Is it legal to search my bag?

Is it legal to search my bag?

A short while ago, I had the unpleasant surprise of having my rucksack checked in a refreshment shop in Petit-Lancy by a cashier who went right to the bottom of the bag. Is this legal?

L, Geneva

Searching a person or their personal belongings is a prerogative of law enforcement officers only. Article 215 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CPP) states that the police may require a person apprehended to produce any objects they are carrying with them and to open their luggage or vehicle.

A cashier or security guard does not have the power to force an individual to search his or her personal belongings. Nevertheless, it goes without saying that if the person in question gives their consent to this inspection, whether tacitly or expressly, the contents of their bag may be examined. Tacit consent may be deemed to have been given if a sign indicating that staff reserve the right to search bags is displayed at the entrance to the shop.

It should be remembered that a supermarket, although open to the public, is nonetheless private property. It is therefore possible to impose certain conditions on access, such as agreeing to open one's bag at the request of staff. However, under no circumstances can customers be forced to open their shopping bags.

Finally, there is the question of the right of the shop's security service to detain a person pending the arrival of the police, who will carry out the search if the suspect refuses to cooperate. In this respect, article 218 of the Criminal Procedure Code specifies that when police assistance cannot be obtained in time, a private individual has the right to provisionally arrest a person caught committing a crime or an offence or to intercept him or her immediately after such an act. This means that anyone can arrest a person caught stealing; however, if the value of the stolen object is less than CHF 300, it is a contravention and no longer a crime or misdemeanour, so a citizen's arrest is no longer authorised for this reason alone. That said, a security guard who arrests someone committing a theft of minor importance could probably claim self-defence on behalf of others, insofar as he or she would be preventing an unlawful act directed against the company that hired him or her precisely to guard its property.