Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1997

Search warrants in relation to serious offences.

10.—(1) A judge of the District Court, on hearing evidence on oath given by a member not below the rank of inspector, may, if he or she is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that evidence of, or relating to the commission of—

(a) an indictable offence involving the death of or serious bodily injury to any person,

(b) an offence of false imprisonment,

(c) an offence of rape, or

(d) an offence under an enactment set out in the First Schedule to this Act,

is to be found in any place, issue a warrant for the search of that place and any persons found at that place.

(2) A warrant under this section shall be expressed to and shall operate to authorise a named member, accompanied by any other member, to enter, within one week of the date of issuing of the warrant (if necessary by the use of reasonable force), the place named on the warrant, and to search it and any persons found at that place and seize anything found at that place, or anything found in the possession of a person present at that place at the time of the search, which the said member reasonably believes to be evidence of or relating to an offence referred to in subsection (1).

(3) A member acting under the authority of a warrant under this section may—

(a) require any person present at the place where the search is carried out to give to the member his or her name and address, and

(b) arrest otherwise than on foot of a warrant any person—

(i) who obstructs or attempts to obstruct that member in the carrying out of his or her duties,

(ii) who fails to comply with a requirement under paragraph (a), or

(iii) who gives a name or address which the member has reasonable cause for believing is false or misleading.

(4) A person who obstructs or attempts to obstruct a member acting under the authority of a warrant under this section, who fails to comply with a requirement under paragraph (a) of subsection (3) or who gives a false name or address to a member shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £1,500, or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding 6 months, or to both.

(5) The power to issue a warrant under this section is in addition to and not in substitution for any other power to issue a warrant for the search of any place or person.

(6) In this section—

“commission” in relation to an offence, includes an attempt to commit such offence; and

“place” includes a dwelling.