What is the difference between an inventory and a search?

The following is a computer-generated transcription, some grammar and spelling errors may be inherent Hey guys, it's Anthony Bandiero here with Blue Gold law enforcement training. And our question comes today from an officer in Tennessee. And actually a very common question is, what is the difference when in inventory? And they search? Alright, let's dive into this. As also Tatum would say, let's get into this. So they're both searches. Okay, I hear time and time again, officers say, hey, inventories are not searches. Well, yes, they are. I know what they mean. But I'm just trying to be specific here. If it wasn't a search, then it wouldn't be controlled by the Fourth Amendment, because the fourth man only controls two things, it controls searches, or seizures. So it has to be a search. Otherwise, it would not fall under the gambit of under the Fourth Amendment. But what the COP is trying to say is in when the cops say this, and you're absolutely correct, that what they mean or not, what they mean is, they're not searches for evidence. Inventory searches are force for safekeeping, right? For looking for dangerous items, for listing out items of value. That's what their searches for their searches for the for the Toshiba and so forth. A search when we say hey, we are searching for something, we normally imply that we are searching for evidence. Okay, so that's the difference. Inventory searches are for to fill out the toe sheet and to protect the person's property and against false claims, dangerous items, and then searches for evidence or for things for criminal investigations. Now, the officer says, what are the common pitfalls that officers tend to fall into with these inventories and so forth, I'm gonna tell you that the common pitfalls is when we use inventory searches for criminal investigations. And what I mean by that is, sometimes cops will be on a traffic stop, they will have a hunch that there's something or reasonable suspicion that there's something in the car, they cannot get consent, because the person will not give it. They have no drug dog available. They also have no probable cause. But the person's registration is expired by two weeks. And per their law, their state law or their policy, they have discretion to tow that car. And so they say to themselves, they say, You know what, let me just tow the car and see what's inside of it. Because the law says I can that is a pitfall that is unconstitutional, in my view, right. And I have support by the US Supreme Court in this. But you should never use these inventory exceptions. As a short circuit, the Fourth Amendment probable cause requirement. So don't do it. Now. At the same time, if cops have this hunch that there's something in the car, but they have to tow it, because the law requires it. It's a DUI, their car smashed up, it's in the intersection, the car is blocking somebody's driveway, and they still have a hunch that something is in it. I say, don't worry about it. Because the end result will be the same as long as your inventory search looks like an inventory search and doesn't look like a rummaging of just a general rummaging for evidence. It looks it complies with your policy, that it should not matter what you're thinking...