Fourth Amendment
What does the Fourth Amendment protect?
Unreasonable searches and seizures
What does the Fifth Amendment protect?
Self-incrimination
What is required for a speedy and public trial?
Trials must be held within a reasonable time and cannot be held in secret
What is the purpose of bail?
To ensure that defendants will appear for trial and all pretrial hearings for which they must be present.
Jane is charged with theft and has her first court appearance. The judge asks if she wants to speak with an attorney before proceeding with the trial.
Does Jane have a right to an attorney?
Yes. Under the Sixth Amendment, Jane has the right to counsel during critical stages of the criminal process, including pre-trial hearings and her trial
A ________ ________ is when a person suspected of criminal activity is briefly detained and receives an open palm frisk.
Terry Stop
Ensures fair treatment under the law and prevents unnecessary government actions.
What is confrontation within the meaning of the Sixth Amendment?
The government is required to present the witnesses who have accused us of a crime and allow us to ask them questions.
What are the three parts of the Eighth Amendment?
(1) No excessive bails
(2) No excessive fines
(3) No cruel and unusual punishment
Mike is arrested for robbery. While being taken to the station, the police start asking him questions about the crime.
Did the police have to read him his Miranda Rights?
Yes. Since Mike is in custody and being questioned about the crime, the officer must read him his Miranda rights to protect his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.
What level of suspicion allows police to detain a person briefly to investigate possible criminal activity, even without probable cause?
Reasonable Suspicion
What are Miranda rights?
These are a legal rights that police must inform a suspect of when they are in custody and about to be interrogated.
What are the five things the Sixth Amendment protects citizens from?
(1) ________ and ________ Trial
(2) ________ of nature and cause of __________
(3) _________ the witnesses against us
(4) _________ process of obtaining ___________
(5) _________ of counsel
(1) Speedy and Public Trial
(2) Notice of the nature and cause of charge
(3) Confront the witnesses against us
(4) Compulsory process of obtaining witnesses
(5) Assistance of Counsel
When are fines excessive?
When they are not proportional.
The amount of fines owed by the defendant must have some relationship to the crime committed.
Sara is convicted of vandalism and sentenced to 50 hours of community service, cleaning public parks.
Is this cruel and unusual?
No. The Eighth Amendment doesn’t consider community service as cruel or unusual because the punishment is not excessive for the crime. It's a reasonable, non-punitive way to make amends.
What level of suspicion is this: Law enforcement must have a reasonable belief, based on facts they can show, to conduct a search or make an arrest.
Probable Cause
C__________ and I________ are needed for Miranda rights to be read to an individual.
This is also known as __________ __________.
Custody and Interrogation
Custodial Interrogation
Why is it important to receive notice about the charges held against you?
When is a punishment cruel and unusual?
When a punishment is disproportionately harsh, meaning the punishment is too severe considering the crime committed.
Police are searching Tom's backyard for a stolen car, using a warrant for the search. While looking, they spot illegal drugs on a table in plain view through his window.
Can police seize the illegal drugs?
Yes. Under the Fourth Amendment, evidence in plain view can be seized without a warrant if the police are legally in the position to see it, even if it’s outside the scope of the original warrant.
John is walking down the street when a police officer stops him. The officer claims John looks suspicious and orders him to empty his pockets without asking for permission.
Did the officer violate John’s Fourth Amendment rights?
The Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable searches. For the search to be legal, the officer needs a reasonable suspicion or probable cause. If the officer had no clear reason to suspect John was involved in a crime, the search could be considered a violation of his rights.
Which of the following scenarios would involve a potential violation of the 5th Amendment?
Police search your home without a warrant.
You are forced to testify against yourself in a criminal trial.
A public school punishes you for wearing a controversial shirt.
A law is passed restricting your right to vote.
2. You are forced to testify against yourself in a criminal trial
Alex is arrested for theft. Alex wants to call Amy to testify as an alibi to prove that at the time of the alleged robbery, Alex was with her. Amy does not want to testify because she hates Alex. Can Alex’s defense attorney ask the court to compel Amy to testify?
Yes, there is a right to compel testimony
Tom is arrested for stealing a bicycle. At the jail, he's sentenced to spend 48 hours in a small, freezing cold cell without a blanket or food.
Is this cruel and unusual punishment?
Yes. The Eighth Amendment protects against cruel and unusual punishment, and keeping someone in a freezing, foodless cell for 48 hours would likely be considered inhumane and excessive for a minor crime like stealing a bicycle
Police use an infrared scanner from outside Sarah’s house to detect unusual heat patterns, leading them to suspect she’s growing drugs in her basement.
Is this a Fourth Amendment violation?
Yes. Using an infrared scanner to search the inside of a home without a warrant is a violation of the Fourth Amendment, as it is considered an unreasonable search without probable cause.