Because almost all defendants charged with crimes are in fact guilty, they have few legitimate ways to defend against the charges. Defendants' first line of defense in a great many cases is to try to suppress the evidence of their guilt. To do that, they have to find some misstep by police that would require the court to exclude incriminating evidence.
There are various exclusionary rules under the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Fourteenth Amendments, but the one people generally have in mind when they use the term "exclusionary rule" is the one that applies to evidence obtained by a search or seizure that doesn't comply with the Fourth Amendment case law. This exclusionary rule has applied in federal court since 1914 (Weeks v. U.S.), and to all
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The Fourth Amendment does not prohibit the obtaining of information revealed to a third party [such as a bank or utility] and conveyed by him to government authorities." (U.S. v. Miller)
Vehicle Passengers
Only the driver or owner of a vehicle will generally have "standing" to challenge a search of the vehicle. Often, a search of a stopped vehicle will yield evidence implicating a non-owner passenger, and the passenger will want to suppress this evidence. However, even if the search cannot be justified on any basis, the passenger still cannot invoke the exclusionary rule.
When the passenger of a stopped car tried to suppress evidence found inside incriminating him in a robbery, the court said this: "Fourth Amendment rights are personal rights which may not be vicariously asserted. The glove compartment, area under the seat and trunk of an automobile are areas in which a passenger simply would not normally have a legitimate expectation of privacy." (Rakas v. Illinois)
Another's
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On trash collection day, they went through plastic garbage bags he had put out for collection. Based on what they found, officers obtained a warrant to search Greenwood's home, where they located additional evidence. Greenwood and his codefendants moved to suppress, arguing that they had an expectation that police would not go through people's trash. Although California courts bought this argument and ordered suppression of the evidence, the U.S. Supreme Court reversed, saying the following: "Respondents exposed their garbage to the public sufficiently to defeat their claim to Fourth Amendment protection." (California v. Greenwood)
Co-conspirators
Just because several crooks may be involved in a joint criminal enterprise does not give each of them "standing" to challenge a search or seizure that affects only the Fourth Amendment rights of another conspirator. In U.S. v. Padilla, several drug distributors hired a "mule" to drive a large quantity of narcotics across Arizona by himself. Following a vehicle stop and search that uncovered the drugs and the conspiracy, all defendants moved to suppress on the grounds of unlawful vehicle stop and search. The Ninth Circuit tried to extend "standing" to all conspirators, but the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously reversed.
Said the court, "A defendant can urge the suppression of evidence only if he demonstrates that his Fourth Amendment rights were violated by the challenged
Three police officers were looking for a bombing suspect at Miss Mapp’s residence they asked her if they could search her house she refused to allow them. Miss Mapp said that they would need a search to enter her house so they left to go retrieve one. The three police officers returned three hours later with a paper that they said was a search warrant and forced their way into her house. During the search they found obscene materials that they could use to arrest her for having in her home. The items were found in the basement during an illegal search and seizure conducted in violation of the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution and therefore should not admissible in court.
On September 4, 1958, Dollree Mapp’s was convicted in the Cuyahoga County Ohio Court of Common Pleas (Mapp v. Ohio - 367 U.S. 643 (1961)). On March 29, 1961, Dollree Mapp v. Ohio was brought before the Supreme Court of the United States after an incident with local Ohio law enforcement and a search of Dollree Mapp 's home (Mapp v. Ohio 367 U.S. 643 (1961)). In the Bill of Rights, the Fourth Amendment protects and prohibits all persons from unreasonable searches and seizures. However, can evidence obtained through a search that was in violation of a person’s Fourth Amendment rights still be admitted in a state criminal proceeding? This is the issue that will be thoroughly examined in the landmark case of Dollree Mapp v. the State of Ohio (henceforth
At the time of trial, Mr. Wardlow tried to suppress the handgun as evidence due to the fact that he believed the gun had been seized under an unlawful stop and frisk that violated his Fourth Amendment rights. The Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution protects the right of the people against unreasonable searches and seizures by requiring a showing of probable cause in order to obtain a warrant before conducting such searches. “In a trial motion to suppress the gun, Wardlow claimed that in order to stop an individual, short of actually arresting the person, police first had to point to ‘specific reasonable inferences’ why the stop was necessary.”(Oyez, 2000) Recognizing that an investigati...
against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
The amendment involved in this case was the Fourth Amendment due to the protection of unreasonable search
The Fourth (IV) Amendment of the U.S. Constitution states "the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses paper, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized" (U.S Constitution, Fourth Amendment, Legal Information Institute). The fourth amendment is a delicate subject and there is a fine line between the fourth amendment and 'unreasonable search and seizure. '
The U.S Constitution came up with exclusive amendments in order to promote rights for its citizens. One of them is the Fourth amendment. The Fourth Amendment highlights the right of people to be secure in their persons, houses, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searches, and persons or things to be seized (Worral, 2012). In other words such amendment gave significance to two legal concepts the prohibition of unreasonable searches and seizures and the obligation to provide probable cause to issue a warrant. This leads to the introduction of the landmark Supreme Court case Mapp v. Ohio and the connection to a fact pattern (similar case). Both cases will be analyzed showing the importance of facts and arguments regarding the exclusionary rule and the poisonous doctrine.
