Fourth Amendment
“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable
searches and seizures, shall not be violated…”
Basics of Fourth Amendment
• Applies to Federal Government
• Also applies to state governments, through 14th Amendment
• DOES NOT apply to private citizens or organizations!– Unreasonable searches,
seizures are subject to lawsuits (false imprisonment, etc)
The Exclusionary Rule• Weeks v. US (1914):
evidence obtained by government in violation of 4th Amendment is NOT ADMISSIBLE against defendant, at trial
• Keeps police from willful violation of suspect’s rights
• Does not apply to private citizen’s illegal seizure of evidence (passenger in car snitches on driver’s stash)
“Fruit of the Poisonous Tree”
• Government may not introduce evidence at trial that was obtained through an illegal search
• Evidence is tainted by the illegal search
• So what is a search?
What is a Search?
• Katz v. US– Governmental action
must interfere with a person’s actual, subjective expectation of privacy AND
– The expectation of privacy must be reasonable (societal standard)
– Lets practice!
What is a search? Problem #1
• First part: Person must show they kept evidence in a manner designed to ensure its privacy
• Second part: Would society at large deem a person’s expectation of privacy to be reasonable?
What is a Search? Problem #1
• Is it a “search” if the police look through a person’s garbage?– NO (not a search)
• Is garbage kept in a manner designed to ensure its privacy?
• Would a reasonable person expect item placed in garbage remain private?
What is a search? Problem #2
• Can police conduct a search on a level less than probable cause?– 4th Amendment requires probable cause for a
search– BUT… Terry v. US
• If a policeman observes unusual conduct that leads him to reasonably believe that criminal activity may be afoot; AND
• that the suspicious person has a weapon AND• is presently dangerous to the policeman or others
– Then the officer may perform a pat down search (“frisk”) to determine if person is carrying a weapon
What is a search? Problem #3
• Can the police stop a person for questioning?– NO! Unless… Terry v. US
• If a policeman observes unusual conduct that leads him to reasonably believe that criminal activity may be afoot; AND
• The policeman stop is temporary
– Officer can ask whether a car is stolen, for example, but after confirming it is not, cannot keep person detained to ask about something else
Seizure of a Person
• A person may not be detained, even momentarily, by police without reasonable, objective grounds for doing so
• A refusal to listen to or answer questions, without more, cannot furnish those grounds
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