Officers shall advise the persons they are arresting of the fact of the arrest, including the nature of the offense leading to the arrest.

Officers shall conduct a custodial search of the person they have arrested before transporting that person to headquarters for further investigation and processing.

Neither officers nor their agents shall subject a person whom they have arrested for only a misdemeanor offense, traffic offense, or regulatory offense to any search more probing than a custodial search, as defined below, unless the officers have grounds for upgrading the arrest to a felony arrest.

This policy does not affect current procedures for the collection of blood in certain driving under the influence investigations.

Searching Transgender Individuals:

Individuals shall not be stopped, detained, frisked or searched to determine a person’s gender or to call attention to the person’s gender expression.

An individual may request a preference of officer gender for searches. If requested officers should, when possible, accommodate an individual’s request to be searched by an officer of a specific gender.  

Officers should not remove appearance-related items, such as prosthetics, wigs or cosmetic items unless they pose a safety risk or are collected as evidence.

Consent Search Advisory: 

Saint Paul Police Department policy requires officers to give individuals a consent search advisory before asking to conduct a search of their person or vehicle, when this search is based solely on a request for consent. Searches pursuant to reasonable suspicion, probable cause, or incident to arrest will not require this advisory. The advisory will make it clear to the individual that they have the right to refuse to give consent to the officer to search their person or vehicle. It will also inform the individual that when they give permission they can stop the search and withdraw their permission at any time. Finally, it will make it clear to the individual that should they grant permission for the search and the officer finds illegal items, the individual is likely to be arrested and prosecuted. The consent search advisory reads as follows:

  1. I would like to search you (or your vehicle).
  2. You should know that you have the right to refuse to allow me to search you and your vehicle.
  3. If you do grant me permission, you may stop the search at any time.
  4. If, I find anything illegal you will likely be arrested and prosecuted.
  5. Do you understand what I have told you?
  6. May I search you?
  7. May I search your vehicle?

Types of Searches:

Frisk Search:

This is the “pat down” type of search, generally used for a check for any possible weapons

Custodial Search:

A “custodial search” is a search, after an arrest, for concealed weapons or contraband and evidence of crime and fruits of crime before the officer transports the person to headquarters. It is a more thorough search than the “frisk search,” but it is not a “strip search” or other more intrusive search.

Visual Body Inspection:

This type of search involves the removal or rearrangement of some, or all, of an arrested person’s clothing to permit a visual inspection of the body which may include the undergarments of such person. Visual body inspections must not include searches of any body cavities other than the mouth, nose, or ears.

Visual body inspections may only be conducted in the following circumstances:

  1. Officers have probable cause to believe that evidence or contraband exists and will be destroyed or lost in the absence of an immediate search, or;
  1. Officers have probable cause to believe that an immediate search is necessary to prevent imminent danger to the suspect, officer, or others.

Any officers who has the probable cause to conduct a visual body inspection must shall do the following:

  1. Notify their immediate on duty supervisor who shall request and receive permission from a person of at least one rank higher.  The supervisor approving the search should be present when the search is conducted unless precluded from doing so by issue of gender or other circumstances prevent the ability to be on scene for the search.  If the supervisor who authorized the search is prohibited from being present due to gender, or other circumstances, a supervisor of the same gender as the person to be searched should be present when the search is conducted.  
  • An individual may request a preference of officer gender for searches.  If requested, officers should accommodate an individual’s request to be searched by an officer of a specific gender whenever possible.
  1. Write an original offense report and include the following:
    • The name of the person subjected to the search.
    • The name of the police supervisor authorizing the search.
    • The names of persons conducting and/or observing the search.
    • The time, date, and place of the search.
    • A description of the results of the search.
  1. The records unit will forward a copy of the report to the inspections unit and research and development.

Officers conducting the search should request the removal or rearrangement of the arrested person’s clothing. Officers must not touch the body or underclothing of the arrested person. Officers should then request the arrested person to allow the officer to conduct a visual inspection.

If the arrested person refuses and defies the request, the request is then followed by an order. If this order is also refused and defied, then and only then may the officer touch the body or underclothing of the arrested person. This must be done in a reasonable manner for the sole purpose of facilitating the otherwise authorized visual inspection.

All visual body inspections must be conducted only by persons of the same gender as the arrested person and must be conducted at the LEC or appropriate medical facility. The search must be conducted in a place that cannot be observed by persons who are not physically conducting the search and particularly by persons of the opposite gender.

The records unit will ensure that reports that document a visual inspection are forwarded to the Inspections unit. The inspections unit will maintain a file of all visual body inspection search reports. Copies of the report(s) documenting the above listed information shall be available to the arrested person as provided in the Minnesota Rules of Criminal Procedure and/or pursuant to the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act. The inspections unit shall keep statistical data pursuant with the 2001 NAACP agreement.

Body Cavity Search:

A “cavity search” is a search by touching or probing a person’s body cavities, which include the stomach or rectum of any person, and the vagina of a female. The mouth, nose or ears are not considered body cavities for the purpose of a body cavity search, see “custodial search” and “visual inspections” in the previous section of this policy.

A search warrant must be obtained for any cavity search.  The search must only take place at a medical facility and must only be conducted by a medical professional.

The application for the search warrant shall contain the following affirmations or information, in addition to any affirmation or information required under United States or Minnesota law, including all the requirements of probable cause set forth in Minnesota law:

  • The identities of the licensed physician or registered nurse who will conduct the search or, if those identities then are unknown, an affirmation that the search will be conducted by a licensed physician or registered nurse whose identity will be recorded in the papers for the warrant return, and who will be acting under the direction and control of the officer executing the warrant.

  • The precise place the search will be conducted or an affirmation that the search will be conducted under sanitary conditions.

  • The identities of any persons other than the physician or nurse who will be present at or able to view the search or, if these are then unknown, an affirmation that the search will be conducted under conditions assuring maximum privacy consistent with good medical and police practice.

    General:

  • [Redacted].

  • During the arrest process, the most dangerous period is during the physical search of the suspect. The arresting officer is in very close contact with the suspect at a time when the suspect is usually not handcuffed. The main reason for the search is for weapons. After the officer is satisfied that the suspect has no weapons, s/he may then search for contraband or evidence.

    Revised October 22, 2018

Last Edited: October 22, 2018