Supreme Court: Does K-9’s sniff violate Constitution?

The nation’s high court has previously said a home deserves special protection from law enforcement searches

January 03, 2012 03:45 AM

In this photo, Miami-Dade detective Douglas Bartelt and K-9 Franky give a demonstration in Miami. Franky’s super-sensitive nose is at the heart of a question being put to the U.S. Supreme Court.

By Curt Anderson
Associated Press

MIAMI — The U.S. Supreme Court is being asked to decide whether a Florida police K-9’s sniff outside the front door of a marijuana grow house violates the Constitution.

Florida’s attorney general wants the justices to reverse a state Supreme Court ruling that the dog’s sniff violates the sanctity of the home.

The nation’s high court has previously said a home deserves special protection from law enforcement searches. Lawyers for Florida say a dog’s nose is different because it detects only illegal activity that’s not entitled to privacy.

The justices could decide later this month whether to take the case.

Law enforcement officials say a finding against the use of K-9s outside the home could jeopardize an essential police tool. But the state Supreme Court said police cannot cross that constitutional line.