Legal Definitions - nonoccupant visitor

In the context of criminal procedure, a nonoccupant visitor refers to an individual who is present at a business location when law enforcement officers are conducting a search under the authority of a search warrant. This person is not the primary target of the search or the main resident of the premises being investigated. Instead, their connection to the business is typically as an owner, an employee, or a customer.

Here are a few examples to illustrate this concept:

• Imagine a bustling coffee shop where police arrive with a search warrant to investigate the business's financial records for suspected money laundering. A barista, who is on duty and serving customers at the counter, would be considered a nonoccupant visitor.

  This illustrates the term because the barista is an employee of the business, present during the execution of a search warrant, but the warrant's focus is on the business's records, not the barista personally or their private belongings.

• Consider a large electronics store where law enforcement executes a search warrant for a specific batch of counterfeit smartphones believed to be stored in the back room. A customer browsing the laptop section at the time the officers enter would be a nonoccupant visitor.

  This example demonstrates the term because the customer is a patron of the business, present during the search, but the warrant is directed at the store's inventory and premises, not at the customer's personal property or person.

• Suppose a small art gallery is being searched by police with a warrant for a particular stolen painting believed to be hidden on the premises. The gallery owner, who is present and overseeing the daily operations, would be a nonoccupant visitor if the warrant is specifically for the stolen item and not targeting the owner's personal involvement or private areas of the gallery.

  This scenario highlights the term because the owner is connected to the business and present during the search, but the warrant's scope is focused on locating a specific item within the business, making the owner a non-primary target in that specific search context.