One of the most controversial aspects of democratic policing has been police stop and search powers; they are controversial because they are in tension with the imperatives of policing and constitutional rights. The purpose of this study was to examine residual case-law limits and the practical challenges faced by the police when exercising the power to search, and to determine whether the police use this power in accordance with constitutional and statutory limitations. The study used a convergent mixed–methods socio–legal design which combines doctrinal analysis of relevant judicial authorities, the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), the Police Act 2020 and the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 with empirical data collected from a survey of 500 respondents, six focus group discussions and twenty key informants' interviews in Oghara, Warri, Benin City, and Asaba. It was observed that accountability was inadequate; numerous instances of arbitrary arrest were documented and unlawful searches of electronic devices across the study areas, as well as alleged instances of extortion, profiling, and other forms of misconduct. A key finding of the study is that police misconduct is a strong positive predictor of the constitutional crisis variable (β = .780, p < .001). In contrast, public trust in the police is a strong negative predictor of the constitutional crisis variable (β = −.710, p < .001). The principal challenge associated with police stop-and-search powers in Nigeria lies in weak implementation and inadequate accountability mechanisms; therefore, the suggested recommendation of the study is that the police in Nigeria must undergo a comprehensive reform of policing institutions in Nigeria, strengthen oversight mechanisms, and adopt a rights-based policing framework, enhance monitoring of the police operations, and the Nigerian police should adopt a rights-based approach in policing.