prevail in seemingly unwinnable search and seizure cases.     GRL Law takes great pride in helping to educate both the bench and bar on emerging legal issues.  We think outside the box to deliver uncommon results.

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Drug Charge Dismissed Following Successful Constructive Possession Defense

Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa.  A traffic stop on I-35 led to the discovery of marijuana in a car trunk.  The trooper cited the driver for speeding, but charged the passenger with possession of marijuana. The drug defense attorneys at GRL Law have written before on the constructive possession defense.  This case presented yet another opportunity to raise it now on the passenger’s behalf. Because the trooper did not discover the marijuana in our client’s actual possession, the state needed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that she constructively possessed it.  That requires evidence that the passenger not only knew […]

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Challenging Vehicle Inventory Searches

The drug defense attorneys at GRL Law are known for aggressively challenging searches by police, particularly those arising from vehicle inventories.  Those searches occur after police impound a car following a traffic stop.  Before towing, police will inventory the contents to protect primarily against claims of lost or stolen property.  Police often locate drugs and paraphernalia during the course of the inventory and bring additional charges against the occupants. It should come as no surprise that police often abuse their authority to initiate inventory searches as a means to poke around the car without a warrant when they have no […]

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Can Police Frisk Me for Drugs?

The drug defense attorneys at GRL Law have seen their fair share of possession cases arising from police frisks. It usually goes down like this.  Following a traffic stop for a minor traffic violation, the officer orders the driver to come back to the patrol car to process a citation. Pro tip: You are seized by the officer and legally obligated to follow this instruction.  Don’t resist, or worse, assert your rights as a sovereign citizen.  You will be definitely arrested for interference and subjected to a full search of your person, clothing and accessories like a wallet, purse or […]

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The Constructive Possession Defense for Marijuana

The drug defense attorneys at GRL Law have seen it all when it comes to traffic stops involving cannabis.  This is especially true when police charge a driver with possession for weed located under a passenger’s seat.    Is there a defense for the driver? Absolutely! Because this marijuana is not actually found on the driver, the State must establish he constructively possessed it by proving he: Exercised dominion and control over it; Knew of its presence; and Knew it was a controlled substance. A driver’s close physical proximity to contraband is insufficient to constitute dominion and control.  The same […]

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Knowledge of Drug Residue Can Be Inferred from Evidence

In State v. Hummell, No. 19-1691 (Nov. 30, 2020), the Iowa Court of Appeals reminds the criminal defense bar that a defendant’s knowledge of contraband can be inferred from evidence. The facts are pretty straightforward.  Police seized a broken glass vial with a white powdery substance from Hummell’s pocket following his arrest.  Hummell claimed that he regularly picked up random items from the ground and pocketed them.  The residue later tested positive for methamphetamine. In order to support a conviction for possession of a controlled substance, the State is required to prove two elements beyond a reasonable doubt: That the […]

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Class D Felony Marijuana Charge Dismissed WIN

New Hampton, Chickasaw County, Iowa.  A traffic stop for speeding by an out-of-state driver on Interstate 35 led to a warrantless probable cause search of the vehicle based on the odor of marijuana.  Deputies located significant quantities of marijuana flower in a glass jar in the passenger compartment and charged our client with both felony and misdemeanor possession under Iowa Code section 124.401.  The class D felony charge was punishable by an indeterminate term of prison of up to 5 years and a fine of $7,500. Both the stop and the search were legal under Iowa law.  However, as a […]

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Applying the Trespass Doctrine to K9 Sniffs in Marijuana Traffic Stops

In United States v. Jones, 565 U.S. 400 (2012), the Supreme Court announced that any physical intrusion onto a personal “effect,” such as a vehicle parked on a public street, was a search under the Fourth Amendment when done for the purposes of gathering information. Most attorneys and judges understand Jones to be the “GPS monitoring” case because the F.B.I. joint task force affixed a tracking device to a vehicle driven by a suspected drug trafficker.  The attorneys at GRL Law know, however, that the reach of Jones and its progeny extend far beyond its facts.  We believe it has […]

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