Q: A search warrent was issued for my house 7a.m. to 8 p.m. and a nighttime search outside these hours is necessary for nov
3rd they search at 3:00 a.m. of Nov 3rd. Was that a leagal search? It was not during hours they said on warrent
A:
As a criminal defense lawyer, when I have a client accused of a crime and that accusation is supported by purported evidence obtained by law enforcement officers executing a search warrant, if police failed to comply with what the Judge authorized then I would normally make a motion to suppress that evidence. If the Court grants my motion to suppress, the prosecuting attorney will not be able to use that evidence as part of his or her case.
Night searches are dangerous not only for sleepy residents reacting to a home invasion but also to the law enforcement officers invading a home at night.
I believe that it's likely a judge would grant a motion to suppress evidence obtained in a night-time execution of a day-time only search warrant, since that is the same as a search with no warrant at all. It's possible however, a prosecuting attorney might oppose such a motion and also hope to prevail. Rather than attempt to predict outcomes, my energy is expended upon working to make sure that my client's cause prevails.
A: No attorney can predict an outcome in your case. A motion could be made to suppress the evidence, which has the potential to make all evidence collected during the search inadmissible.
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