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Question Details: The Police came to my house looking for my brother and I told them, "No, he's never been here", which was the truth. They said, "We have a search warrant so will look for ourselves" and bowled in. They found some pot of mine. The Police summary states that they used the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 but they never invoked that Act at the door to gain entry. Is failing to do this a technicality allowing any evidence obtained during the search to be disregarded?
Filed under Criminal Law | 1250 View(s)
Community Law Wellington & Hutt Valley
No, the Police do not need to announce the Act they are using at the door before a search. The Search and Surveillance Act prescribes a number of matters that a warrant must contain and how the Police can exercise a warrant, however they do not need to invoke or state the act orally before using the warrant.
There may be other issues with the search or the warrant (for example whether there were appropriate grounds for search warrant to be issued). So make sure you explain the full circumstances to the duty lawyer if you end up going to court.
For further information on Police search powers, click on this link: www.communitylaw.org.nz
Answered 15 Feb 2013. The IMPORTANT NOTICE below is part of this answer.
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