Georgia High Court Considers Search Issue: When One Spouse says Police Search is OK & the Other Spouse says No
Friday, April 22, 2005 at 05:45PM
TheSpook
Scott Randolph didn't want police to
search his Americus, Ga., home after officers showed up to answer his
wife's domestic disturbance call. She had no such reservations. She not
only let them in, but led officers to evidence later used to charge
Randolph with drug possession. The Supreme Court said Monday it will
use the case to clarify when police can search homes. The high court
previously has said searches based on a cohabitant's consent are OK,
but it's not clear whether that applies when another resident is
present and objects. Lower courts are divided on the issue, with most
holding that consent from one person is sufficient. Randolph's wife
called police on July 6, 2001, to report a disturbance and asked them
to come to the house. The two had separated, but she had moved back in
two days earlier with Randolph's consent. When police arrived, she
complained that Randolph had taken away their son and had been using
cocaine. Randolph returned a few minutes later, telling police the
child was at a neighbor's home. Police then asked to search the house.
and he objected. His wife, however, consented and led police to the
couple's bedroom, where officers saw a straw with white powder. She
later withdrew her consent, but police obtained a search warrant based
on what the officers saw and seized evidence used to charge Randolph
with drug possession. A trial court upheld the searches, but a Georgia
appeals court, in a decision seconded by the state Supreme Court,
reversed that ruling. In siding with Randolph, the courts ruled police
must defer to an objecting occupant when two people have equal use and
control of the home. [more]
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