Criminal Procedure (Studicata)
Harmless Error Rule
If evidence in violation of Miranda is admitted at trial, a guilty verdict will be upheld if the prosecution can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the error was harmless because the D would have been convicted even without the tainted evidence
Search Warrant Exception: Consent
Law enforcement officers may conduct a search without a warrant if a person voluntarily consents to a search. Officers do NOT have to inform the subject that she has the right to refuse consent to the search. A third party with apparent authority can consent to search. However, officers cannot search over a present occupant's objection (ie, it one occupant consents and the other occupant refuses, officers cannot search the property).
Search Warrant Exception: Search Incident to a Lawful Arrest
Law enforcement officers may conduct a search without a warrant if the search occurs at the time that a lawful arrest is made. The scope of the search is limited to objects within the reach of the arrestee (ie, if the arrestee is restrained, their reach is very limited - this would limit the permissible scope of the search).
Search Warrant Exception: Automobiles
Law enforcement officers may conduct a search without a warrant if they have probable cause to believe that an automobile contains contraband or evidence of a crime. They can search the parts of the vehicle, and containers inside, which could reasonably contain the items for which there is probable cause (ie, cannot search for a shotgun in the glove box where it cannot reasonably fit).
Search Warrant Exception: Exigent Circumstances
Law enforcement officers may conduct a search without a warrant if: 1) the officers are in "hot pursuit" or immediate danger; OR 2) the evidence would spoil or disappear in the time it would take to obtain a warrant.
Search Warrant Exception: Plain View
Law enforcement officers may seize evidence without a warrant if: 1) the officers are legally on the premises; 2) the evidence if observed (with any of the five senses) in plain view; AND 3) there is probable cause to believe the items are evidence if a crime or contraband.
6th Amendment Right to Counsel for Photo Arrays
Neither the defendant nor his attorney has the right to be present, but the police must turn over the photo array to the defendant.
Exceptions to the Exclusionary Rule
The exclusionary rule does NOT apply if: 1) the police had an independent source for the evidence that was distinct from the original illegal source; 2) the discovery of the evidence was inevitable regardless of the violation; 3) there is attenuation in the causal chain, such that intervening events and the passage of time can remove the taint; OR 4) the police relied in good faith on either: (a) existing law that was later declared unconstitutional; or (b) a warrant that, while facially valid, is later found to be defective.
Burden of Proof in Criminal Cases
The prosecution MUST prove every element of a crime beyond a reasonable doubt in order to obtain a conviction of the defendant. However, the government can shift the burden of Proof to the defendant in regard to affirmative defenses argued by the defendant.
Miranda Exceptions
There are three main exceptions to the Miranda requirement. The police are NOT required to give Miranda warnings before questioning a suspect: 1) when the public's safety is at risk; 2) when the suspect being questioned is not aware that the interrogator is a police officer (ie, undercover police officers); OR 3) if the questioning is biographical for routine booking purposes
4th Amendment Searches
Under the 4th Amendment, a person is granted protection from unreasonable government searches. A search occurs when government conduct violates a person's reasonable expectation of privacy. Absent an exception, a warrantless search performed by the government is unlawful.
Miranda Violations
A statement obtained in violation of Miranda is inadmissible in the prosecution's case-in-chief, BUT can be admitted to impeach the D. Evidence obtained from a voluntary statement taken in violation of Miranda is admissible. Miranda is violated if: 1. The police fail to give Miranda warnings before a custodial interrogation OR 2. The police fail to cease interrogation of a person after she has affirmatively invoked her right to remain silent or her right to counsel.
Motion for Judgment of Acquittal
After the government closes its evidence or after the close of all the evidence, the court, on the D's motion, must enter a judgment of acquittal for the D if the evidence is insufficient to sustain a conviction Meaning no reasonable jury could find that each element of the offense was proven beyond a reasonable doubt
Removal of Potential Jurors
Potential jurors may be removed for cause to ensure an impartial jury OR through the use of peremptory challenges Peremptory challenges allow each side to remove a limited number of potential jurors for any reason other than race or gender
Guilty Pleas
A guilty plea waives the various trial rights that a defendant would otherwise have (ie, right to a just trial, right to appeal if there is a conviction, etc). For a guilty plea to be valid, the judge must: 1) inform the defendant of his rights and ensure that the defendant understands those rights; 2) inform the defendant of possible sentences; 3) make sure there is a factual basis for the plea; 4) determine that the plea did not result from force, threats, or improper promises; AND 5) make sure that defendant understands the immigration consequences of pleading guilty.
