Criminal Procedures Exam 2

What is the rationale for the Consent exception to a SW?

What is the rationale for the Consent exception to a SW?

It is reasonable for police to search without a warrant if a person does not object.

Does an officer have to inform a suspect they can deny consent to search?

No

Is a consent to search form required?

No, but it is preferred. Documentation should still be taken in some way.

What are the major co-tenant rules?

• A co-tenant cannot give consent to search an area of the residence they do not own.

• Officers cannot search a co-tenant's private areas when searching another tenant's area.

• Common areas can be searched.

What are the limitations to the consent exception?

• Person giving consent must have authority to do so.

• It must be voluntary.

• It can be limited to certain areas (the kitchen but not the living room).

What constitutes an exigent circumstance?

An emergency situation that needs immediate action.

What is the duration an officer is allowed to search because of an exigent circumstance?

The duration of the emergency.

What are some examples of exigent circumstances?

Fire in progress, bomb, armed suspect, kidnapping, hot pursuit.

What is hot pursuit?

Officers are chasing a suspect and the suspect runs into your home. The officers are allowed to enter your home to continue pursuing the suspect.

What is the rationale for the exigent circumstance exception to a SW?

Save lives and preserve evidence.

Why can officers search open fields without a SW?

Because open fields are not protected by the Fourth Amendment because there is no reasonable expectation of privacy.

What are the rules of plain view?

• Officers must become aware of the object by sight with immediate access to it.

• Officer must be able to identify the object as illegal.

• Officers cannot manufacture plain view.

What does it mean to "manufacture plain view"?

An officer moving an object to see another object they believe to be illegal.

What is abandoned property?

Property someone does not intend to keep.

What is the trash can rule of abandoned property?

If it is thrown into a public trash can or a personal trash can that is put onto the curb.

What is the storage unit rule of abandoned property?

If a person is considerably behind on rent, that unit is considered abandoned.

What is the hotel room rule of abandoned property?

If a person has checked out and left items in the room, that property is abandoned.

What is the curtilage theory?

A person abandons any property that they place outside of their curtilage. (i am a little unsure on this one)

What is the rationale for treating vehicle searches differently from other searches?

Vehicles in public places are subject to plain view and passers-by can look through the windows and see items. Also if it is readily mobile, it will likely not be in the same spot when you get a warrant.

What is the Carroll doctrine?

As long as a vehicle is in public, you can search on probable cause alone. When this was originally applies you can search the interior, but not the trunk or any containers.

What did the Ross case change about the scope of the Carroll doctrine?

Allows officers to search the trunk of the vehicle.

What did the Acevado case change about the scope of the Carroll doctrine?

Allows officers to search containers within the car.

What is a pretext stop?

An officer has suspicion of a vehicle, they follow it and stop it for a traffic violation. This then leads to SW exceptions and evidence.

Why are pretext stops legal?

As long as the traffic violation they are being stopped for is valid and did happen, it is legal.

What is the interdiction protocol?

• Vehicle is stopped.

• Driver is taken to agency vehicle and cited.

• Officer asks questions about trip.

• Driver is told they are free to go.

• While en route to vehicle, officer re-engages driver about drug/currency trafficking.

• Ask for consent to search.

• If yes, search.

• If no, drug dogs to gain probable cause.

What are suspicionless of special needs searches?

Searches that do not require a warrant, probable cause, or any kind of suspicion.

What are examples of suspicionless/special needs searches?

Border searches, airports, and law enforcement officers.

Why can law enforcement officers be searched under special needs searches?

They waive some of their rights as a condition of employment.

What are inventory searches?

A search to protect any valuables and to protect officers from liability.

Can inventory searches be selective?

No.

What happens when a vehicle itself is taken as contraband?

An officer is allowed to perform an inventory search when impounded and can seize any evidence found.

Does a slap-on GPS tracker require a warrant?

No, because they only monitor in public areas.

Does a hardwire GPS tracker require a warrant?

Yes, because they can monitor in private places like garages.

What are the requirements for a roadblock to be constitutional?

• It must be for an actual law enforcement reason.

• The stops cannot be targeted and must be random.

• The delay cannot be excessive.

