Haylie Gutierrez Monica Jayroe March 18, 2014 Constitutional Law Privacy Rights of the Homeless There are certain rights that every citizen of the United States of America are entitled to and as a society we have come to expect that they will always be there and protected. Unless you have emigrated from a foreign country that does not hold the same rights, then these rights are something that you have always known. You were born with them and unless you have been in specific circumstances, then you have always had them. Most of society assumes that in our country everyone is afforded many basic rights including the right of protection against unreasonable searches and seizures. For many homeless people living in the United States, this does not hold true. They often are subject random sweeps of known homeless areas, seizure of items during these sweeps, search and seizure of containers, documents, effects, persons and any makeshift home they may have constructed. The federal courts have yet to make any firm decisions with regards to the privacy rights of the homeless, but with cases of homeless privacy violation making their way towards the headlines it won’t be long before the courts will have to answer, either in favor of the homeless privacy rights or against them. The fourth Amendment states that “the right of the people to be secured in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated.” Understanding what constitutes a search and a seizure, along with what would make a search and a seizure unconstitutional is necessary to determining what rights are to be afford to the homeless and when those rights have been violated. For an action to constitute search activi... ... middle of paper ... ...to try to right the wrongful actions that have been taken against the homeless, through the backdoor of comparing homelessness to camping. Society needs to stop distancing itself and ignoring the fact that homelessness exists. Treating anyone that is homeless with lesser rights then that of a non-homeless person is equivalent to saying that they are a lesser person. This is not helping the issue, in fact it is only making it worse. As stated by the court that decided California v. Greenwood, failure to acknowledge a reasonable expectation of privacy for those who have no choice but to perform traditionally private acts in public areas would result in laws being unequally applied to the rich and the poor (Homeless on public ROW). The United States should be a country where people join together to help those struggling out, not one that kicks them when they are down.
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 4th amendment protects people from being searched or having their belongings taken away without any good reason. The 4th amendment was ratified on December 15, 1791. For many years prior to the ratifiation, people were smuggling goods because of the Stamp Act; in response Great Britain passed the writs of assistance so British guards could search someone’s house when they don’t have a good reason to. This amendment gave people the right to privacy. “Our answer to the question of what policy must do before searching a cellphone seized incident to an arrest is accordingly simple - get a warrant.” This was addressed to officers searching people’s houses and taking things without having a proper reason. I find
Many people in the past and in modern day, say that “a man 's house is his castle” and therefore that man has the right to protect his house and effects. That protection goes for anyone that wants to inflict harm in the person or property. It also extends to law enforcement and the government, not allowing them to conduct unreasonable searches and seizures. The extent of unreasonable searches and seizures go from uncalled for arrests that seem to be at random and to warrantless searches of private property. Searches on private property will only be allowed if there is reasonable
The ethical dilemma in the video and scenario provided is whether or not to keep the homeless people as hotspots. One of the negatives to keeping them is that some people could see it as being degrading towards the homeless people. People on the streets may treat them as objects and not realize their worth. They would be using the homeless people and there would be no equality. The biggest negative of all is that the homeless people might not value themselves. Whereas if we didn’t keep them, there would be non-sufficient wi-fi. On top of that the homeless people would be right where they were before in finances (no money). Unfortunately, most of the population would still look past them and not
Many people today have faced a time or two where their person, property, or homes have been search by law enforcement. Search and seizure is when law enforcement authorities or police officers suspect someone of criminal activity and performs a search. During the search the officer may take anything that can be used as evidence to present to the courts. It is a chance that some people’s rights and privacy have been violated during these searches and seizures. The United States Constitution Fourth Amendment has been put into place to protect the rights of citizens against unreasonable searches and seizure by law enforcement authorities.
The homeless have the ability to make the non-homeless feel threatened and unsafe (Marin.) “They are homeless, are strangers, alien and therefore a threat (Marin.)” The threat and danger that homeless pose to American society could easily be eradicated by shipping all of them to other countries. We would then no longer have to deal with them on a day to day basis.
Just because one homeless person has committed a crime or used the money he has collected on things such as alcohol or drugs does not mean that every homeless person is going to be like that. Many homeless people are Vietnam veterans, have a mental illness, or cannot survive in this economy which we are in. I have had a few experiences with homeless people but there is one which is unforgettable. It is much like when Nathaniel Ayres begins yelling at Mr. Lopez then proceeds to apologize later on (Lopez, 258). Most homeless people do not receive aid from the government or do not receive enough aid which is why they resort to panhandling. Seeing these many homeless people shows us how well our government is doing in protecting its people.
