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impound must be reasonable, and (3) the search must be conducted according to standardized
procedures for inventorying the contents of impounded vehicles.
§4.13 Searches of Protected Premises
A.
§4.14 Premises Protected by the Fourth Amendment
A. Home
residence, even if only for a short time. It includes houses, apartments, mobile homes, hotel
and motel rooms, and homes in which the suspect resides as an overnight guest.
1. Curtilage. Fourth Amendment protection for the home also extends to areas immediately
surrounding the home, to which the ordinary activities of home life extend. This area is
called the curtilage. Courts use the following criteria to decide whether a particular area
a. United States v. Dunn (Part II). DEA agent crossed over the perimeter fence of the
approximately 50 yards from the fence surrounding the home. Smelling
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2. Open fields used to describe outdoor spaces that are not within
the curtilage. The Supreme Court has determined that owners lack a reasonable
B. Business premises. Fourth Amendment protection for business premises turns on whether
they are open to the public. Police do not need a search warrant to go anyplace that members
of the public are invited to enter. However, entry upon premises or portions of premises that
are not open to the public, such as private offices, constitutes a search.
C. Review Questions 36 – 37 test understanding of this material.
§4.15 Entry and Search of Premises Under a Warrant
A. Search authority conferred by a search warrant. When a search warrant describes the place
to be searched by address, search authority extends to the dwelling, all structures and
1. Authority to detain the occupants during execution of a search warrant. The issuance of
a search warrant carries automatic authority to detain persons who regularly occupy the
2. Authority to frisk the occupants for weapons. Issuance of a search warrant does not carry
3. Authority to search the occupants for objects listed in the warrant. A search warrant
confers authority to search things, not people. Police may not search persons found on
the premises for objects listed in the search warrant unless: (1) the search warrant
B. Search authority conferred by an arrest warrant. When police arrest a person under a search
home, they may:
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1. Search the premises to the degree necessary to locate the suspect.
2.
other
E. Review Questions 38 – 43 test understanding of this material.
§4.16 Entry and Search of Premises under a Warrant Exception
A. Exigent circumstances.
1. Grounds for search authority. The exigent circumstances exception authorizes the police
to make a warrantless entry when:
a. they have reason to believe that life or property is in imminent danger or that a
serious crime is in progress;
i. Brigham City, Utah v. Stuart (Part II). Police may enter a home without a
serious crime who flees and takes refuge inside.
2. Search boundaries. When an entry is made under the exigent circumstances exception,
search authority is limited to actions immediately necessary to address the exigency that
3. Review question. While patrolling a residential neighborhood late at night, Officer
Collins heard the sound of breaking glass followed by a burglar alarm. Concerned that a
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4. Police-Created Exigent Circumstances. Police may enter a residence without a warrant
the exigent circumstances are the
direct result of their prior actions so long as their prior actions do not involve an actual
or threatened violation of the Fourth Amendment.
a. Kentucky v. King (Part II) Officers followed a suspected drug dealer into an
apartment complex. Uncertain whether he fled into the apartment on the left or the right,
they picked the apartment on the left (which was the wrong apartment) because they
smelled a strong order of marijuana wafting around the door. They knocked forcefully
and shouted Police! No one answered, but they heard people moving around inside
You might want to ask the students to provide an example of a situation where police
create the exigency by engaging or threatening to engage in conduct that violates the
Fourth Amendment (which prevents them from using the exigent circumstances
exception to justify their warrantless entry)? Answer: Police, acting without a warrant,
knock loudly and threaten to break the door down if it is not opened voluntarily. They
hear scurrying noises inside and break the door in. On this sequence of events, the
B. Consent. Valid consent will justify a warrantless entry onto private premises.
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1. Actual consent. Actual consent given by a person who appears to have authority is
2. Implied consent to administrative searches. Statutes often grant government agencies
C. Review Question 44 tests understanding of this material.
§4.17 The Exclusionary Rule
A. Statement of the exclusionary rule. The exclusionary rule is a judicially created remedy
1. Mapp v. Ohio (Part II): Police, acting on a tip that a man wanted for questioning in
conne
falsified search warrant, physically restrained Ms. Mapp, and rummaged through her
home in search of anything that might incriminate her. Although the state court agreed
that the pol
B. Standing. Only a person whose Fourth Amendment rights were violated by an illegal search
and seizure may challenge introduction of illegally obtained evidence. This is known as
standing. If
lacks standing to object to the introduction of this evidence against him because his privacy
was not invaded.
