PA high court alters police rules for warrantless vehicle searches
Mark Scolforo HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Police must have probable cause as well as “exigent circumstances” in order to legally search a vehicle without a warrant, a divided Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled Tuesday. The 4-3 decision said the state constitution’s privacy protections are greater than the U.S. Constitution’s and that those protections extend to vehicles. The court overruled its own 2014 decision that probable cause alone was sufficient, given that vehicles are inherently mobile. “Difficulties in clarifying the scope of the exigency requirement will lead to debates about ...