The Kentucky Supreme Court has limited how police can conduct "protective sweeps" of homes and vehicles, saying officers cannot trick or lie to suspects to gain access to areas where they don't have permission or a warrant to go.
The high court's unsigned ruling today came in a drug possession case in Lexington. The court found that officers improperly told a woman that unless she granted permission for police to search her entire apartment, they would "freeze the scene" and return with a search warrant. Justice Bill Cunningham wrote in a concurring opinion that making such a declaration without probable cause is an impermissible ruse becoming a common investigative technique.
