Search and Seizure
What is the broad three-step analysis for a search and seizure issue?
1) Does person have 4th Am right? (gov’t conduct
and reasonable expectation of privacy – requires
standing, e.g. ownership or living in premises
searched; overnight guest; but not items held out
to public);
2) Is Search warrant valid?
3) Is there an exception?
What is a search Incident to Lawful Arrest
search contemporaneous in time and place.
Limited to wingspan of individual.
What are the exceptions to a valid search warrant?
1) Incident to Lawful Arrest
2) Automobile Exception
3) Plain View
4) Consent
5) Stop and Frisk
6) Hot Pursuit/Evanescent Evidence
What is the automobile exception?
Incident to arrest → may search interior compartment of car but not trunk.
If probable cause → full search, including any
containers.
What must a valid warrant include?
Must include:
1) Particularity of place searched;
2) Particularity of things seized; and
3) Issued by neutral and detached judicial
Officer must be legitimately on premises.
What is needed for a valid arrest?
Probable cause + warrant if D in home.
Stop in car requires reasonable suspicion (checkpoint
and pre-textual stops OK)