Malcolm Rivera
The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects people from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government. While it does not guarantee protection from all searches and seizures, it does require that they be deemed reasonable under the law. The Fourth Amendment requires the government to obtain a warrant based on probable cause to conduct a legal search and seizure, with exceptions for consent, incident to a lawful arrest, probable cause with exigent circumstances, and items in plain view. The Supreme Court has ruled on numerous cases that have shaped the interpretation of the Fourth Amendment, such as Carpenter v. United States, which narrowed the Third-Party Doctrine and required a warrant for cell site location information.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Search warrant required | Yes, unless there is probable cause, consent is given, or it is a search incident to a lawful arrest |
| Probable cause | Needed for a warrant to be issued |
| Consent | Consent given by the suspect or a third party with common authority over the premises |
| Location | Open fields, international borders, and highway sobriety checkpoints can be searched without a warrant |
| Items in plain view | Can be searched without a warrant |
| Traffic stops | Can be conducted if there is a reasonable suspicion of a traffic violation or criminal activity |
| Pat-downs | Can be conducted during a lawful traffic stop |
| Narcotics detection dogs | Can be used during a valid traffic stop without reasonable suspicion |
| Phone records | Individuals have a reasonable expectation of privacy regarding cell phone records |
| Evidence found without a warrant | May be admissible if it is later legally seized based on independent information |
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What You'll Learn
The Fourth Amendment protects people, not places
The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution protects citizens against "unreasonable searches and seizures". It requires government agencies to obtain a warrant based on probable cause before conducting a search or seizure. This amendment was proposed by James Madison during the First United States Congress and ratified in 1791.
The "reasonable expectation of privacy" test, introduced by Justice John Marshall Harlan in his concurring opinion in Katz, has become a crucial standard in Fourth Amendment jurisprudence. This test considers whether an individual has an actual (subjective) expectation of privacy and whether society is prepared to recognize that expectation as reasonable. For example, in Carpenter v. United States (2018), the Court ruled that individuals have a reasonable expectation of privacy under the Fourth Amendment regarding their cell phone records, even though they voluntarily provided this information to cell phone companies.
However, the Supreme Court has carved out several exceptions to the warrant requirement. For instance, in California v. Ciraolo (1986), the Court found that people do not have a reasonable expectation of privacy against warrantless police surveillance by a helicopter flying over a fenced backyard. Similarly, in Minnesota v. Carter (1998), the Court held that temporary visitors to a home do not have the same reasonable expectation of privacy as the homeowner.
The Fourth Amendment's protection of people, rather than places, ensures that individuals' privacy rights are respected regardless of their physical location. However, the interpretation of "reasonable expectation of privacy" has varied over time, and the Supreme Court continues to grapple with defining what constitutes a "reasonable" search or seizure.
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Open fields can be searched without a warrant
The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects people's right "to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures". Generally, a search warrant is required for a search to be lawful. However, there are exceptions to this rule, and open fields are one such exception.
Open fields, such as pastures, open water, and woods, can be searched without a warrant as there is no reasonable expectation of privacy in these areas. This doctrine was first articulated in the case of Hester v. United States (1924), where the Court stated that the protection accorded by the Fourth Amendment does not extend to open fields. This was reaffirmed in Oliver v. United States (1984), where the Supreme Court ruled that there was no privacy expectation regarding an open field, and thus, no search had taken place when police trespassed onto a suspect's land without a warrant and discovered a field of marijuana.
The Court has defined "open fields" as open areas of a person's property that are not directly adjacent to their residence. This means that areas that are enclosed within a person's home or immediately surrounding it are generally not considered open fields and would require a warrant to be searched. However, it is important to note that some state courts have rejected the open fields doctrine under their own state constitutional search-and-seizure provisions, granting protection to open fields.
The rationale behind the open fields exception is that open fields do not provide a setting for intimate activities that the Fourth Amendment aims to protect from government interference or surveillance. Therefore, law enforcement officers can search open fields without a warrant if they have probable cause or reasonable suspicion that a crime has been, is being, or will be committed.
In conclusion, while the Fourth Amendment protects individuals from unreasonable searches and seizures, open fields are an exception to the warrant requirement as they are not considered private spaces. This exception allows law enforcement to search these areas without a warrant, provided they have probable cause or reasonable suspicion of criminal activity.