Search Warrant Requirements
A search warrant must: 1. Be issued by a neutral magistrate 2. Be based on probable cause to believe that the items sought are fruits, instrumentalities, or evidence of crime AND 3. Describe the place and property to be searched with particularity. If a warrant fails to meet these three requirements, the warrant is INVALID, and the recovered items will be excluded from the prosecutor's case-in-chief
Miranda Waiver
A defendant may knowingly and voluntarily waive his Miranda rights. The burden is on the government to demonstrate by a preponderance of the evidence that the waiver was made knowingly and voluntarily.
Arrest Warrants
An individual may be arrested with or without an arrest warrant An arrest warrant authorizes law enforcement officers to enter a home to arrest the individual. An arrest warrant is issued by a neutral magistrate based on a finding of probable cause to believe that the named individual has committed a crime. Without a warrant, officers can arrest an individual inside the home only if there is: 1. Consent to enter OR 2. Exigent circumstances
Admissibility of Involuntary Statements
An involuntarily obtained statement is NOT admissible against a D for substantive purposes or for impeachment purposes Evidence obtained from an involuntary statement is fruit of the poisonous tree and is presumptively inadmissible
Double Jeopardy
Double Jeopardy ensures that the defendant is protected against: 1) prosecution for the same offense after acquittal; 2) prosecution for the same offense after conviction; AND 3) multiple prosecutions or punishments for the same offense.
Exclusionary Rule and Fruit of the Poisonous Tree
Evidence obtained in violation of the defendant's 4th, 5th, or 6th Amendment rights is inadmissible in a criminal case. Additionally, all evidence obtained as a result of the constitutional violation is inadmissible as fruit of the poisonous tree. These exclusionary rules do NOT apply to Miranda violations; they only apply to 4th, 5th, or 6th Amendment violations.
Search Warrant Exception: Stop and Frisk [Terry Stops]
Law enforcement officers can stop an individual when the officer has a reasonable suspicion, based on articular facts (ie, more than a "hunch" - less than probable cause), to believe that the subject is or is about to be engaged in criminal activity. During a Terry stop, an officer can frisk a subject for weapons without a warrant; however, the officer cannot initiate a search for evidence. If the frisk for weapons reveal objects whose shape makes their identify obvious (ie, object is obviously contraband), the officer may seize those objects.
Search Warrant Exception: Administrative Searches
Law enforcement officers do NOT need search warrants to conduct administrative searches if the search is both: 1) reasonable; AND 2) conducted pursuant to established police agency procedures that are designed to meet legitimate objectives while limiting the discretion of the officer.
Arrest Requirements
In order to arrest an individual, law enforcement officers must have probable cause to believe that the individual has committed a crime. An officer has probable cause if: 1) the officer witnesses the commission of the crime; OR 2) the person tells the officer that a crime has been committed.
6th Amendment Right to Counsel Violations
Once a defendant's 6th Amendment right to counsel has attached, any attempts to deliberately elicit a statement from him in the absence of his attorney violates the 6th Amendment. However, the 6th Amendment right to counsel is offense-specific; meaning that it only applies to the offense that the defendant has been formally charged with. The police are free to question the defendant about unrelated offenses without his attorney present.
Places Where There is Not A Reasonable Expectation of Privacy
Places where there is NOT a reasonable expectation of privacy: 1) public streets 2) open fields (even if the open field is private property) 3) garbage left out in the street 4) abandoned property 5) anything visible from public airspace 6) anything that can be seen inside one's home from public space.
