People v. Hoffman CA3

BACKGROUND FACTS AND PROCEDURE

On November 2, 2019, California Highway Patrol (CHP) officers on patrol in an unincorporated area of Fair Oaks, California, stopped defendant for driving a vehicle with expired registration tags. The officers subsequently arrested defendant on an outstanding warrant and called to have the vehicle towed for storage. Before the vehicle was taken, one of the officers conducted an inventory search inside the vehicle, but he did not search under the vehicle’s hood. A. Firearm evidence Defendant’s vehicle was towed to a secure tow yard equipped with surveillance cameras. In the days thereafter, various persons, including two men and a female with a

2 baby, tried to get into the vehicle, each claiming to be the registered owner of the vehicle. The tow yard employees denied them access to the car. A sheriff’s deputy called the tow yard and expressed concern that someone might try to break into the vehicle. On the night of November 19, 2019, the owner of the tow yard was alerted by security cameras that someone was trying to break into the tow yard. To protect the vehicle, the owners of the tow yard attempted to move the vehicle inside their warehouse,…