Search: Student Handout 2

							Law 12                              Policing and Arrest                          Ms. Ripley


Search: Student Handout 2.11 (guide)

A police officer may search a person, place or thing for evidence. Because a search is an
intrusion on a person’s body or property, the police must have a good reason for the
search. In certain circumstances the police may make a search without a warrant. In other
cases, they must have a warrant.

Search With a Warrant

Often the police must have a search warrant to search a place or thing. For example, in
most cases the police may not search a private residence without a warrant. A warrant is
a judge’s order permitting the search. The warrant allows the police to search a place or a
thing named in the warrant. The police officer who asks the judge for a search warrant
must have reason to believe that he or she can find evidence there.

There is a special provision for the police to get a warrant to force a person to give a cell
sample for DNA typing. The police must show that a serious offence has been committed,
that there were cell samples at the crime scene and that there are reasonable and
probable grounds to believe that the person committed the offence. The cell sample will
be a few hairs, a saliva swab or drops of blood from a prick in the person’s fingertip.

Search Without a Warrant

In certain situations the police may conduct a search without a warrant. For example, the
police may search a person when they make an arrest. The police also may search a
person they believe is carrying a dangerous weapon. Some laws give police power to
search a place or a thing without a search warrant under some circumstances.



(Public Legal Education Association of Saskatchewan. Reprinted with permission.)