3.5.5 Search and Detention During the Execution of a Warrant

• Library: Criminal Procedure in Practice (ABA) (2018 Ed.)

3.5.5 Search and Detention during the Execution of a Warrant

When executing a search warrant for contraband, the police may detain those persons who are present on the premises while the search is conducted. This rule serves three basic policies: (1) it prevents flight, should incriminating evidence be found that supports the arrest of a person at the execution of the warrant; (2) it avoids harm to the officers resulting from desperate and violent efforts to destroy or conceal evidence; and (3) it facilitates the orderly completion of the search.¹...