Page 152 - North Carolina 2020 Legal Guide

Task: Motor Vehicle Search Incident to Arrest

New York v. Belton, 453 U.S. 454 (1981).

Upon making a lawful arrest of a person who is in a vehicle, an

officer may search the passenger compartment of the vehicle

including all containers, subject to the following limitations.

• The search must take place at the time of the arrest.

• The arrest itself must be lawful.

• While containers may be searched, other passengers present who

have not been arrested cannot be searched. See, U.S. v. Di Re, 332

U.S. 581 (1948).

• Notwithstanding the rule from Di Re, officers may search packages

belonging to passengers who are not the subject of the arrest.

Wyoming v. Houghton, 526 U.S. 295 (1999).

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