CH 3: Search and Seizure

According to the Fourth Amendment, which standard must the government meet to obtain a search and seizure warrant?

probable cause

A pat down in which a law enforcement officer feels an object that they have probable cause to believe is an illegal narcotic is analogous to a(n) ______.

The majority decision in Olmstead v. UnitedStates (1928) held that the warrantless wiretaps on Olmstead’s office and home phones were constitutional because the officers ______.

Correct answer:

did not physically intrude into the home

For an officer to seize an item via the plain view doctrine, it must be ______ that the object is evidence of criminality.

“immediately apparent”

An example of curtilage is a(n) ______.

front porch

Police officers may seize items that they observe without a warrant in ______.

public parks

instrumentalities of crime

items used to carry out a crime

Fruit of a crime

what us taken from a crime

(E.g. money stolen from a bank, jewelry taken from a home)

Contraband

unlawful drugs and other prohibited substances

evidence of criminal activity

gunpowder stains, bloody clothes, and other DNA

incriminating statements

statements overheard during surveillance

What are the two conditions in which police can seize an item without a search warrant?

legally situated: if the police officer is lawfully positioned

probable cause: if the police officer has probable cause to believe the object is evidence of criminal activity

open fields

includes land distant from the home, which the police may enter without probable cause or a warrant

Home

The physical structure of the dwelling house is accorded full and complete protection under the fourth amendment, and requires a warrant for police to enter it

curtilage

the area immediately surrounding the home is part of the dwelling of the house. Curtilage has no expectation of privacy from aerial surveillance

public property

this land is generally open to the public, and a warrant is not required for the police to seize property

commercial property

the police may enter and seize items without a warrant from stores and businesses that are open to the public. A warrant is required to enter those areas reserved for employees

abandoned property

intentionally abandoned property has no expectation of privacy and may be seized by the police without warrant

Probable cause

reasonable person would conclude that individual has committed a crime; needed for a full body search for evidence or weapons

reasonable suspicion

reasonable person would believe that a crime has been or is about to be committed; needed for a frisk for weapons

encounter

does not require justification; may attain consent for searches