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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Location
    Denver, Colorado, United States
    Posts
    7

    Default When Can a Hotel Room be Searched by the Police

    My question involves criminal law for the state of: A person on the run for failure to appear to sentencing, 7 years prior for drug possession, is in a hotel room paid for by him, but in a friend’s name, basically the friend checked in. Upon their 6 day stay, the duo happen to catch a hotel chair inside their room on fire, it was extinguished and did not detonate a fire alarm, sprinkler system, and the fire department was not alerted. The hotel was unaware of the incident until the maid service entered the room the following day and noticed the burnt mark on the chair, they paid $100 fee for the damage to the chair. Later that evening the two ordered another room, moved their belongings to the new room and switched the chair out.

    The following evening, nearly 20 hours later, the two left for a local retail store, but Josh forgot his cell phone. Josh is the one with the FOJ drug charge went back to the room to obtain his phone. While looking for his mobile device the door opened surprising him and a man identified himself as police and said josh’s name, and arrested him for FOJ. The room was completely packed up, no bags open, there were locked two safes inside a rolling trunk which was also. They completely packed the room to move or go home.

    The police took his phone and texted contacts trying to lure them to the hotel. Josh was taken to jail for processing. Meanwhile Dan shows up, and got off the elevator on the 5th floor. Keep in mind this is a very large hotel with 60-70 rooms per floor. Upon stepping out of the elevator he was immediately detained and taken to the police outside of Josh’s hotel room door. His “consented” search leads to the discovery of a gun, to which he was arrested for possession of a concealed fire arm without a permit.

    The discovery states, that when Dan stepped out of the elevator and saw police and firemen, he yelled loudly, “where is Josh?”. Then the document states he consented to a search. HE never consented to a search, nor yelled where is josh, but a Discovery is considered fact and truthful.

    When Josh was taken out of the hotel there were two unmarked police vehicles parked in parking spots, and he was taken to jail in one of those unmarked cars. When Dan arrived parked in the back did not see the vehicles, but when he was leaving as Lisa was arriving many emergency vehicles including police, fire trucks, and ambulances, were parked outside the entrance with no flashing emergency lights. They were just there parked.

    Lisa takes the elevator to 5th floor, and hears voices and commotion, so she immediately hits the elevator down button. As she waits for the elevator to return to the floor, a fireman walks up and waits with her. She asks innocently, “What’s going on? Is everyone or everything ok?” Fireman responds with, “Yeah, just two TWEEKERS were trying to burn down the place with a butane torch”. The chair fire, or scalding, happened 20 hours or the day before and the damages had already been compensated for by Josh and JP, which leads me to believe they were trying to establish “exigent circumstances” to cover their rear ends for entering an occupied hotel room without a warrant, but still trying and create charges for Dan and Josh.

    Josh was taken to FOJ County, sentenced, served 4 of his 36 months and was then taken back to the county of the hotel incident. His inmate search page shows the following.
    Arrested for: 18-18-403.5(1),(2)(A) POSSESSION OF A CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE (seven years prior and the FOJ?)
    Bond Amount: $0.00 Bond Type: SENTENCED
    Held For Agency: FOJ COUNTY SO

    Arrested for: 16-19-103 FOJ WANTED BY OTHER AGENCY FELONY
    Next Scheduled Court Date: 10/2/2014 9:30:00AM
    Bond Amount: $50,000.00 Bond Type: CASH/SURETY
    Held For Agency: hotel COUNTY COURTS

    What does this mean?

    Dan, the one that got off of elevator and search, is this even legal? He could have been going to any room on that floor, and let’s say he did say, “where is Josh?”, it’s possible, that another Josh could have been a guest on that floor or hotel as well. And my question isn’t should they be in trouble, my question is, we have rights for a reason, to make our country the land of the free, without upholding our constitutional rights, we are no better than a communist country that imprisons indefinitely by fabrication. Were the rights of Josh or Dan infringed and do they possibly have a chance of having the cases thrown out and / or a multi-million dollar lawsuit against a large hotel chain for privacy violation of a paying guest.

    The friend or JP whose name was on the room, was allowed to leave, and he has not been charged with anything to date.

    Both people are good people and are serving plenty of time for other things. Do they have any chance at seeing their 20's-30's?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Massachusetts
    Posts
    24,521

    Default Re: No Warrant Occupied Hotel Room Search Rights

    Please tell me what law you believe exists that prohibits the hotel from complying with a police request, or, for that matter, provides a hotel guest with guaranteed "privacy rights".

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Location
    OH10
    Posts
    17,019

    Default Re: No Warrant Occupied Hotel Room Search Rights

    The hotel can authorize a premises search based on the activities. Seriously, they are good people who just happen to go to jail once in a while?

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Location
    Denver, Colorado, United States
    Posts
    7

    Default Re: No Warrant Occupied Hotel Room Search Rights

    Quote Quoting Disagreeable
    View Post
    The hotel can authorize a premises search based on the activities. Seriously, they are good people who just happen to go to jail once in a while?


    "Right of Privacy in Hotel Room Lawyers
    Can a Hotel Employee Enter My Room without My Permission?
    Generally, if you are using your hotel room in an ordinary way, then you have a limited right of privacy in the room. However, if the hotel believes that you are engaging in illegal acts, then hotel management has the right to enter and search your room without your permission. Under no circumstances can the hotel authorize the police to conduct a search of your room without your consent or without a proper search warrant."

