§ 22-1225. Requisites of search warrant - Issuing magistrate.

A.  If a magistrate be thereupon satisfied of the existence of grounds of the application, or that there is probable cause to believe their existence, he must issue a search warrant, signed by him, with his name of office, to a peace officer of this state, commanding him forthwith to search the person or place named, for the property specified, and to bring it before the magistrate, and also to arrest the person in whose possession the same may be found, to be dealt with according to law.

B.  The magistrate may orally authorize a peace officer to sign the name of the magistrate on a copy made to conform with the original warrant if the peace officer applying for the warrant is not in the actual physical presence of the magistrate.  Such copy shall be deemed to be a search warrant for the purposes of this act and it shall be returned to the magistrate as provided for in Section 1233 of this title.  In such cases, the magistrate shall enter on the face of the original warrant the exact time of the issuance of the warrant and shall sign and file the original warrant and the copy made to conform with the original warrant with the clerk of the district court as provided for in Section 1224.2 of this title.

C.  A search warrant authorized by this section may be issued by any magistrate for a search of a person or property within the judicial district in which the magistrate presides or outside the judicial district if there was probable cause to believe the property was within the judicial district when the warrant was sought, but moved outside the judicial district before the warrant was executed.

Amended by Laws 1982, c. 224, § 2; Laws 1990, c. 290, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1990.