Originally Posted by RSanch111

PS: Rastoff, cops don't need probable cause to search your car for weapons, they only need "reasonable suspicion". Anything they find after that is fair game. Also, in the vast majority of circumstances with a car, cops don't need "probable cause plus exigent circumstances". The "car" part is presumed, in most cases, to equal "exigent circumstances". So probable cause is enough...Unless they have the lower standard of "reasonable suspicion" for weapons.

In most other cases, cops need either a warrant or probable cause PLUS exigent circumstances for a search to be valid. When they have a warrant, the search is presumed to be valid. When they DON'T have a warrant, the search is presumed to be INvalid and the cops have to show that they had an accepted exception to the search warrant rule. Google; Exceptions to the search warrant rule and exclusionary rule.