Criminal Law

Motivations show premeditation. And premeditation indicates that the perpetrator of a particular crime had time to think through the consequences of their actions. They had a chance to stop and...

In criminal law, there is an expectation of evidence/proof to establish probable cause. The reason that a hunch isn’t considered enough to determine probable cause is that a hunch can be tainted by...

The two prongs to the reasonableness test stem from a 1967 Supreme Court case known as Katz v United States. Charles Katz made money through gambling activities, which were illegal. The government...

In its broadest sense, a special needs search is a search done without a search warrant issued by a court of law or without probable cause. Almost all invasive searches in the United States must be...

The significance of this case is that it helps to define when a person has been seized/arrested. In this case, the Supreme Court ruled that an arrest only happens when the person has been...

The Exclusionary Rule was designed to give police an incentive to avoid violating the 4th Amendment. This rule is controversial because if the evidence is found to be improperly gathered, it is...

North Carolina v. Alford concerns a situation back in 1963 where a man named Henry Alford was accused of killing another person. There were no eye witnesses to the actual crime, but before the...

The decision in this case has to do with what federal courts must do in cases where they are petitioned for a writ of habeas corpus. The courts are told in this case that they must conduct full...

I agree with the first response that much of what reasonable suspicion is is a question of the context in which it arises as an issue, and it is not clear to me what exactly you are looking for in...

The fundamental fairness doctrine is an alternative to the doctrine of incorporation. This doctrine holds that the 14th Amendment does not hold the states to the provisions of the Bill of Rights....

There is no significant difference in these two types of probable cause. In both cases, the level of proof is the same. Probable cause is a level of proof that is above mere suspicion but is...

The reason for this is that parolees have, by definition, committed more serious offenses (or just more offenses) and are therefore more of a risk to society. In addition, they are still under a...

One aspect to this that has not been raised is "a jury of one's peers." This is ripe for discussion in the classroom. The standard for guilt is meant to be viewed through the lens of one's peers,...

Every person arrested or accused of a crime has the right to legal representation. In order to decide which cases to drop and which cases to prosecute, the police and related legal counsel must...

This always strikes me as a very interesting question. It presupposes that the goal of the death penalty is and always has been the deterrence of further or future crime. If this is not and has not...

The case of the United States v. Leon involves the 4th amendment, particularly what is known as the "exclusionary rule." The question under consideration was whether evidence collected when...

The main provision of the Constitution that can be violated by procedures used by the police to identify suspects is the guarantee of due process. The due process clauses of the 5th and 14th...

Two major types of remedies against government wrongdoing in this area are the exclusionary rule and civil suits alleging torts. If the police or prosecutors act in illegal ways towards a person,...

Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents was a case in which federal agents searched a man’s house without a warrant, establishing that a person may sue the federal government if his rights are...

There are a number of characteristics or factors that a court will look at when determining if a suspect voluntarily consented to a search. They include: Whether the person was in custody at the...

The major argument in favor of videotaping police interrogations is that it would remove doubts about the admissibility of statements made by the suspect. Often, defendants in court claim that...

This case was significant in that it helped to define what the police may and may not do in terms of searching cars and passengers during traffic stops. In this case, Wilson was a passenger in a...

Probable cause is the level of proof that is needed before a warrant can be issued for an arrest or a search. Probable cause can be defined as facts or evidence that would be sufficient to...

Police officers need to obtain a warrant to arrest anyone (in a home or not) unless they have probable cause to arrest them on the spot. For example, if an officer sees a crime committed they do...

There are a number of major exceptions to the requirement that officers need a warrant to search and seize one's possessions or to arrest a person. These exceptions include: Consent. If a person...

Probable cause is needed in order for a police officer to obtain a search warrant or to arrest someone. Reasonable suspicion is needed if the officer only wishes to detain someone briefly to...

As a casual non-leagal observer, it seems to me that the husband shouldn't, and couldn't, be charged with anything. It would be very difficult to prove intent, unless he told the clerk who sold him...

Article 1, Section 9 of the U.S. Constitution reads as follows: "The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety...

I am against the death penalty because it is irreversible. The justice system is not flawless. We make all kinds of mistakes. We need to be able to trust in our justice system. Until we can...

This is a difficult question to answer because, from what I can find, it hasn't been well documented. Also, I have to put forth the idea that I'm a not a lawyer and perhaps someone who specializes...

Terry Vs. Ohio (1968), gave light to the term "frisk". A "frisk" is a brief yet cautions examination that involves patting down your clothes. The aim is to find weapons on you. An officer can frisk...

Not necessarily; it depends on the ability of law enforcement to make a complete investigation. This does not necessarily entail preventing a vessel from sailing, although they can do so with an...

The scope of the good faith exception to the exclusionary rule was narrowest when the exception was first created in 1984. Since then, the exception has been expanded a great deal. In 1984, the...

The significance of this case was that it established the idea that a person has the right to sue government agents for violation of his or her Fourth Amendment rights. In this case, Bivens sued...

The elements of the Constitution that deal with the right to a fair trial are most often brought up by defense lawyers, and are most carefully guarded by arresting officers, from the Miranda...

It is very easy to find four Amendments to the U.S. Constitution that concern criminal law. Amendent 4: This protects against "unreasonable searches and seizures"; in other words, the police may...

Searches and seizures are actions that can be carried out as part of a criminal case. A search happens when the police do things like looking through a person’s belongings or listening in on their...

I assume that you are asking for three circumstances in which a warrantless search would be legal because of an emergency. The Supreme Court has ruled that warrantless searches are legal in such...

I think you're asking about situations that involve "search and seizure" that are not directed by law enforcement. The trick is that such instances, though not undertaken by the police, often have...

Lets look at what "search and seizure" means. The "search" part reflects the interest of an authority (usually law enforcement) in searching a person or corporation's belongings for evidence of...

The executive branch does not, of course, pass laws regarding crime. Laws can only be passed by the legislative branch. However, we should not understate the role that the executive plays in...

This question is one of the ultimate questions of our time: how far do we go to protect our country from terror attacks and yet preserve our own privacy? The court allows the minimal invasions of...

The significance of recording and storing the DNA of felons depends, to a degree, on who you ask. The answer you get from most people will be that it has major significance, but they may differ in...