§ 11.03 EXTERNAL SEARCHES OF THE BODY

• Jurisdiction: North Carolina

§ 11.03. External Searches of the Body

External searches of the body are sometimes permitted without a warrant due to exigent circumstances. The facts in Cupp v. Murphy,¹⁴ if not the express reasoning of the Court, provide a good example. In Cupp, the police had probable cause to arrest M for the strangulation murder of his wife. M voluntarily appeared at the police station for questioning, after which he was released. During the questioning, the officers observed a dark spot on M's finger, which they suspected was dried blood from the murder. When they asked for permission to take a small scraping for testing, M refused and rubbed his fingers together, and then put his hands in his pocket. The police heard a "metallic sound, such as keys or change rattling," which further suggested that M was destroying the evidence that connected him to the crime. Therefore, an officer forcibly took scrapings from underneath M's fingernails.

The Supreme Court approved the warrantless police action. Justice Potter Stewart's opinion for the Court concluded that in view of "the existence of probable cause, the very...