Reading a Search Warrant
IC 35-33-5-7 — served within ten days of issue, any day and any hour, a door broken only after an announcement
- No warrant to search or arrest issues until an affidavit is filed with the judge.
- The affidavit particularly describes the house or place to be searched and the things searched for, or the person to be arrested.
- It alleges the offense, states that the affiant believes and has good cause to believe the things sought are there or the person committed it, and sets out the facts, known personally or from hearsay, that are the probable cause.
- Hearsay carries information establishing the source's credibility and a factual basis, or showing that the totality of the circumstances corroborates it.
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- A warrant is executed not more than ten days after it is issued, and returned to the court without unnecessary delay.
- It may be executed on any day of the week, at any time of the day or night.
- An officer may break open any outer or inner door or window to execute it if, after announcing the officer's authority and purpose, the officer is not admitted.
A person whose property is wrongfully damaged, or who is wrongfully injured, by officers who wrongfully enter may recover the damage from the responsible authority and the officers, in the circuit or superior court of the county where the entry took place.
How a warrant is served is also measured by the Fourth Amendment. The Supreme Court of the United States has held that whether officers knocked and announced their presence before entering is part of whether the entry was reasonable, and that the knock and announce principle forms part of that analysis rather than being a rigid rule without exceptions. Those holdings are a floor: a state's own constitution and statutes can give more protection than they do, never less.
Sources for this section (3)
- IC 35-33-5-2 — Affidavit; descriptions; information to establish credibility of hearsay; form
- IC 35-33-5-7 — Execution of search warrant; forcible entry; wrongful entry; recovery of damages
- Wilson v. Arkansas, 514 U.S. 927 (1995) — Knocking and announcing is part of whether an entry is reasonable
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Indiana attorney.