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The right to privacy
While the right to privacy is not explicitly mentioned in the US Constitution, it is recognised in many different forms, and several amendments address privacy rights. The Fourth Amendment, for example, protects people from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government, and electronic surveillance is considered a search under this amendment. The ultimate goal of the Fourth Amendment is to protect people's right to privacy and freedom from unreasonable government intrusions.
The Fourteenth Amendment's Due Process Clause is another source of privacy rights. While the text of the Clause does not explicitly mention privacy, the Supreme Court has found that it guarantees a right to privacy. In Eisenstadt v. Baird, the Court extended the right to privacy to unmarried couples, ruling that the right inheres in the individual, not the marital couple. The Fourteenth Amendment has also been used to extend privacy rights to same-sex couples and to protect an individual's right to abortion, though the latter was overturned by the Dobbs decision.
Privacy rights are expected to evolve with the changing landscape of internet usage. While the Fourth Amendment does not protect against all searches and seizures, only those deemed unreasonable, it is worth noting that warrantless searches and seizures are generally presumed to be unreasonable unless they fall within specific exceptions. The degree of intrusion on an individual's right to privacy is weighed against the need to promote government interests in determining the reasonableness of a search or seizure.
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Search warrants and the protection of personal property
The Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution protects people from unlawful government searches and seizures. It requires the government to obtain a warrant based on probable cause to conduct a legal search and seizure. A search warrant is a warrant signed by a judge or magistrate authorising a law enforcement officer to conduct a search on a certain person, a specified place, or an automobile for criminal evidence.
The Fourth Amendment states that:
> “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrant shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”
The Fourth Amendment reflects the Framers’ intent to avoid the unjust searches and seizures they experienced under English rule. It prevents the federal and state governments from conducting unreasonable searches and seizures. The Amendment requires that a neutral and detached magistrate authorise a search, rather than the police officer engaged in the enterprise of investigating a crime.
To obtain a search warrant, a law enforcement officer must request one from a judge. They must make their request in good faith and base it on reliable information that shows probable cause to search. A judge must sign and issue the warrant. The warrant must state the area law enforcement intends to search and the items or people they seek.
There are several exceptions to the warrant requirement. For example, in some cases, a third party with possessory rights to the property may have the authority to consent to a search if consent is voluntarily given. Additionally, the Supreme Court has ruled that evidence illegally found without a search warrant may be admissible if the evidence is later legally seized based on information independent of the illegal search.
In the case of Carpenter v. United States (2018), the Court ruled that individuals have a reasonable expectation of privacy under the Fourth Amendment regarding cell phone records, even though they have turned over that information to third parties, such as cell phone companies. This case narrowed the Third-Party Doctrine, requiring law enforcement to obtain a search warrant before receiving cell site location information (CSLI) records.
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Consent searches
The Fourth Amendment requires that a search warrant be obtained, based on probable cause, before a search is performed. However, consent searches do not require a warrant, as long as the individual voluntarily waives their Fourth Amendment rights. The prosecution has the burden of proving that consent was given freely and without coercion. The individual has the right to refuse consent and may revoke it at any time during the search, except in limited cases such as airport screenings and prison visitor searches.
The person granting consent does not need to be the suspect or the person ultimately charged. Third parties may grant consent in certain circumstances, such as a co-occupant of a house or hotel management. However, a landlord's consent is not sufficient for searching a tenant's home. The consenting party must have "common authority over or other sufficient relationship to the premises or effects sought to be inspected".
Courts will consider the totality of the circumstances to determine whether consent was given voluntarily. Police officers are not required to inform individuals of their right to refuse consent for the consent to be valid, as per Schneckloth v. Bustamonte. However, some states, like Colorado, have enacted informed consent laws requiring officers to inform individuals of their right to decline.
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Frequently asked questions
The Fourth Amendment protects people from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government. It requires the government to obtain a warrant based on probable cause to conduct a legal search and seizure.
The Fourth Amendment does not protect against all searches and seizures, but only those deemed unreasonable under the law. The determination of reasonableness considers the intrusion on an individual's Fourth Amendment rights against legitimate government interests, such as public safety.
There are several exceptions to the warrant requirement. A warrantless search may be lawful if an officer is given consent to search, if the search is incident to a lawful arrest, if there is probable cause and exigent circumstances, or if the items are in plain view. Additionally, officers may conduct routine stops and searches at international borders and highway sobriety checkpoints.
