Searches and Seizures: Fourth Amendment Analysis

These flashcards cover key terms and concepts related to searches and seizures under the Fourth Amendment.

Fourth Amendment

A constitutional amendment that protects individuals from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government.

Search

Occurs when the government acquires information by physically intruding on constitutionally protected areas or invading private areas.

Seizure

A meaningful interference by the government with an individual's possession of property.

Reasonable Expectation of Privacy Doctrine

A legal doctrine that determines when government action constitutes a search based on subjective and objective privacy.

Trespass Doctrine

Initially defined a search by requiring physical invasion of a protected area.

Private Search Doctrine

Addresses situations where searches conducted by private individuals are not protected by the Fourth Amendment.

Third Party Doctrine

States that information revealed to a third party is not protected under the Fourth Amendment.

Writs of Assistance

Historical documents that allowed British agents to search without a warrant, leading to the creation of the Fourth Amendment.

U.S. v. Lichtenberger

A case that examined private searches involving personal electronic devices.

Illinois v. Caballes

A case discussing whether a dog sniff during a traffic stop constitutes a search.

U.S. v. White

A case involving the use of informants and whether confessions to them are protected under the Fourth Amendment.

U.S. v. Miller

A case that examined whether bank records shared with third parties are protected under the Fourth Amendment.

Smith v. Maryland

A case involving telephone records and the Third Party Doctrine.

California v. Greenwood

A case that applied the Third Party Doctrine to discarded trash.

Kyllo v. U.S.

A case involving thermal imaging and whether it constitutes a search.

U.S. v. Jones

A case focusing on GPS tracking and its implications for the Fourth Amendment.

U.S. v. Warshak

A case analyzing email content and its protection under the Fourth Amendment.

State v. Patino

A case discussing the reasonable expectation of privacy in text messages stored on another person’s phone.

U.S. v. Ganias

A case interrogating whether computer files qualify as property under the Fourth Amendment.

Liberty

The right to come and go as one pleases, often referred to as the 'right of locomotion'.

Privacy

The right to be let alone by the government and to keep personal information confidential.

Balancing

The consideration of public safety versus the protection of individual liberties within legal contexts.

Proportionality

Ensuring that the power and resources used by the state are appropriate to prevent or address crime.

Equal Justice

The principle of impartial treatment of individuals within the legal system.

Accuracy

Ensuring that the justice system accurately punishes the guilty and spares the innocent.

Evidence-Based Decision Making

Making legal decisions based on empirical evidence and legal standards.

Eternal Vigilance

The concept that citizens may feel compelled to monitor their communications due to fear of governmental surveillance.

Wrongdoers’ reasonable expectation of privacy

The principle stating that individuals engaged in criminal activities do not have a reasonable expectation of privacy.