CRIMINAL PROCEDURE: THE RIGHT AGAINST UNREASONABLE SEARCHES AND SEIZURES

              The right against unreasonable searches and seizures is secured by Section 2, Article III of the Constitution which states:

“SEC. 2. The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures of whatever nature and for any purpose shall be inviolable, and no search warrant or warrant of arrest shall issue except upon probable cause to be determined personally by the judge after examination under oath or affirmation of the complainant and the witnesses he may produce, and particularly describing the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized” (emphasis supplied).

From this constitutional provision, it can readily be gleaned that, as a general rule, the procurement of a warrant is required before a law enforcer can validly search or seize the person, house, papers, or effects of any individual.

To underscore the significance the law attaches to the fundamental right of an individual against unreasonable searches and seizures, the Constitution succinctly declares in Article III, Section 3(2) that "any evidence obtained in violation of this or the preceding section shall be inadmissible in evidence for any purpose in any proceeding."

The above proscription is not, however, absolute. The following are the well-recognized instances where searches and seizures are allowed even without a valid warrant:

1.    Warrantless search incidental to a lawful arrest:

2. [Seizure] of evidence in "plain view." The elements are: a) a prior valid intrusion based on the valid warrantless arrest in which the police are legally present in the pursuit of their official duties; b) the evidence was inadvertently discovered by the police who have the right to be where they are; c) the evidence must be immediately apparent; and d) "plain view" justified mere seizure of evidence without further search;

3. Search of a moving vehicle. Highly regulated by the government, the vehicle’s inherent mobility reduces expectation of privacy especially when its transit in public thoroughfares furnishes a highly reasonable suspicion amounting to probable cause that the occupant committed a criminal activity;

4. Consented warrantless search;

5. Customs search;

6. Stop and Frisk;

7. Exigent and emergency circumstances.

8. Search of vessels and aircraft; [and]

9. Inspection of buildings and other premises for the enforcement of fire, sanitary and building regulations.

In the exceptional instances where a warrant is not necessary to effect a valid search or seizure, what constitutes a reasonable or unreasonable search or seizure is purely a judicial question, determinable from the uniqueness of the circumstances involved, including the purpose of the search or seizure, the presence or absence of probable cause, the manner in which the search and seizure was made, the place or thing searched, and the character of the articles procured. (VALEROSO vs. COURT OF APPEALS, G.R. No. 164815, September 3, 2009, Third Division, Nachura, J.).