A search of a cruise ship stateroom conducted by customs officials in Long Beach after the ship had docked on arrival from a foreign location was a “routine” border search, requiring no suspicion of criminal activity, the Second District Court of Appeal concluded today in People v. Laborde, B199726. That decision meant that a guy who brought some methamphetamine along to liven up his cruise — apparently shuffleboard failed to be sufficiently entertaining — did not have a very good suppression argument on Fourth Amendment grounds.
(Above: There’s nothing like a tranquil cruise through foreign waters — and a little methamphetamine — to really get away from it all. Keep in mind, however, that zero suspicion is needed to search your room on docking in a U.S. port.)