Homelessness in the United States has been an important subject that the government needs to turn its attention to. There has been announced in the news that the number of the homeless people in many major cities in the United States has been increasing enormously. According to United States Interagency Council on Homelessness reported that there was an estimation of 83,170 individuals have experienced chronic homelessness on the streets of the United States’ streets and shelters on only a single night of January 2015, which is a small decrease of only 1% from the previous year (People Experiencing Chronic Homelessness, n.d.). The United States must consider this subject that most of the people underestimate it and not pay attention
Although most people know what homelessness is and it occurs in most societies, it is important to define because the forces of displacement vary greatly, along with the arrangement and meaning of the resulting transient state. The Stewart B McKinney Homeless Assistance Act of 1987 defined a homeless person as “an individual who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate night-time residence or a person who resides in a shelter, welfare hotel, transitional program or place not ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation, such as streets, cars, movie theaters, abandoned buildings, etc.” Resent surveys conducted in the U.S. have confirmed that the homeless population in America is extremely diverse and includes representatives from all segments of society, including: the old and young, men and women, single people and families, city dwellers and rural residents, whites and people of color, employed and unemployed, able workers and people with serious health problems. The diversity among people that are homeless reflects how difficult it is to generalize the causes of homelessness and the needs of homeless people. Robert Rosenheck M.D., the author of Special Populations of Homeless Americans, explains the importance of studying homelessness based on subgroups, “each subgroup [of homeless people] has unique service needs and identifying these needs is critical for program planning and design.” Despite these diversities, homelessness is a devastating situation for all that experience it. Not only have homeless people lost their dwelling, but they have also lost their safety, privacy, control, and domestic comfort.
These are the enactment of new laws and statutes that are intended to limit or restrict the activities of the homeless, disproportionate and discriminatory enforcement of existing laws and ordinances, and the manipulation of the physical environment to restrict its usage by people who are homeless. This includes hindering the use of public space by designing park benches so that people cannot lie down and sleep on them, or moving ventilation grates off of sidewalks and into streets. These also include the enactment and enforcement of laws that make it illegal to sleep, sit, or store personal belongings in public spaces where people are forced to live in and includes selective enforcement of more neutral laws, such as loitering, jaywalking, or open container laws, against homeless persons (National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty 2009; McNamara, Crawford, and Burns 2013; Simpson 2015). Others includes sweeps of city areas in which homeless persons are living to drive them out of those areas, which frequently results in damage to an individual’s personal property such as important personal documents and medication. Cities also enforce a wide range of “quality of life” ordinances related to public activities and hygiene (i.e. public urination) when no public facilities are available to people without housing (National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty 2009; Simpson 2015; Forst
In America, society views the homeless as a crutch on the economy. Upper classes alienate the homeless population in order to excel the economy and lessen the burden on society. People who appear to be homeless are ultimately pushed aside and are treated differently. Often avoided, the general populous turns away from the problem that is effecting major cities throughout America. Ignoring a problem that is persistent, is being ignorant towa...
Homelessness is one of the biggest issues society (Unites States) faces today. Homelessness is caused by lack of affordable housing, economic situations and decline in federal funding for low income families and the mentally ill. A homeless person is defined as an individual who lacks housing (without regard to whether the individual is a member of a family) including an individual whose primary residence during the night is a supervised public or private (shelters) facility that provides temporary living accommodations and an individual who is a resident in transitional housing. This definition of housing is used by the U.S Department of Healt...
The homeless are alienated by laws passed by government, at the federal, state, and local levels, that restrict them and their survival methods. David Bender, author of
Homelessness is increasing more every year. In fact, according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, over 640,000 people experience homelessness every night. (Hunger and Homelessness in North America) By definition, the homeless are groups of people that do not have a home. They can be people who are mentally ill, unemployed, veterans, or even children born into unfortunate families. Since they have nowhere to go, the homeless usually live inside abandoned buildings, in the streets, or in makeshift homes, such as a cardboard box or homemade tent. Although some work to find a decent home, many still suffer from depression or are psychically disabled and cannot work. (Overview of Homelessness in America) These people do not choose to be homeless, instead they become homeless due to a series of unfortunate events; namely losing their source of income or becoming homeless by birth. One instance of this occurred in the life of Hazel Washington. Hazel was fleeing an abusive relationship when she moved in with her relative and his girlfriend, but she was not told about their impending eviction. Because of this, her roommates took everything she owned an...
Although the amount of homeless people has declined slightly in recent years, in 2012, there were approximately 633, 782 homeless people in the United States (Toppo, 2013). The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development assert that out of this population, about 38% are considered “unsheltered” or living on the streets, in parks, encampments, or other places not intended for habitation (U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development, ...