• Residents of Arkansas have a right to be free from unreasonable searches.House image by Gon?¡ìalo Carreira from Fotolia.com
  
  The Constitution and Code of the State of Arkansas govern how search warrants are issued and when they are appropriate in that state. The Arkansas Constitution grants people the right to be free from unreasonable searches, and sets out the basic requirements of a search warrant. The Arkansas Code sets forth how those warrants should be executed.
  
  

Probable Cause

• The Arkansas Constitution requires that warrants can only be issued based upon probable cause to believe that a crime has been committed and that the person named in the warrant is the person who committed it.
  
  

Oath

• Pursuant to the Arkansas Constitution, probable cause must be put forth under oath (usually in an affidavit) by someone with personal knowledge of the facts set forth in the document. Probable cause can not be based on hearsay ("Someone said he is trafficking drugs."), but instead must be independently verified or tested by law enforcement officers. If confidential informants are used, the probable cause statement must set forth reasons as to why they should be believed.
  
  

Description

• Every search warrant in Arkansas must describe with particularity the place to be searched and what law enforcement is attempting to find and seize. The search warrant can not simply say, "Frank Smith's apartment, for drugs." Instead, it must set forth Frank's address including a description of the apartment location, what kind of drugs, and where in the apartment if possible. The probable cause statement will explain why there is good reason to believe that a particular kind of drug will be found in a particular location.
  
  

Arrests

• In Arkansas, if law enforcement officers want to make an arrest on someone's property, they must obtain a search warrant. The probable cause statement must set forth why there are reasonable grounds to believe that they will find the suspect on those premises.
  
  

Confiscated Items

• Sometimes law enforcement in Arkansas may seize items incident to arrest, without a search warrant. If these are large items such as suitcases or even a car, law enforcement can put the items in safekeeping and then procure a search warrant to look through them.