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Massachusetts
    Posts
    24,521

    Default Re: No Warrant Occupied Hotel Room Search Rights

    Before we go any further with this, who are you in this scenario?

    Yes, it matters.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Posts
    38,867

    Default Re: No Warrant Occupied Hotel Room Search Rights

    Quote Quoting Disagreeable
    View Post
    The hotel can authorize a premises search based on the activities. Seriously, they are good people who just happen to go to jail once in a while?
    based on what activities? The chair issue that took place in a different room a day earlier?

    I think not.

    the big problem is;

    the guy was a wanted felon. I would have to research it but off the top of my head, they don't need a warrant to enter to arrest the felon if they believe he is in the room.

    augamini2

    the state may make a difference. You did not provide a state like you were asked.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Location
    Denver, Colorado, United States
    Posts
    7

    Default Re: No Warrant Occupied Hotel Room Search Rights

    Quote Quoting cbg
    View Post
    Before we go any further with this, who are you in this scenario?

    Yes, it matters.
    I am none of these people. I am an outside friend, who just wants them to not get totally nailed to the wall. Colorado has a thirst for felonies for some reason. I am interest in the way things work in the legal world, and sadly Ive been completely floored by how lady justice wears her blind scarf, but I believe horse blinders would be more realistic in todays legal world. How does over crowding the jails with petty crimes benefit:
    1. the cop who has more work to do now, court, paper work ect? unless he is given a monetary incentive to work harder and arrest more people.

    2: The Judicial branch, unless they own the halfway houses and probation companies, because here in Colorado, you never can get out of the system for some reason.

    3. Society. How can putting decent people in a cage with some real bad people benefit anyone?

    4. Private Prisons, well, we know how they benefit, they have the state rent the facility that the tax payers already paid for, to the state for about its construction cost for one years rent, then charge per warm body. The cost for each person is more than putting each prisoner up a the Ritz Carlton or Four Seasons Denver about $400 a day, with two room service meals of Steak an lobster. Maybe then the inmates might like to stay if they had marble shows and 1000 thread egyptian cotton sheets. They are fed food that most Americans would not even bare to look at, and live in concrete cells, why some jerk makes off with millions of tax paying dollars a year, all because his brother was a senator or city councilman. Inmate families are to pay fees to give thier loved ones money, outlandish phone call prices, video visits at $13 a pop and commensary items that state on the label, not for individal retail sale. WOW, breaking the law right in front of those who are paying for their crimes. What a slap in the face..

    Ive never been to jail, I'm law abiding, tax paying, normal person. But I think its time Normal people, help take our country back. These two goof balls getting arrest has opened my eyes to a side of society and government that makes me EMBARRASSED to be an AMERICAN, claiming to be free. Our rights are there for a reason, and just because some people think these two men "ought" to be in jail, does mean they should be in Jail if a safety net in our constitution, that helps keep this nation great, stops the process because procedure was not followed correctly, then thats our system at work. The police should have done more to prove these two mens guilt, instead of friends trying to disprove their charges with technicalities.

    but in a nutshell.. thats how I fit in.

    - - - Updated - - -

    Quote Quoting jk
    View Post
    based on what activities? The chair issue that took place in a different room a day earlier?

    I think not.

    the big problem is;

    the guy was a wanted felon. I would have to research it but off the top of my head, they don't need a warrant to enter to arrest the felon if they believe he is in the room.

    augamini2

    the state may make a difference. You did not provide a state like you were asked.
    my bad, COLORADO. is my state. Denver, Colorado.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Massachusetts
    Posts
    24,521

    Default Re: No Warrant Occupied Hotel Room Search Rights

    Yes or no question.

    Were you, or were you not, present to witness these activities? Did you personally see what happened at the hotel?

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Location
    Denver, Colorado, United States
    Posts
    7

    Default Re: No Warrant Occupied Hotel Room Search Rights

    No, i read the discovery and talked to lisa and dan.

    Quote Quoting cbg
    View Post
    Yes or no question.

    Were you, or were you not, present to witness these activities? Did you personally see what happened at the hotel?
    No. Read discovery and spoke to lisa and dan.. For josh.. Why would he be sent back to hotel county of foj was for his 2006 failure to appear drug charge.. Which he is now sentenced for 3 years.. Which was done after the hotel incident

    Im trying to decide if its worth paying for thier lawyer.. If its a losing battle.. Id rather buy a boat.. Not being rude to my friends but.. I dont want to just toss a large amount of money.

    2006 he was 18 and had been on his own since 13 . Josh dropped out of the 8th grade. He is one of the smartest.. Well read.. Traveled people i know. You would think he was a product of harvard. An 18 year old mind set of a homeless prodigy who survived on his own since the age of 13 and a 26 man trying to put his life together are two very different people. Not everyone lives the family portrait life.. But does that make thier way of life wrong?

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Massachusetts
    Posts
    24,521

    Default Re: No Warrant Occupied Hotel Room Search Rights

    Since you were not there, you do not know what actually happened. You don't know how much of your friends' descriptions were self-serving.

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