united-states search-and-seizure religion
Religious exemptions to warrant?
<p>In the second season episode of <em>The X-Files</em> "Red Museum," Mulder and Scully visit the home of a devout vegetarian,  Odin, who refuses then access to his house because they eat meat. </p>

<p>They don't have a warrant, and Odin states that even with a warrant they would still be denied entrance to his house under the First Amendment.</p>

<p>How would this actually play out? </p>

<p>Religious protection from federal warrants is not a First Amendment issue. If protected at all, the best argument would be in RFRA, the federal statute implemented in <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/42/2000bb-1" rel="noreferrer">42 U.S.C. §2000bb-1 et seq</a>.</p>

<p>It provides that the "Government shall not substantially burden a person’s exercise of religion..." except if the burden "is in furtherance of a compelling governmental interest and is the least restrictive means of furthering that compelling governmental interest."</p>

<p>It is my guess that every court in the U.S. would agree that a search warrant issued upon probable cause is in furtherance of a compelling governmental interest, and having an agent or two walk through the house (or whatever is necessary in order to exercise that warrant) is the least restrictive means of furthering that interest.</p>

<p>A subject's religion, house rules, etc. are simply not a consideration in the issuance and execution of a search warrant.  A warrant authorizes officers to take whatever measures they consider necessary to safely search for and secure whatever is being sought.  The only variations in a search warrant are whether:</p>

<ol>
<li>It has to be served during normal waking hours.</li>
<li>The officers have to knock first, or whether they can conduct a "no-knock" raid.</li>
</ol>

<p>A subject and his property have virtually no rights in the face of a warrant &ndash; certainly no rights to impose rules.  See <a href="https://law.stackexchange.com/q/203/10">these</a> <a href="https://law.stackexchange.com/q/134/10">previous questions</a>.</p>
