When a Warrant Is Served
Iowa Code § 808.8 — executed within ten days, with a receipt for what is taken
- After giving notice of the officer's authority and purpose, an officer who is not immediately let in may break into a structure or vehicle where reasonably necessary to execute the warrant.
- Reasonable force to enter without that notice is allowed for a vacated or abandoned structure or vehicle.
The person executing the warrant may reasonably detain and search any person or thing in the place, to protect the searcher from attack, to prevent disposal or concealment of property the warrant describes, or to remove an item capable of causing bodily harm that could be used to resist arrest or escape.
Ten days. A search warrant is executed within ten days from its date. One not executed in that time is void.
- The officer gives an itemized receipt to the person the property was taken from, if the person can be found, or leaves a copy of the inventory at the place searched.
- A complete inventory, sworn as accurate, is filed with the return, and the magistrate or clerk delivers a copy on request to the person it was taken from.
- Evidence is kept as long as reasonably necessary for trial, and disposed of under chapter 809.
Sources for this section (4)
- Iowa Code § 808.6 — Forcible execution
- Iowa Code § 808.7 — Detention and search of persons on premises
- Iowa Code § 808.8 — Return
- Iowa Code § 808.9 — Safekeeping of seized property
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Iowa attorney.