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COLORADO
v. BERTINE
479 U.S. 367 (1987)
Author: Peter A. Burchett
FACTS: D was arrested for DUI,
his van was towed to an impound lot, and an officer took
inventory of the items in the van. The officer opened a
closed backpack and found controlled substances, cocaine
paraphernalia, and a large amount of cash. He was charged
with intent to dispense, sell, deliver, and unlawful possession
of methaqualone.
PROCEDURE: Supreme Court of
Colorado affirmed a lower court’s ruling granting D’s
motion to suppress this evidence.
ISSUE: Are inventory searches
lacking a warrant based upon probably cause allowed as an
exception to the warrant requirement of the Fourth Amendment?
HOLDING: Yes. An inventory
search may be “reasonable” under the Fourth Amendment
even though it is not conducted pursuant to a warrant based upon
probable cause.
REASONING: By securing the
property, the police protect it from unauthorized interference.
Knowledge of the precise nature of the property helps guard
against claims of theft, vandalism, or negligence. Such
knowledge also helped to avert any danger to police or others
that may have been posed by the property.
RULE: Exceptions to the Warrant
Requirement – Inventory Searches:
Reasonable police regulations relating to
inventory procedures administered in good faith satisfy the
Fourth Amendment, even though courts might as a matter of
hindsight be able to devise equally reasonable rules requiring a
different procedure.
CONCURRING: It is permissible
for police officers to open closed containers in an inventory
search only if they are following standard police procedures that
that mandate the opening of such containers in every impounded
vehicle.
DISSENT: Where the vehicle
itself is not evidence of a crime, as in this case, the police
apparently have unbridled discretion as to which procedure to
use. The court overstates the justification exception to the 4th
amendment.
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