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automobile exception

The "automobile exception" is an exception to the general requirement of a warrant  for searches and seizures  under the Fourth Amendment .  Under the exception, a vehicle may be searched without a warrant when evidence or contraband  may possibly be removed from the scene due to the mobility of a vehicle such that it is not practical to secure a warrant without jeopardizing the potential evidence.

For instance, the automobile exception allows an officer to make a warrantless  traffic stop  and search  a truck of a vehicle when gun parts are observed in plain view  on the front seat of the vehicle. 

Notably, the automobile exception applies to all types of automobiles and the vehicle does not need to be in operation for the exception to apply. The automobile exception has been found to apply to parked motor homes; for example, in the case of California v. Carney, 471 U.S. 386 (1985) .

Nonetheless, while the automobile exception grants a police officer the right to search a vehicle, that right is not absolute. The Supreme Court held that a lock box or other container within a vehicle cannot be searched without a warrant unless there exists separate probable cause to believe contraband is hidden within them. 

[Last reviewed in June of 2022 by the Wex Definitions Team
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