If you say no they cannot look through your bags or car, then they dont need a warrent, because they believe you are hiding something, and it could be drugs, which is enough for them to search your person on vehicle, so its easier to say yeah sure

An officer may search you to ensure his personal safety even if you say no. An officer may search the common areas of a car if he has reasonable cause to think that you may access a weapon from it or that you may destroy evidence of a crime. He may also search the car if he looks in and sees evidence of a crime, such as a kilo of blonde hash on the backseat. To forestall a search of the car based on personal safety grounds, lock the car when you are told to step out of the vehicle, place the keys on the roof, tell the officer that you do not consent to a search of your vehicle and that you will not personally unlock the vehicle. Then start singing 9999 Bottles of Beer on the Wall to yourself as the officer will get pissed off, call for a warrant to be issued on some pretense, and summon a wrecker to take your car to an impound lot where it will be dissected down to component atoms before being released to you.

If the officer feels they have justifiable cause, you've been swerving, or driving in some manner that makes them wonder if you are drunk or stoned, or if they call in your plate and find out you have priors, warrants, or some other criminal association, THAT gives them Justifiable Cause and they can search away...and lead you to their squad for holding while they decide if they are going to take you "downtown." Also, if you are speaking in a way that leads them to believe you may become "A Problem" while they do the search...they may elect to have you sit in their car while they search. Cops are just people too...most are good people, some are royal pricks!

If you refuse, the only legal way an officer can proceed with the search is if he/she has probable cause to believe that a crime has been, is being, or will be committed.

As the yrs go by,that thing that they used to call police entrapment,is now a figment in our imagination.They don't need a reason to pull you over or to search you.The last time i got pulled over and i asked the cop why did you pull me over and she said.I just wanted to see how your day was going.I got searched,my car got searched and it didn't bother me.It's just part of the game these day's.I didn't do or have anything illegal.That's all they wanted to know.

It depends on the circumstances. If you're in a car and you're pulled over for speeding (or another traffic infringement), the following can happen; let's assume that any search that he wants to do is looking for drugs: Officer has no probable cause of anything other than speeding, you decline his request to search: you can get a citation and he can't search You consent to search: cop can search everything that your consent extends to You are arrested for a crime, cop has no probable cause of drugs: cop can search your person and the entirety of the interior of your car, including closed containers. can't search the trunk though. Car is impounded: entire car, including containers, can be searched Cop suspects that you are armed and dangerous: cop can do a pat-down of your clothing as a search for weapons. If something suspicious is found, it gives him probable cause for a full search of your person. This is called the "plain feel" doctrine. Cop has probable cause that you have drugs in the car: cop can search the entire car, including closed containers, and including the trunk If you're walking down the street, much of the same analysis applies: No probable cause or reasonably articulable suspicion of drugs or weapons: cop can ask you questions and that's it. Reasonable articulable suspicion that you have a weapon: pat-down and plain feel doctrine probable cause that you are doing something illegal: arrest and full search incident to a lawful arrest consent: full search