C. Exceptions to the exclusionary rule. The Supreme Court has recognized the following
exceptions to the exclusionary rule.
1. Inevitable discovery. Suppression is not required of evidence obtained through an illegal
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good faith. The most common application of the good faith exception is good faith
reliance on a facially valid search warrant that is later determined to be defective. This
a. Herring v. United States (Part II). Police arrested and searched Herring after
receiving erroneous information from a clerk in a neighboring county that there
was an outstanding warrant for his arrest. The warrant had been recalled, but this
3. Illegality in the Manner of Entering to Execute a Valid Search Warrant. Suppression is
5. Use outside the criminal context. Although the exclusionary rule bars introduction of
can be admitted.
D. Review Questions 45 – 47 test understanding of this material.
Review Questions
1. What was the historical abuse that led to the adoption of the search and seizure clause of the
Fourth Amendment? (§4.2)
2. Katz v. United States? (§4.2)
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6. t, steals an incriminating letter
7. When is something con Why are police observations of matters in
open view not considered searches? (§4.2)
8. Do any of the following police investigative activities involve searches within the meaning
of the Fourth Amendment? Explain why or why not. (§4.2)
a. Looking inside the passenger compartment of a car, parked on a public street, without
opening the door. No
9.
require for a full search? (§4.3)
10. There are four exceptions to the warrant requirement that permit full searches. Identify them.
(§4.3)
14. Indicate whether the following police actions involve a seizure and explain why or why not.
(§4.4)
a. Taking objects from a garbage can that has been placed on the curb for collection. No
b. Removing checked luggage from an airport baggage cart, subjecting it to a canine
examination, and putting it back in time to be placed on the intended flight. No
15. What does the Fourth Amendment require to seize property for use as evidence? (§4.4)
19. Suppose that police, while investigating a domestic violence complaint in the neighboring
the gate and seize the plants under the plain view doctrine? (§4.4) No
24. Why does the Fourth Amendment require that search warrants contain a particularized
description of the place to be searched and the things to be seized? (§4.5)
25. What is necessary for a search warrant to be considered facially valid?
26. What are the advantages of conducting a search under a warrant, as opposed to acting under
a warrant clause exception?
30. When may police search a closed container like luggage as part of a search incident to an
arrest? (§4.8)
31. Which of the various exceptions to the search warrant requirement studied in this chapter
apply to motor vehicles? (§4.9)
32. When do police have the authority to conduct a vehicular limited weapons search? What
parts of the vehicle may be searched? What is the permissible intensity of the search? (§4.10)
33. Under what circumstances, if any, may a vehicle be searched incident to a
for: a) speeding? Answer: The search must be performed only while the motorist is
unsecured and within reaching distance of the passenger compartment. b) drunk driving?
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34. What justifications has the Supreme Court advanced for recognizing an exception to the
warrant requirement when police have probable cause to believe that a motor vehicle
contains evidence subject to seizure? What parts of the vehicle may be searched? What is the
40. When may police detain persons on the premises covered by a search warrant? (§4.15)
41. When may police frisk persons on the premises covered by search warrant? (§4.15)
42. When may police search persons on the premises covered by a search warrant for objects
listed in the warrant? (§4.15)
43. What is the purpose of a protective sweep? What are the normal boundaries of a protective
sweep? When may police extend the boundaries of a protective sweep? What is the intensity
of a protective sweep? (§4.15)
Examination Questions (*indicates the correct answer)
(§4.2)
1.
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(§4.2)
2. When the purpose for conducting a search is to obtain evidence of a crime, the Fourth
Amendment always requires the officer to:
(§§4.2, 4.14)
3. Which of the following police activities constitutes a search within the meaning of the Fourth
Amendment?
(§4.2)
4. Sally York, who was a passenger on the same flight as Mary Wanna, accidentally picked up
firearm resting on top of bundles of $100 bills, immediately closed the suitcase, took it to police
headquarters, and told Detective Jacobs what she had seen. Detective Jacobs reopened the
suitcase, took out and examined the firearm and money, and then removed the lining, under
which he found a bag containing 20 grams of cocaine. Mary has been prosecuted for possession
of an unregistered firearm, possession of cocaine, and trafficking in drugs. She has moved to
suppress the evidence, claiming that her Fourth Amendment rights were violated. Which of the
following acts constituted a search within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment?
(§§4.2, 4.7, 4.14)
5. Police do not need a search warrant or probable cause to believe that a search will turn up
evidence in order to search:
(§4.3)
6.
apartment?
