30.06.2014 Views

SAN DIEGO DISTRICT ATTORNEY The Fourth Amendment and ...

SAN DIEGO DISTRICT ATTORNEY The Fourth Amendment and ...

SAN DIEGO DISTRICT ATTORNEY The Fourth Amendment and ...

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

Create successful ePaper yourself

Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.

<strong>SAN</strong> <strong>DIEGO</strong> <strong>DISTRICT</strong> <strong>ATTORNEY</strong><br />

<strong>The</strong> <strong>Fourth</strong> <strong>Amendment</strong> <strong>and</strong><br />

Search & Seizure<br />

An Update<br />

January, 2011<br />

Robert C. Phillips<br />

Deputy District Attorney (Ret.)<br />

San Diego District Attorney’s Office<br />

858-395-0302 (C)<br />

RCPhill808@aol.com<br />

Chapter 1<br />

<strong>The</strong> <strong>Fourth</strong> <strong>Amendment</strong>, United States Constitution:<br />

<strong>The</strong> <strong>Fourth</strong> <strong>Amendment</strong>: “<strong>The</strong> right of the people to be secure in their persons,<br />

houses, papers, <strong>and</strong> effects, against unreasonable searches <strong>and</strong> seizures, shall not<br />

be violated, <strong>and</strong> no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by<br />

oath or affirmation, <strong>and</strong> particularly describing the place to be searched <strong>and</strong> the<br />

persons or things to be seized.” (Emphasis added)<br />

See also California Constitution, Art I, § 13, with almost identical<br />

language.<br />

Scope: Initially intended to control the actions of the federal government only<br />

(See Barron ex rel. Tiernan v. Mayor of Baltimore (1833) 7 Pet. 243.), the<br />

United States Supreme Court eventually held that a violation of the <strong>Fourth</strong><br />

<strong>Amendment</strong> by state (which includes all county <strong>and</strong> municipal) authorities does<br />

in fact constitute a Fourteenth <strong>Amendment</strong>, “due process” violation, thus<br />

imposing compliance with this protection upon the states as well. (Mapp v. Ohio<br />

(1961) 367 U.S 643 [6 L.Ed.2 nd 1081]; Baker v. McCollan (1979) 443 U.S. 137,<br />

142 [61 L.Ed.2 nd 433, 440-441]; People v. Bracamonte (1975) 15 Cal.3 rd 394,<br />

400.)<br />

<strong>The</strong> Fourteenth <strong>Amendment</strong> provides that no “state” shall deprive its<br />

citizens of “life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.”<br />

<strong>The</strong> Exclusionary Rule: <strong>The</strong> <strong>Fourth</strong> <strong>Amendment</strong> serves as the primary basis<br />

for the “Exclusionary Rule;” excluding evidence from the courtroom which would<br />

be otherwise admissible, when seized by law enforcement in violation of its<br />

terms. (Weeks v. United States (1914) 232 U.S. 383 [58 L.Ed. 652].)<br />

1<br />

© 2011 Robert C. Phillips. All rights reserved

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!