Criminal Procedure Quiz 2

What did the supreme court decide in Coolidge vs. New Hampshire?

A state attorney general cannot issue a search warrant. State attorney generals are chief prosecutors and thus inclined to side with law enforcement officers.

What happened in Michigan v. Summers?

A warrant to search for contraband founded on probable cause implicitly carries with it the limited authority to detain the occupants of the premises while a proper search is conducted.

What is probable cause?

More than bare suspicion; it exists when "the facts and circumstances within [the officers'] knowledge and of which they [have] reasonably trustworthy information [are] sufficient to warrant a prudent man in believing that the [suspect] had committed or was committing an offense" (Beck v. Ohio, 379 U.S. 89 [1964], p. 91). In practical terms, it refers to more than 50% certainty.

In what scenarios is probable cause always required in?

Probable cause is always required in the following scenarios: • Arrests with warrants • Arrests without warrants • Searches and seizures of property with warrants • Searches and seizures of property without warrants

What is reasonable suspicion?

Reasonable suspicion is something below probable cause but above a hunch.

What are two basic clauses of the Fourth Amendment?

Reasonableness clause and warrant clause.

What is justification?

Requires that police must have cause before they can conduct a search or a seizure.

What is it decided about abandoned property?

Respondents could have no reasonable expectation of privacy in the inculpatory items they discarded. A person cannot have a reason- able expectation of privacy in a public place or an "open field".

What is curtilage?

The "area to which extends the intimate activity associated with the sanctity of a man's home and the privacies of life".

What was incorporated in Illinois v. Gates?

Totality of circumstances.

What is the reasonableness clause?

proscribes unreasonable searches and seizures

What is the warrant clause?

warrants must be issued upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

What four factors will the courts give weight to in making a decision to arrest?

(1) the purpose of the stop (for example, to question or interrogate a person), (2) the manner in which the stop takes place (for example, stopped by one officer or several), (3) the location in which the stop takes place (for example, station house, street, or home), and (4) the duration of the stop.

What is Administrative Justification?

Adopts a balancing approach, weighing the privacy interests of individuals with the interests of society in preserving public safety. Administrative searches be conducted according to objective, standardized procedures. Also important to note is that authorities cannot use an administrative search as a pretext for a full-blown search.

What is an open field?

Any unoccupied or undeveloped real property falling outside the curtilage of a home

What are articulable facts?.

Events that are witnessed and can be explained.

Discuss particularity in an arrest warrant.

First, if the suspect's name is known, then simply supplying his or her name is enough to meet the particularity requirement. In some situations, however, the suspect's name is not known. Then, a specific description of the suspect is sufficient and a "John Doe" warrant will be issued. As long as other officers may locate the suspect with reasonable effort, the suspect's name is not required.

What three essential components must an arrest warrant or a search warrant have?

First, it must be issued by a neutral and detached magistrate. Second, a showing of probable cause is required. Finally, it must conform to the Fourth Amendment's particularity requirement.

Discuss Particularly in a Search Warrant.

First, the warrant must specify the place to be searched. Next, the warrant must specify the items to be seized.

To define when a search takes place, what two important factors need to be considered?

Government action- Action on the part of paid government officials, usually police officers. It is one of two requirements that must be in place for a Fourth Amendment search to occur. Whether the intrusion violates a person's reasonable expectation of privacy- An expectation of privacy that society (through the eyes of a judge) is prepared to accept as reasonable. For a search to occur, a reasonable expectation of privacy must be infringed upon by a government actor.

What did the Supreme court conclude in Spinelli v. United States?

It concluded that insufficient knowledge of the details of the reported criminal activity can be overcome if "the tip describe[s] the accused's criminal activity in sufficient detail that the magistrate knows that he is relying on something more substantial than a casual rumor . . . or an accusation based merely on a individual's general reputation".

What can an unconstitutional arrest lead to?

What is important is that an unconstitutional arrest can lead to the exclusion of evidence.

What did the Supreme Court note in California v. Hodari D?

When an officer chases a suspect but does not lay hands on him or her, a seizure does not occur until the suspect submits to police authority and a seizure does occur the instant a police officer lays hands on a suspect during a chase, even if the suspect is able to break away from the officer's grasp.