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  1. #1
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    Sep 2010
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    Default Police and Property Rights

    My question involves police conduct in the State of: Idaho,
    What is the law on police patrolling (aka sneaking around my backyard) on private property with out probably cause? the other night I was walking around the back of my house only to find a police officer looking through my back window. When I confronted him he seemed uncomfortable and immediately left. Was he legally allowed to do be in my backyard with no reason?

    If a police officer is writing citations on my front lawn am I allowed to ask him what is going on? After all it is my property shouldn't I have the right to know what he is doing there and what the people he was writing citations to are doing?

    Thanks for any advice.

  2. #2
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    Aug 2007
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    Default Re: Police and Property Rights

    Quote Quoting edgi2600
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    My question involves police conduct in the State of: Idaho,
    What is the law on police patrolling (aka sneaking around my backyard) on private property with out probably cause? the other night I was walking around the back of my house only to find a police officer looking through my back window. When I confronted him he seemed uncomfortable and immediately left. Was he legally allowed to do be in my backyard with no reason?
    Looking through the window was a search under the 4th AM, so it depends on WHY he was doing it determines if it was an UNreasonable search?


    If he left abruptly after you confronted him, it does seem it may have been unjustified, yes?

    If a police officer is writing citations on my front lawn am I allowed to ask him what is going on? After all it is my property shouldn't I have the right to know what he is doing there and what the people he was writing citations to are doing?

    Although you may have a right to ask what is going on, as it is your property, the reason he is writing them, meaning what offense, is not a legal concern of yours.

    Unless thier was a good reason for him doing it on your property, say it bordered the road and he did it so they would not be endangered by traffic, etc. you can of course request he not do it anymore.

    They simply can't do it once you told them to not do it anymore without legal justification.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2010
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    Default Re: Police and Property Rights

    Anybody can be in your backyard. Its when you tell them to get off & they don't, then its an issue. So, just being on your property is not a big issue - if he is searching your house then that may be. To avoid further issues, write a notice of tresspass to you village clerk informing them that no employee of the village may go on your land, including police. Then if they come on your land again, you call 911 and order him arrested (or you can arrest them but I would advise against this due to civil liability).

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
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    Default Re: Police and Property Rights

    The officer should not be on your property without reason. However, you not being aware of his reason, doesn't mean that he didn't have one. With the officer leaving abruptly I think that either he didn't have a valid reason, or he did and didn't want to tell you.

    You can contact the PD and ask them. Depending upon the ethos prevailing there as to whether you get an acceptable response.

  5. #5
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    Default Re: Police and Property Rights

    There is also the strange concept of curtilage. If I understand it correctly, it goes something like this: if anyone can walk from the street/sidewalk to your front door, then the police can, too. They can then look through your front windows. They are not trespassing or being a peeping tom. If they see a pile of hand grenades inside your house, they can arrest you for that. While in your driveway, they can secretly attach a GPS to your vehicle and that's okay, too, according to the 9th Circuit as in US v. Juan Pineda-Moreno*. But if your property is fenced off from the sidewalk/road, then they can't enter. Does a "No Trespassing" sign accomplish the same protection? I don't know.

    But they shouldn't be around the sides or back close to the house without a search warrant, because that's your curtilage, which is a zone of privacy similar to the inside of your house. But they can peep into your garage, because that's not a home.

    There's also the doctrine of "open fields", which means they can search in areas away from your house - but presumably not inside any structure, even if it's not a dwelling, without a warrant.

    That all goes mainly to searches, but how does that all relate to trespass? Did that officer in the OP commit a trespass?

  6. #6
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    Default Re: Police and Property Rights

    Quote Quoting madmel
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    There is also the strange concept of curtilage. If I understand it correctly, it goes something like this: if anyone can walk from the street/sidewalk to your front door, then the police can, too. They can then look through your front windows. They are not trespassing or being a peeping tom. If they see a pile of hand grenades inside your house, they can arrest you for that.
    Peeping through a window is a search though. I have a case in my head but can't remember it. It dealt with if a person is an overnight guest, they have no expectation of privacy in what is seen through a window, but residents do?

    I'll try to remember it.

    If grenades were seen, that is basically an arsenal, and yes, exigency permits a home arrest without a warrant. That does mean the charge will stand if it is a defacto UNconstitutional search though.

    Edit:

    Here is the case, and the ovenight guest does have an expectation of privacy, I got it backed up.


    http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/97-1147.ZS.html

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