Opinion ID: 2220705
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Probable cause existed to search the trunk of Krebs' car under the automobile exception to the warrant requirement.

Text: One of the recognized exceptions to the Fourth Amendment's requirement of a search warrant is the automobile exception. We have discussed the exception in the following manner: Based on increased mobility and decreased privacy expectations in a vehicle, both the United States and the South Dakota Supreme Courts have held that: [W]hen a law enforcement officer stops a vehicle, and the officer has probable cause to believe the vehicle contains contraband, the vehicle may be searched without a warrant. The search may include the interior of the car, as well as the trunk. Under the vehicle exception, the Constitution permits a search to proceed without a warrant, but not without probable cause. Zachodni, 466 N.W.2d at 627 (citations omitted). We have described the probable cause required for a search as follows: Probable cause justifying a search is present where the facts found by the court or the magistrate would lead a reasonable and prudent person to believe its fairly probable that a crime had been committed and that evidence relevant to the crime would be uncovered by the search. Although the evidence supporting the probable cause determination must be more than a bare suspicion, it need not establish proof beyond a reasonable doubt or even proof by preponderance. Furthermore, each element of evidence need not be individually assessed for veracity and basis of knowledge. Rather, the probable cause determination is a function of the totality of relevant circumstances. Zachodni, 466 N.W.2d at 629 (citations omitted). Krebs did not consent to the search of the trunk. The trial court found the search of the trunk was based upon the pills and rolls of quarters found in the glove compartment, the pencil-marked map, the black quilted welder's cap which matched the description in the flyer and the fact that Krebs and Davis left the residence a few minutes after Krebs told Wermers they would be staying for the night. The trial court determined the facts established probable cause. Once probable cause existed to search the vehicle, it extended to anywhere in the vehicle the objects of the search might reasonably be found. Zachodni, 466 N.W.2d at 631. While factual findings are reviewed by this court under the clearly erroneous standard, the question of whether the facts add up to probable cause is a question of law, fully reviewable de novo. Zachodni, 466 N.W.2d at 629-30. Confirmation of information contained in the flyer, combined with the evidence uncovered in the search of the interior of the car, provided far more than a bare suspicion that Krebs and Davis were involved in the burglaries. Clearly, the police had probable cause to search the trunk.