United States v. Ross
- Decided
- June 1, 1982
- Docket
- 80-2209
- Status
- Published
- Jurisdiction
- Federal
Cited 3,985 timesOverruled (verified)Overruled (verified) · Curry v. State
What later courts said
- holding that warrantless search can be accomplished with legitimate stop short of arrest if there is probable cause to believe contraband in vehicle — United States v. John J. Maguire, United States v. Thomas M. Kavanagh, United States v. Robert A. Hickey (1990)
- holding that stop of vehicle based on probable cause justifies search of every part of vehicle that may conceal object of search — Jackson v. State (1997)
- holding that stop of vehicle based on probable cause justifies search of every part of vehicle that may conceal object of search — Alvin Lee Jackson v. State of Mississippi (1991)
Each line is a later court’s own words about this case, not a summary. Read the opinion before relying on it.
How the opinion begins
Justice Stevens delivered the opinion of the Court.
In Carroll v. United States, 267 U. S. 132, the Court held that a warrantless search of an automobile stopped by police officers who had probable cause to believe the vehicle contained contraband was not unreasonable within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment. The Court in Carroll did not ex [*800] plicitly address the scope of the search that is permissible. In this case, we consider the extent to which police officers— who have legitimately stopped an automobile and who have probable cause to believe that contraband is concealed somewhere within it — may conduct a probing search of compartments and containers within the vehicle whose contents are not in plain view. We hold that they may conduct a search of the vehicle that is as thorough as a magistrate could authorize in a warrant “particularly describing the place to be searched.”[1]
I
Statutes cited
Cite this
United States v. Ross, 456 U.S. 798 (1982)Read the full opinion
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