DA can search welfare homes without warrant, U.S. court rules.

A US appeal court decision is creating a "defacto poverty exemption" from constitutional protections against unlawful search and seizure, the San Diego branch of the American Civil Liberties Union claims.

The ACLU lost its suit to protect welfare recipients from searches without warrants by investigators from the District Attorney's office. Since 1997, unannounced "home visits" by unarmed investigators from the DA's office have been assigned by the County to search for welfare fraud and check eligibility.

The county instructed the DA's office to verify assets, conduct interviews, determine if eligible dependents live there and certify that no other parent is living in the home. They often look into cabinets, cupboards and drawers.

The ACLU claims that this violates the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Arguing on behalf of six single parents, the civil rights organization took the cases to the federal courts. A district court judge backed the County's practice in the case of Sanchez v. San Diego County. The appeal court ruling leans on a 1971 Supreme Court ruling that allowed New York welfare workers to make home visits to determine eligibility.

Dissenting Judge Raymond Fisher said it was unlawful for an investigator from the District Attorney's office to go "walking through the applicant's home in search of physical evidence of ineligibility that could lead to criminal prosecution either for welfare fraud or other crimes unrelated to the welfare application."

The San Diego branch of the ACLU claims the court "is creating a defacto poverty exemption in the Fourth Amendment." The county defends it approach, claiming that it has saved millions of dollars for the county.

The case was launched by six single parents seeking food stamps, monetary assistance, and job training and placement. The ACLU is considering further legal action.

www.ca9.uscourts.gov/ca9