Do I have a case? Illegal search?

Alright, I'll try to keep this brief. Please, knowledgeable opinions only.

Last week my girlfriend and I decided to take some LSD. I decided to take some lithium with the acid, hoping it would keep the racy/jittery feelings away. I was not aware that lithium can increase the effect acid by 2-3 times. Be forewarned... it has a drastic effect.

I ended up losing all touch with reality as the dose was way higher than anticipated. During my delusion, I started punching the ground and injuring myself. My gf, scared for my well being and unable to reason with me, called 911 and asked for an ambulance. She mentioned to the operator that I was under the influence of lsd.

Instead of an ambulance showing up, two cops arrived. They came down to our basement, where I was lying on the ground caught up in some wild hallucination. They needed the help of a third policeman to lay me face down and put cuffs on me. I ended up breaking my nose because they left me lying face down with cuffs on, not having any idea what was going on. Then, they radioed for an ambulance. I was shot full of sedatives and later taken away in an ambulance.

Upon questioning my gf, the cops discovered that she too was tripping. They handcuffed her and said that they had to send her to the hospital as well. Instead of sending us in the same ambulance, they call a second one for her.

While all of this was going on, an officer discovered an 8th of pot that we had lying on our table in the basement. The cops then started looking around and found a bong and other pieces in a separate room. This was all before we had been sent to the hospital.

As my gf was being loaded into the ambulance she said that some friends were coming by to check on us. The officer asked if we trusted these friends to lock up for us. She understood that to mean that the police would be leaving our premises. She said that our friends could lock up.

2-3 hours later and we are released from the hospital. We call a cab and make it home 15 minutes later thinking that the ordeal is over. But, we arrive home to 4-5 cops at our house. We walk up to our door and try to enter, and are told by several cops that we are not allowed to enter our home. Mind you its 40°F and i'm in a blood soaked t-shirt, jeans, and socks (no shoes). After a few minutes of me questioning them as to why I am not allowed into my home and getting quite upset, they agree to let us in.

However, they say that we can only sit at our coffee table and are not allowed to touch anything. I ask if we are under arrest and they say no. I ask if they have a search warrant, and they say not yet. Time as approx. 9:30. When I was barely conscious in the hospital room a cop came to my bed and asked me for consent to search my house. I replied "absolutely not". He said he was going to get a search warrant, I said "then get one". They did not even ask my fully coherent gf if they could search (her name is on the lease next to mine), but tried to take advantage of the guy who is just coming to consciouseness.

So, we are back at our house, being confined to our dining room table under watch from 1 of 6 cops roaming our house. I hear them going into a locked room in our basement and through other items. I know they went into this locked room because they mentioned finding mushroom grow equipment and jars of 'mushrooms' (really mycellium). The only room in the house that contained these items was a locked and separate room in our basement.

After 45 minutes of waiting and watching the cops laugh at us and go through our house, an officer finally shows up with the search warrant. The time on the warrant says 10:32pm, my gf called for the ambulance between 2-3pm. So, the police were in our house for 7-8 hours before getting a search warrant.

Once they had the search warrant the officers began collecting "evidence". I had a closet full of grow lights and equipment that had been used to grow marijuana legally in a previous state. The equipment was not in use and neatly boxed up in a closet... obviously not being used for any illegal activity. Yet, it was all confiscated.

So...now to my questions. If I get a lawyer do I have a chance of getting my case thrown out because the police stayed in my house despite me not giving consent to search, when both myself and my gf were at the hospital? I have neighbors who will witness to the fact that the police were in and out of the house the entire time we were not present. Also, do I have a case because they were searching my house prior to actually receiving a search warrant? Also, can I petition to get my grow equipment back since it was not being used for any illegal activity and there were no marijuana plants in my house?

Thanks for your help. Let me know if you need any more specifics. Money is tight so I do not want to spend the money on a lawyer unless it sounds like it will help. We both have clean records. Thanks again!

--Wingnutt

I'm not an attorney, but I think you should be able to get out of that, minus a charge for the pot possession.

I don't know what state your in but I know something about Calif law. The cops had a legal right to be there because of the call your GF made. Anything they observed while inside i.e. drugs, illegal items, etc can be seized. Since they were able to get a search warrant anything they found while waiting for the warrant would most likely be admissiable as evidence in court. However having grow lights is not illegal so as 420anoymous said the only thing illegal is the pot and maybe an under the influence charge. A infraction and a misdomenor charge.

Once they are in and have reasonable suspicion or smell it or see it they can search,this is why you should never let them in,talk on the doorstep,once you've let them in your screwed.
Your best bet is to try to maintain that the pot was hidden and that they must have initiated an illegal search to find it in the first place

Wow, what a story! I dont know what to say to help you but I wish you the best and hope everything works out in your favor. It doesnt seem like they can do that without consent or your presence!! Sometimes I think they pride themselves in being dicks. Did they really need to use such excessive force and break your nose?? Thats crap!

Don't know if it's the same out there as it is here but in the UK the police are like vampires, once you've let them in your house they can do whatever they want with no warrant(like they don't anyway!).

As the initial find was in plain sight I think you're pretty screwed.

Sorry but like others have said...once you let the cops into the house, anything in plain view is fair game and once they see something they then have probable cause for a warrant.

FYI for others who might not know and are assuming that the cops only showed up because the GF said the OP was on acid, the police always respond to ambulance calls now. They are almost always closer than an ambulance and can be the difference between life and death...then there is the "ok what happened here" aspect they want to check out. If you got to a hospital and talked to a doctor first then the cops can't ask him because it's privileged information so they use this to circumvent that.

Always a good idea if you're going to trip to have people there that are experienced who will agree to look after you for the duration of the trip. People who can talk you through it if things go bad. Guides we used to call them. I've done it for friends in the past. First rule to being a guide is NEVER TAKE SOMEONE HAVING A BAD TRIP TO THE HOSPITAL UNLESS IT'S LIFE OR DEATH! Take someone having a bad trip to the hospital and you'll REALLY see what freaking out is.

Your girl sold you out to the fuzz... that sucks.

Find a new one. lol

you said that they put you on the ground FACE DOWN? and because of this u broke u're nose? u may have an avenue to travel down there, because cops are taught to put you in the recovery position even if you were thrashing around, because of neglect u broke you nose, lean heavily on that

smartsoverambition said:

you said that they put you on the ground FACE DOWN? and because of this u broke u're nose? u may have an avenue to travel down there, because cops are taught to put you in the recovery position even if you were thrashing around, because of neglect u broke you nose, lean heavily on that

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that right there will help you out. you will be fine in the long run if you just get an attorney if you really wanna get the "exact" advice and answers.

Thanks everyone, turns out a friend of ours has a good attorney so we're gonna go that route. I'll try to push the broken nose issue, anything will help. Peace