In California, police can peer into car windows without a warrant. That's one reason police always seem to be carrying a mag-light when they pull someone over. (The other being that mag-lights are heavy and useful as clubs.)
Oh yeah. Another piece of advice I've often heard is that, if police come to your door asking questions, it's prudent to step outside to speak with them, rather than speaking with them through an open door. If they see something suspicious through your opened door, they can reasonably claim probable cause and force entry.
This may be all BS. But it's advice I've heard more than once.
If police are doing a "knock and talk", they don't have a warrant. Barry Cooper had the best script for that:
If police are knocking, lock your door and say through a window: "I don't talk to police; have your dispatcher call me. If you have a warrant, here are my hands, go ahead and kick the door down". Then cover your ears, close your eyes, and wait.
The problem with those kind of scripts is that while they correctly account for not accidentally exposing yourself to the Police (without a lawyer present etc), they fail to account for the consequences of getting in the police's nerves and looking like a suspect in their eyes (which can get down to them downright making stuff up or planting stuff on you).
if police are targeting you, they're likely to make stuff up or plant evidence anyway.
If you feel you can't handle your affairs, make sure to lawyer up as soon as the police leave your house. You'll need to. let the lawyer know what you did, so he can take appropriate action.
Just remember that a lawyer, should (s)he put your needs above the needs of The People or The Court, (s)he would be disbarred. So don't expect magic to happen.
> Genuinely curious, do you need a warrant to look through a window.
Home windows? If it is visible from a place where a normal person going about their normal activities can see, then no warrant.
For example, if someone walks up your walk to your stoop and there are windows that can been seen through from there, then no warrant. If they have to step off your walkway, walk around the side of your house, scramble through your bushes and pull themselves up to peer through, then a warrant would be required.
I think you can be charged with public indecency if you stand in front of your window naked. So there is some sort of gray area when talking about the privacy of your home.
And of course, do not speak at home (or do not expect any privacy).