Fourth Amendment: Evidentiary Search Flashcards
Reasonable Expectation of Privacy in a Place
The Fourth Amendment protects people from warrantless searches of places or seizures of persons or objects, in which they have an subjective expectation of privacy that is deemed reasonable in public norms. The reasonableness standard is construed upon the totality of circumstances on a case-by-case basis.
Things Protected under Reasonable Expectation of Privacy
One’s person
house (including curtilage)
papers
effects
Things Unprotected under Reasonable Expectation of Privacy
anything exposed to view of Third Party
Defendant’s Reasonable Expectation of Privacy in Area Searched
(a) Right to possession of place
(b) Defendant’s home
(c) Overnight guest
Elements to an effective Search Warrant
(a) signed by neutral/detached magistrate
(b) particular description of evidence
(c) supported by probable cause
(d) good-faith reliance on warrant
(e) proper execution
Search WITHOUT a Warrant
- Exigent Circumstances
- Automobile exception
- search incident to arrest
- consent
- plain view
- stop & frisk
- inventory searches
- border searches
Exigent Circumstances
Exigent circumstances are exceptions to the general requirement of a warrant under the Fourth Amendment searches and seizures. Exigent circumstances occur when the a law enforcement officer has a probable cause and no sufficient time to secure a warrant.
(a) must be contemporaneous
(b) Fleeing Felon, risk of destruction, safety of person
Automobile Exception
(a) Probable Cause to believe evidence in car
(b) must be contemporaneous
(c) Can search WHOLE car but limited to containers that might contain evidence
Search Incident to Arrest
(a) Probable Cause to arrest
(b) Must be contemporaneous to arrest
(c) can search areas within Defendant’s immediate control
(d) limited to passenger cabin of car ONLY if defendant is unsecured or reasonable belief evidence in car
Consent
(a) must search at time of consent
(b) must be “knowing and voluntary”
(c) limited by reasonable scope, actual vs. apparent authority, and co-habitant objection
Plain View
(a) legitimately on premises
(b) evidence in “plain view”
(c) probable cause to belive the item is evidence immediately
Stop & Frisk
(a) must be contemporaneous
(b) limited to pat-down of outer clothing and “plain feel”
(c) stop: need articulable/reasonable suspicion of criminal activity
(d) Frisk: need reasonable belief defendant is armed and dangerous