Places Where There Is a Reasonable Expectation of Privacy
Places where there is a reasonable expectation of privacy: 1) home; 2) hotel rooms; 3) offices; 4) backyard of the home (curtilage); AND 5) luggage
Involuntary Statements Under the 5th Amendment
The 5th Amendment protects against government compulsion of involuntary statements. Statements are involuntary only if the police coerced the D into making the statements. To determine whether a statement was coerced by the police, courts look at the totality of the circumstances. Relevant factors include: 1. The length of the interrogation 2. The time and location where the interrogation took place 3. Police tactics used (force, trickery, etc.) AND 4. The character of the person being interrogated (age, experience, state of health, education level, sophistication, intoxication, mental condition, etc.)
6th Amendment Right to Counsel
The 6th Amendment guarantees a criminal defendant "the assistance if counsel for his defense." The 6th Amendment right to counsel automatically attaches once formal adversarial judicial proceedings have commenced (ie, formal charge, preliminary hearing, indictment, arraignment, and all parts of the trial process). By contrast, the 5th Amendment right to counsel must be affirmatively invoked by the defendant (does NOT automatically attach).
6th Amendment Right to a Jury Trial
The 6th Amendment guarantees a criminal defendant the right to a jury trial for all serious offenses. Serious offenses are those for which the authorized punishment is more than 6 months of incarceration.
6th Amendment Right to Counsel Waiver
The 6th Amendment right to counsel is in effect once it automatically attaches UNLESS the defendant voluntarily, knowingly, and intelligently waives the right. The defendant must understand the nature of the right being waived and the consequences for waiving it.
Ineffective Assistance of Counsel
The Supreme Court has held that part of the 6th Amendment right to counsel is a right to effective assistance of counsel. If a convicted D can prove that he had ineffective assistance of counsel at trial, his conviction can be overturned. To prove ineffective assistance, a D must show: 1. That his trial lawyer's performance fell below an objective standard of reasonableness AND 2. A reasonable probability that the result of the proceeding would have been different BUT FOR his counsel's unprofessional errors.
Use of Force in Police Interrogations
The application of force or threats of force made by the police to the person being interrogated renders any statements made during the interrogation involuntary
6th Amendment Right to Counsel for Pre-Indictment Lineups
The defendant does NOT have a 6th Amendment right to have counsel present during a pre-Indictment lineup
6th Amendment Right to Counsel for Post-Indictment Lineups
The defendant has a 6th Amendment right to have counsel present during a post-indictment lineup. If that right us violated, then evidence that the witness identified the defendant at the lineup MUST be excluded.
Invocation of the 5th Amendment Right to Counsel
The police MUST cease their interrogation if the party being questioned affirmatively invokes her right to counsel. The interrogation cannot resume until the lawyer is present, the suspect reinitiates the interrogation, or 14 days have passed since the suspect was released from custody.
Invocation of the 5th Amendment Right to Remain Silent
The police MUST cease their interrogation if the party being questioned affirmatively invokes her right to remain silent After a substantial period of time, police can go back to the suspect, give Miranda warnings again, and seek to interrogate her further
Jury Pool in Criminal Cases
The potential jury pool must represent a fair cross-section of the community from which no distinctive group is excluded The actual jury that is seated must be only impartial - it does NOT have to represent a fair cross-section of the community
Use of Trickery in Police Interrogations
Trickery or false promises made by the police to the person being interrogated may render their statements involuntary However, deceit or fraud by the police (lying about an accomplice's confession) does not itself make a statement involuntary
Custodial Interrogations
Under Miranda, any incriminating statement obtained as a result of custodial interrogation may not be used against the suspect at a subsequent trial unless the police informed the suspect of his Miranda rights. 1) Custodial--a person is in custody when he reasonably believes that he is not free to leave 2) Interrogation--a person is subject to an interrogation when the police knows or should know that their words or actions are likely to elicit an incriminating response
Miranda Rights
When a person is in custody, the police MUST inform the person of their Miranda rights BEFORE subjecting them to a police interrogation. This includes informing the subject: 1) they have the right to remain silent; 2) any statement they make may be used against them in a court of law; 3) they have the right to consult an attorney and to have the attorney present during questioning; AND 4) they have the right to have an attorney appointed if they cannot afford one.
