- plain view
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plain view n1: a location or field of perception in which something is plainly apparent2: a doctrine that permits the search, seizure, and use of evidence obtained without a search warrant when such evidence was plainly perceptible in the course of lawful procedure and the police had probable cause to believe it was incriminating see also inadvertent discovery compare fruit of the poisonous tree
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam-Webster. 1996.
- plain view
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n.Those things that can be immediately seen without special effort because they are sitting out in the open and are unconcealed; incriminating evidence in plain view can be taken by police without a search warrant.
The Essential Law Dictionary. — Sphinx Publishing, An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. Amy Hackney Blackwell. 2008.
- plain view
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n. The exception to the requirement for a search warrant to protect one's rights against unreasonable search and seizure. If an officer has legal justification for being in a place and she spots something that is clearly suspect or proscribed, that object may be seized and introduced in a courtroom proceeding. Similarly, if the officer overhears something because it was uttered out loud so that it was overheard by an officer using normal hearing senses, that may be testified to by the officer. Additionally, use of a flashlight to make it easier to spot an object is acceptable, because it is a usual thing to do. Use of an X-ray machine, on the other hand, is unusual and, therefore, not permissible without a warrant.
Webster's New World Law Dictionary. Susan Ellis Wild. 2000.