(§§4.4, 4.8, 4.10, 4.15)
7. In which of the following situations do police have authority to inspect the contents of
Sticky-
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(§4.4)
8. Which of the following is always required to seize an object for use as evidence?
(§4.3)
9. Which of the following is always necessary to justify a plain view seizure?
(§§4.3, 4.10)
10. Police have the authority to search the trunk of a motor vehicle without a warrant whenever:
(§§4.3, 4.11, 4.15)
11. In which of the following situations would an officer be justified in searching a briefcase
discovered in the trunk of a motor vehicle?
(§§ 4.2, 4.7)
12. The purpose of conducting a search following a custodial arrest is to:
(§§ 4.3, 4.8)
13. The search of an arrested person incident to a lawful arrest:
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(§§ 4.3, 4.7)
14. Police have the authority to conduct a Terry pat-down:
(§§4.3, 4.5)
15. To establish probable cause for the issuance of a search warra
contain facts that establish probable cause to believe that:
(§4.5)
16. Which of the following requirements is necessary for a search warrant to be issued in
conformity with the Fourth Amendment?
(§§ 4.8, 4.10)
17. In which of the following situations do police have authority to search the passenger
compartment of a vehicle?
(§4.11)
18. to the search warrant requirement:
(§§ 4.13, 4.16)
19. The exigent circumstances exception to the warrant requirement permits the police to make a
warrantless entry on private premises when:
(§4.15)
20. When executing an arrest warrant inside a private residence, police are allowed to:
(§4.14)
21. A reliable informant told the police that Sam was growing a half-acre of marijuana in the
woods behind his garage. The police:
(§4.4)
22. Sergeant Davis of the Whosville Police Department received a tip from a reliable informant
that a drug courier is traveling on a bus that departed from Detroit bound for Chicago, which will
be stopping in Whosville in about 30 minutes. Which of the following actions may Sergeant
Davis take without violating the Fourth Amendment?
(§4.17)
23. The exclusionary rule does not bar introduction of evidence seized in violation of the Fourth
Amendment when the evidence is offered:
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(§4.8)
24. Which of the following are not allowed under the search incident to arrest exception to the
warrant requirement?
(§§4.2, 4.4, 4.14)
25. Which of the following constitutes a search within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment?
(§4.14)
26. A protective sweep:
(§4.1)
27. The automobile exception:
(§4.10)
28. When the police arrest a motorist for a minor traffic violation, which of the following best
describes their incident to arrest search authority:
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29. When the police execute a premises search warrant, they are allowed to:
(§§ 4.2, 4.14)
30. Which of the following constitutes a search?
(§4.16)
31. A police officer walking through a motel parking lot hears a loud gunshot and screaming
from inside a motel room. He tries the door, finds it unlocked, and enters. The sounds came from
a television that had been left on at full volume. There is a baggie of marijuana beside the
television. No one is in the room. The officer:
(§4.4)
32. When the police have a reasonable suspicion that a UPS parcel contains narcotics, they may:
Multiple Choice Questions (*indicates the correct answer)
1. Police are allowed to perform brief, limited searches for investigation when they have
reasonable suspicion that the property is connected to criminal activity. This authority stems from
which Supreme Court decision?
2. The following activity would be considered a search under the Fourth Amendment:
3. The Fourth Amendment includes the following in its list of constitutionally protected subjects:
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4.
search:
5. In order to secure a search warrant, an officer must possess facts sufficient to warrant a person
of reasonable caution in believing which of the following:
6. In Chimel v. California, the Supreme Court ruled that the following was unconstitutional:
7. The Chimel decision established which test?
8. When an arrestees arrested in places other than their homes have their impounded belongings
searched, the following is one of the goals:
9. –
Terry vehicular weapons search when he:
10.
11. Mapp v. Ohio made what apply to the states:
True or False Questions (*indicates the correct answer)
1. Search and seizure is covered under the Fifth Amendment.
2. A s
3. Katz v. United States marked the beginning of modern Fourth Amendment jurisprudence.
4. Searches and seizures of abandoned property violate the Fourth Amendment.
5. Police do not have an automatic authority to perform a search whenever they make an arrest.
6. If a defendant commits perjury, suppressed evidence can be used to impeach the witness.
7. One p
8. Evidence is considered in plain view only if the initial intrusion is unlawful.
9. A search for criminal evidence is called a full search.
10. The majority of searches performed by the police are made before an arrest.