ABOUT ME
Matt Keenan
Se habla español.
A criminal and school law attorney with over 24 years of experience, I have successfully represented clients all over the Chicago area. My practice includes DUI, felony, criminal, misdemeanor, homicide, internet crime, retail theft, traffic offenses, cyberstalking, drug crimes, weapons violations, domestic battery and juvenile crime. I also represent families involving school cases. My clients come from all over the Chicago area including Skokie, Wilmette, Niles, Northbrook, Glenview, Evanston, Winnetka, Highland park, Northfield, Park Ridge, Des Plaines and Mount Prospect. I am a member of the ACLU, Illinois State Bar Association.
We wrote the chapters on DEFENSES and ARRESTS AND INVESTIGATORY STOPS.
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Illinois Jurisprudence: Criminal Law and Procedure. Vol. 1. (LexisNexis 2014).We wrote the chapters on SEARCH and SEIZURE, MOTIONS AND DISCOVERY, and EVIDENTIARY MATTERS GENERALLY.
Illinois Jurisprudence: Criminal Law and Procedure. Vol. 1. (LexisNexis 2014).
Category Archives: search of vehicle
CAN POLICE ARREST ME WITHOUT A WARRANT FOR EVIDENCE FOUND IN MY CAR?
On your way home from a friend’s, an officer stopped you for speeding. While issuing your ticket, the officer noticed a baggie of pills on the passenger side floor. Because of the pills, you were ordered out of the car … Continue reading
Posted in search of vehicle
Tagged plain view exception
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CAN POLICE CHANGE THE REASON THEY STOP ME?
An officer can stop you for one reason then investigate you for another as long as the stop is not unduly prolonged. Whether a stop was unduly prolonged, and thus illegal, is a very fact-intensive question, which different judges may … Continue reading
Posted in probable cause, search of vehicle
Tagged narcotics dog, traffic stop, unduly prolonged
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CAN POLICE SEARCH MY CAR BASED ON MARIJUANA WHEN POT IS LEGAL IN ILLINOIS?
According to the Illinois Supreme Court, the answer is yes, especially if combined with other factors. In People v. Hill, an officer stopped the defendant, then searched his car based on the strong odor of cannabis and a cannabis bud … Continue reading
Posted in probable cause, search of vehicle
Tagged cannabis, Marijuana, pot
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CAN POLICE SEARCH MY CAR AFTER THEY IMPOUND IT?
After you were arrested for DUI, the officers impounded and searched your car. The search yielded several capsules of an illegal narcotic. The officers did not have a warrant. You are now charged with possession with intent to deliver as … Continue reading
Posted in probable cause, search of vehicle
Tagged inventory search
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CAN POLICE SEARCH MY CAR WITHOUT A WARRANT?
The answer is they can if the search falls under the “automobile exception” to the warrant requirement. Because a driver could easily take off with the evidence before police have time to get a warrant, police are allowed to search … Continue reading
Posted in search of vehicle
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HOW MUCH TIME DOES AN OFFICER HAVE TO INVESTIGATE ME AT A TRAFFIC STOP?
The officer pulled you over for speeding. He ran a check of your license and issued the ticket. But the officer asked you to not to leave quite yet. You were forced to wait while the officer ran some checks … Continue reading
Posted in probable cause, search of vehicle
Tagged prolonged stop
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CAN POLICE SEARCH YOUR CAR? IT DEPENDS ON THE FACTS
A police officer can stop you if he or she has probable cause. An unlit headlight may be cause enough. But once stopped, an officer needs either your consent or a reasonable suspicion of wrongdoing to search your car. What … Continue reading
Posted in probable cause, search of vehicle
Tagged probable cause, reasonable suspicion
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DO POLICE HAVE PROBABLE CAUSE TO SEARCH YOUR CAR?
You know you blew a stop sign, so you were not surprised when the officer pulled you over. But then the officer searched your car and found an open bottle of whiskey under the passenger seat. You are now under … Continue reading
Posted in probable cause, search of vehicle
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U.S. SUPREME COURT FINDS POLICE SEARCH OF RENTAL CAR NOT LEGAL
You and a friend are driving across country. Your friend leased the rental car and is its sole authorized driver. In spite of that, your friend said you could take the car to run an errand. That’s when the police … Continue reading
Posted in probable cause, search of vehicle
Tagged reasonable expectation of privacy, rental car
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CAN POLICE USE A DOG TO SNIFF YOUR CAR?
If police stop you for a traffic violation, they don’t need a reason to change the reason they stopped you. For example, they can stop you for speeding but then bring in a narcotics dog to sniff your car. However, … Continue reading
Posted in DUI evidence, search of vehicle, traffic offenses
Tagged dog sniff, narcotics, probable cause, search and seizure, traffic stop
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