This is derived from the rights Americans have to not be forced to testify against themselves in a criminal case. But, the Fifth Amendment also protects against double jeopardy and gives people charged with a felony the right to a grand jury indictment (Bohm & Haley, 2011). Double jeopardy basically states that if a conviction or acquittal was reached in a criminal case, the person can no longer be tried again for the same offense (Bohm & Haley, 2011). The procedural rights for self-incrimination are also applied to any custodial situations the police conduct. To ensure that statements, or confessions a suspect makes are allowed in court there is a two-prong tests that should be followed. First, is the person considered to be in a custodial situation and two, are the police intending to ask incriminating questions. If yes is the answers to both then the suspect must be read his or her rights. This is known as giving someone his or her Miranda rights derived from the famous case
The 4th amendment provides citizens protections from unreasonable searches and seizures from law enforcement. Search and seizure cases are governed by the 4th amendment and case law. The United States Supreme Court has crafted exceptions to the 4th amendment where law enforcement would ordinarily need to get a warrant to conduct a search. One of the exceptions to the warrant requirement falls under vehicle stops. Law enforcement can search a vehicle incident to an individual’s arrest if the individual unsecured by the police and is in reaching distance of the passenger compartment. Disjunctive to the first exception a warrantless search can be conducted if there is reasonable belief
The Exclusionary Rule made its first appearance in the judicial system when it was put there by the Supreme Court thanks to Weeks v. United States. At first the Exclusionary Rule was only used in federal cases, only after fifty years of being adopted by the Supreme Court was it used in state cases as well. Before Weeks v. United States, any and all evidence that was acquired illegally or that violated the peoples constitutional rights was still used, if it was practical to the circumstance. The definition of the Exclusionary Rule is, “a rule that forbids the introduction of illegally obtained evidence in a criminal trial (The Free Dictionary, 2014).” The Fourth Amendment reads “…the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized (Law, 2008).”
(Legal dictionary, 2015). Exceptions to the Exclusionary Rule. “ Good faith exception – this exception allowing evidence obtained by law enforcement or police officers who rely on a search warrant they believe to be valid to be admitted at a trial. “ (Exclusionary rule, 2015) “ Attenuation Doctrine – an exception permitting evidence improperly obtained to be admitted at trial if the connection between the evidence and the illegal means by which it was obtained is very remote “. (Exclusionary Rule, 2015) The next exception of the exclusionary rule is the “ Independent Source Doctrine, this is an exception permitting evidence obtained illegally too be admitted at trial if the evidence was later obtained by an independent person through legal activities. (Exclusionary Rule, 2015).
The Fourth Amendment to the Constitution states that individuals have the right to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and impacts, against absurd searches and seizures, yet the issue close by here is whether this additionally applies to the ventures of open fields and of articles in plain view and whether the fourth correction gives insurance over these also. With a specific end goal to reaffirm the courts' choice on this matter I will be relating their choices in the instances of Oliver v. United States (1984), and California v. Greenwood (1988) which bargain straightforwardly with the inquiry of whether an individual can have sensible desires of protection as accommodated in the fourth correction concerning questions in an open field or in plain view.
The 4th amendment protects US citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government. If it is violated by the government, all evidence found by the unlawful search and seizure must be excluded as per the exclusionary rule which serves as a remedy for 4th amendment violations. Before a remedy can be given for violation of the 4th amendment, a court must determine whether the 4th amendment is applicable to a certain case.
The Fourth Amendment to the Constitution states that people have the right “to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures,” but the issue at hand here is whether this also applies to the searches of open fields and of objects in plain view and whether the fourth amendment provides protection over these as well. In order to reaffirm the courts’ decision on this matter I will be relating their decisions in the cases of Oliver v. United States (1984), and California v. Greenwood (1988) which deal directly with the question of whether a person can have reasonable expectations of privacy as provided for in the fourth amendment with regards to objects in an open field or in plain view.
However, the Court allowed only reasonable mistakes in order to avoid leaving “law-abiding citizens at the mercy of the officers' whim or caprice.” In United States v. Leon, the Court held that physical evidence seized by officers reasonably relying on a warrant, which was later determined to be illegal, did not trigger the exclusionary rule. The Court addressed the same question again in Herring v. United States, where it held that “[w]hen a probable-cause determination was based on reasonable but mistaken assumptions, the person subjected to a search or seizure has not necessarily been the victim of a constitutional violation.” The issue in Herring also involved a warrant that was later determined to be void.