You were expecting that the police officer who pulled you over would have some questions, but you didn’t expect that one of them was whether they could search your vehicle or not.
When a police officer catches someone off guard with a request to search, many people default to agreeing. They think that by cooperating, they can finish things up quickly and move on with their day.
What they don’t realize is that the police officer could find things they don’t even realize are in their vehicle and charge them with a crime as a result.
The police could hold you accountable for anything in your vehicle
Unless you are a fastidious cleaner or have had your vehicle interior professionally detailed, there could be items in it from when your children borrowed it last summer or when you used to carpool with your coworkers several years ago. There could even be items left behind by the previous owner.
If someone else dropped or hid something in your vehicle that is illegal, the police could charge you with a crime. Whether they find paraphernalia previously used to consume drugs or prescription pills that you don’t have the right to possess, they could charge you with a crime.
Using a claim of constructive possession, they can try to convince the courts that you knew the item was in your car and had control over it. If the courts agree with that claim, you could find yourself convicted and facing very serious penalties.
Refusing a search when an officer has neither a warrant nor probable cause could help you avoid facing drug charges over something you didn’t know was in your vehicle.