When is profiling permissible?

When a person matches the profile of a criminal.

Why do you not have an expectation of privacy when it comes to drug dogs?

You don't have privacy in public air, which is where the odors they smell travel to.

What is the legal definition of arrest?

A reasonable person would believe they are not free to leave.

When is a search lawful?

With or without a warrant. (Without is based on probable cause).

What can an officer search in a legal arrest?

The arrestee and anything within their wingspan.

What is a material witness warrant?

An arrest warrant when a key witness is believed to be a flight risk.

What is a protective sweep?

A cursory search of the area where the arrest occurred for people and other threats.

What is the justification for protective sweeps?

Officer safety.

What is a stop and frisk?

A quick seizure and limited search for weapons.

What happened in Terry v. Ohio?

An officer thought to men were acting suspicious and suspected they were going to commit a robbery, so he stopped them and frisked them for weapons.

What is the justification for a stop and frisk?

A stop is less than an arrest and a frisk is less than a search, so they require less suspicion.

What is the scope for a stop and frisk?

Outer clothing of the individual.

What is the plain feel rule?

Allows officers to seize non-threatening contraband if they are found in an outer clothing pat down and is immediately recognizable as non-threatening contraband

When can the Terry stop be applied to cars?

When the officer believes the car was involved in a recent or upcoming criminal act.

What are the general requirements regarding admissibility of confessions?

It must be obtained lawfully without physical abuse, coercion/duress/threats, and psychological manipulation. They must be voluntary and obtained according to due process.

What undermines voluntary?

When a suspect is under duress to give the statement, coerced into the statement, or abused into giving a statement.

What are the limits of bluffing a defendant into a confession?

An officer can bluff about the evidence you have, but cannot bluff about what will happen if they confess. (I am unsure on this one).

What is the Miranda formula?

Custody + Interrogation = Warning + Waiver

When do you have to Mirandize?

If you are questioning them while they are in custody. If you do not Mirandize, all answers become inadmissible.

What do the courts consider custody?

When a reasonable person would believe they are not free to leave.

What do the courts consider interrogation?

Direct questioning or a functional equivalent.

What is a functional equivalent?

Behaviors by the police that police should know are reasonably likely to elicit an incriminating response.

What are the warnings that must be verbalized in a Miranda warning?

• Right to remain silent.

• Anything they say can be used against them in a court of law.

• They have a right to an attorney and if they cannot afford one, one will be appointed to them.

• They have a right to an attorney and if they cannot afford one, one will be appointed to them.

What is the difference between a warning and a waiver?

Warning is the verbal part of the Miranda, the waiver is the thing signed to waive those rights.

What is Rhode Island v. Innis?

Officers had a conversation in front if the suspect about a handicap child finding the missing shotgun. The suspect led them to the shotgun. (Functional Equivalent).

What is Brewer v. Williams?

Officers had a conversation about the missing little girl deserving a Christian burial in front of the suspect. Suspect led them to her body. (Functional Equivalent).

What is the exclusionary rule?

Prohibits the use of evidence at trial which was found resulting from police violating constitutional rights.

What is the purpose of the exclusionary rule?

Deter intentional constitutional violations by police and ensure due process.

What did the Weeks case do?

Applied the exclusionary rule to federal cases.

What did the Mapp case do?

Apply the exclusionary rule to state and local cases.

What is the Fruit of the Poisonous Tree doctrine?

If evidence is found due to illegal acts, that evidence is fruit of the poisonous tree. (If its found because of an illegal search it is fruit of the poisonous tree).

What are the three exceptions to the exclusionary rule?

Independent source, inevitable discovery, and good faith.

What is the inevitable discovery exception?

Evidence was going to be discovered with or without the confession from the suspect.

What is the independent source exclusion?

The officers found out about the evidence in another way along with the confession from the suspect.

What id the good faith exception?

Officers performed a search warrant on good faith, even if the search warrant was improperly put together.

How does the exclusionary rule apply in cases of judicial mistake?

It does not apply as it only applies in cases of police misconduct.

What is the standing requirement for the exclusionary rule to be invoked?

The evidence must have been discovered on POLICE misconduct with none of the three exceptions present.